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Dangerous Weed Killers and Pesticides


Attorneys Helping People Injured by Herbicides and Pesticides

Most of us have used herbicides and pesticides on our yards. We may not always read the labels or realize how dangerous these products that kill weeds and bugs can be. In some cases, a manufacturer may be liable for medical conditions caused by the use of these products.

The Smith Law Center, the largest personal injury firm on the Virginia Peninsula, handles these kinds of specialized cases. It’s an area of the law that few other injury law firms take on.

While it can be very clear when a client has been hurt in an accident on the highway or at a business, the health impact of weed killers and pesticides are less obvious and may set in over time.

However, there is very clear evidence that some of the most popular garden products cause serious conditions.

Roundup is Linked to Cancer

One of the highest profile claims against a herbicide manufacturer involves the commonly used Roundup weed killer.

Recently, cancer researchers reported that glyphosate, a major ingredient in Roundup, is likely carcinogenic to humans.

A report compiled by the International Agency for Research on Cancer investigated organophosphate herbicides. It linked the popular herbicide to lymphoma.

Almost 800 cancer patients are suing Monsanto, the maker of Roundup, claiming the giant agriculture company failed to warn Roundup users about the risk of cancer associated with the product.

More than 365 lawsuits against Monsanto were centralized in multidistrict litigation. The plaintiffs claim exposure to glyphosate caused non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (NHL).

Roundup is associated with other serious side-effects including:

  • Leukemia
  • Bone Cancer
  • Renal Cell Carcinoma (cancer of the kidneys)
  • Multiple Myeloma
  • B-cell Lymphoma
  • Skin tumors
  • Chromosomal Damage
  • Damage to the DNA

 

Claims that Roundup is linked to cancer follow a 2015 report from the International Agency for Research on cancer. This division of the World Health Organization declared glyphosate to be “probably carcinogenic,” reported CBS.

The report linked glyphosate to cancer in lab tests on animals and found the chemical damaged DNA in human cells.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is in the process of evaluating glyphosate, a standard procedure for chemicals every 15 years.

Experts appeared in court in March 2018 to give evidence about Roundup chemicals.  A study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute stated that among the 54,000 farmers studied, glyphosate did not appear to create an elevated risk of almost any cancer. The study stated just one particular type of cancer, acute myeloid leukemia (AML), appeared to be linked to glyphosate.

However, these findings are disputed by lawyers representing hundreds of people who say they suffered health symptoms after using Roundup.

Dangerous Pesticides May Harm the Development of Children

Many pesticides have been linked to a wide range of symptoms. However, watchdogs are often slow to take action.

A series of studies point to a link between chlorpyrifos, a chemical commonly used in pesticides and a range of disorders in children including ADHD, autism, lower intelligence and the kinds of tremors associated with Parkinson’s Disease. Many of these disorders are lifetime conditions.

Chlorpyrifos was patented by Dow Chemical more than 50 years ago. It’s a multi-purpose insecticide that’s used for everything from treating household pets with fleas to protecting crops from mites. Trade names include Lock-On, Lorsban, Cobalt, and Dursban.

As long ago as 2000, Mother Jones reported how a voluntary agreement with Dow appeared to have removed the product from shelves.

On the back of reports of hundreds of children being rendered ill by the pesticide, the EPA said it was stopping the manufacture of the chemical. However, the EPA did not ban Dursban, or recall the product already on store shelves.

The agency did nothing to limit the use of scores of chemically related pesticides called organophosphates that remain on the market.

Call an Experienced Virginia Herbicide and Pesticide Injury Lawyer

The attorneys at the Smith Law Center are listed among the Best Lawyers in America and handle of personal injury and chemical exposure cases. Call us at (757) 244-7000.

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If you or a relative had a severe reaction to military housing mold, it might be time to talk with a toxic mold lawyer. Mold is everywhere, and can be dangerous. Researchers have linked mold to serious respiratory illnesses in some individuals.

Smith Law Center may be able to help if a property owner failed to keep you safe from mold in your military housing. We are one of Virginia’s oldest and most successful firms. We know how to hold negligent property owners responsible, especially when the military is involved.

Call us at (757) 244-700 or contact us online to set up a free consultation. There’s no fee for learning more about Virginia mold laws, your rights, and your legal options.

Mold in Military Housing

Black mold in military housing became widely known when Reuters published an investigation in 2018. Since then, the Department of Defense and the housing providers were supposed to take steps to improve the situation.

Unfortunately, a 2020 audit by the DoD Office of Inspector General found many issues, including the need for mold remediation, still persist.

Monetary Awards in Military Housing Toxic Mold Cases

If the property owner lets toxic mold run wild and continue to cause you harm, talk with our toxic mold attorneys about filing a lawsuit.

You may receive financial compensation for:

Service members and their families do not receive different types of damages than civilians. These are civil lawsuits in traditional courts of law.

Military Housing Mold Toxicity Symptoms

The Institute of Medicine discovered there was evidence connecting exposure to indoor mold with:

  • Upper respiratory tract symptoms;
  • Coughing;
  • Wheezing;
  • Asthma symptoms in individuals with asthma; and
  • Hypersensitivity pneumonitis in individuals with weak immune systems.

There is also limited evidence that mold causes respiratory illnesses in healthy children or causes people to develop asthma.

