| A federal jury awarded $1.6 million Wednesday to an Ohio woman who said she developed kidney cancer after drinking water contaminated with the chemical C8 that was discharged from a DuPont plant near Parkersburg.
The case is the first of thousands of personal-injury lawsuits filed by residents of the Mid-Ohio Valley against DuPont, and Wednesday's verdict could influence how those future cases are handled. A second test case is scheduled for November.
Carla Bartlett, 59, of Guysville, Ohio, blamed her cancer on drinking water from the Ohio River that was contaminated with C8, which also is known as perfluorooctanoate acid, or PFOA, DuPont's Washington Works plant in Wood County began using C8 in the 1950s as a processing agent to make Teflon and other nonstick products, oil-resistant paper packaging and stain-resistant textiles.
The award to Bartlett included $1.1 million for damages arising from DuPont's negligence and $500,000 for the woman's emotional distress, according to a news release from Hill Peterson Carper Bee and Deitzler of Charleston, one of the three law firms that filed the original class-action lawsuit against DuPont in 2001.
"DuPont's conduct was egregious â dumping the chemical into community water sources with full knowledge that it would likely cause cancer and other diseases among the residents," attorney Harry Deitzler said in the release. "Hopefully this verdict will send a message to DuPont and others who engage in similar conduct placing profits ahead of people."
A DuPont spokesman said the company disagrees with the verdict and plans to appeal ...
READ REST OF STORY Jury awards woman $1.6M in first C8 lawsuit against DuPont from staff, wire reports for the Charleston Gazette-Mail
READ HUR HERALD WHAT ME WORRY? WEST VIRGINIA'S TEFLON TOXIN - How Dupont Slipped Past The EPA
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