Understanding Exposure to Toxic Mold in Military Housing

The topic of toxic mold is complicated. This Is in part because the term “toxic mold” isn’t accurate. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explains mold isn’t toxic or poisonous. However, some molds are toxigenic, which means they produce toxins called mycotoxins.

Mold is common in military housing because it’ll grow anywhere there’s moisture. That includes on and inside walls, carpet, upholstery, wallpaper, and heating and air conditioning systems. This is especially pronounced in humid conditions such as those present in Virginia.

Some people have no difficulties around mold, even large infestations in their homes. Other individuals are sensitive to molds, including those that produce mycotoxins. Someone can have a severe reaction when exposed to a large amount of mold indoors.

People may be more likely to experience mold toxicity symptoms if they have:

  • Allergies,
  • An underlying lung disease,
  • Immune suppression,
  • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder,
  • Asthma, or
  • Another chronic respiratory disease.

Common Types of Military Housing Mold

When you’re trying to learn more from the CDC and other resources, you’ll see the word “fungus” a lot. Mold is a type of fungus, which is something that exists all around us. Fungi are living organisms different from animals, plants, and bacteria. There are over 200,000 types of fungi and over 100,000 types of molds.

If you discovered mold in your military housing, it could be Cladosporium, Penicillium, Stachybotrys chartarum, Aspergillus, or many other types. Stachybotrys is what everyone knows as black mold. Aspergillus is a common indoor fungus, which releases mycotoxins and can cause illness. Your symptoms may resemble common allergy or asthma symptoms.

Who is Liable for Military Housing Mold?

Since 1996, most military housing has come under the management of private companies:

  • Belfour Beatty Communities: Fort Eustis and Fort Story/li>
  • Lincoln Military Housing: Dahlgren, Little Creek, Naval Station Norfolk, Northwest Annex, Oceana, Portsmouth, Quantico, and Yorktown/li>
  • Hunt Military Communities: Fort Lee and Langley AFB

Outside of Virginia, Lendlease and Corvias Military Living are two more housing providers. Together, these five companies formed the Military Housing Association.

Military families living in on-base housing must take their complaints to their private management company — not the military. The company is responsible for providing habitable conditions and making repairs, including mold remediation.

If you’re unsure about your rights, review your state law and local ordinances about mold. In general, it’s the landlord’s responsibility to provide a habitable unit, which means it has to be safe to live in. A unit isn’t safe if it’s causing a tenant health issues due to mold.

The Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act requires landlords to disclose if there’s mold in the written report of the move-in inspection. If a tenant discovers visible mold in the unit, then the Act requires the landlord to remove the mold and relocate the tenant until it’s gone at no additional cost to the tenant.

Unfortunately, many families find their housing providers aren’t receptive to complaints. Attorney Stephen M. Smith has handled many mold lawsuits against military housing providers who fail to abide by their lease terms and the law when it comes to mold remediation and other hazards.

Other Hazards in Military Housing

Many service members and their families deal with uncomfortable, if not hazardous, conditions in privatized military housing, including:

Lead Paint: Lead-based paint can cause headaches, nausea, fatigue, irritability, behavioral problems, learning disabilities, seizures, organ damage, and in extreme cases, death.

Asbestos: Exposure to asbestos harms a person’s lungs, and can lead to lung fibrosis (scarring), lung cancer, and mesothelioma.

Radon: Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer after smoking. It naturally forms underground, however cracks and gaps in buildings lead to over-exposure indoors.

Poor Water Quality: Dozens of military sites have water with detectable levels of harmful chemicals.

Other issues involve rodent or insect infestations, pesticides, and faulty electrical wiring.

What Happens When a Lot of People Get Sick?

Sometimes mold exposure impacts a single individual or family. However, when the mold spreads throughout military housing, it can impact hundreds or thousands of people.

Occasionally, a large enough group of people are injured to allow for a class action or mass tort lawsuit. A class action lawsuit is one where a class representative acts as the plaintiff on behalf of the group of hurt individuals. Not every victim participates in the lawsuit. There are rules about when a group is big and similar enough to create a class action.

Mass tort lawsuits are different. When there are fewer plaintiffs who have their own set of circumstances, each person files a lawsuit. For efficiency’s sake, one or a couple of law firms may represent most plaintiffs, and the lawsuits are consolidated in a federal court.

Call the Military Housing Mold Lawyers at Smith Law Center for Help Right Away

Mold cases come about in a few ways. You or a loved one may start getting sick, and after weeks or months of struggling to find answers, you finally realize your military housing has a mold infestation. In other cases, you struggle with visible mold and then become ill.

Once you connect the illness with the mold, it’s time to talk with a toxic mold lawyer. Reaching out to an attorney early helps you build a strong compensation claim. We know how to collect evidence, identify who is liable, and craft a successful argument for a settlement or court award.

Attorney Stephen M. Smith has decades of experience handling injury claims and has been internationally recognized for his work. He has litigated cases involving catastrophic injuries and complex legal and scientific issues. In 2019, he was inducted into the Virginia Lawyers Hall of Fame.

You’re in good hands when you come to Smith Law Center for help. Reach out online or call (757) 244-7000 to schedule your 100% free consultation.

Military Housing Mold Lawsuits: FAQs

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DELIVERING RESULTS SINCE 1949

We are one of Virginia’s largest and most successful law firms.

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Use the simple form below to send a message directly to our lawyers. We will respond within 1 hour or less during business hours.

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