More than 100 military family members and civilians who were on the Navy’s Joint Base Pearl Harbor- Hickam drinking water system when it was contaminated with jet fuel in 2021 have joined a lawsuit suing the federal government, alleging military officials provided inadequate medical care in the days and months following the emergency.
The initial lawsuit was filed in August on behalf of four military families who say their exposure to the contamination resulted in long-term health problems. An amended complaint filed Thursday in U.S. District Court also claims that the Navy destroyed evidence by discarding hundreds of water samples collected from homes in the days after the November 2021 water contamination emergency.
The lawsuit cites reporting by the Honolulu Star- Advertiser in September that found the Navy had collected hundreds of water samples from homes in the days after military families began complaining that they were getting sick and could smell fuel odors emanating from their faucets, but never tested them for petroleum. Instead, the Navy tested the samples for total organic carbon, a rough screening tool that can indicate water is contaminated, but not with what. The Navy said it discarded the samples after one month of storage.
“News reports have revealed that the government destroyed water sample vials collected from over one thousand family homes — every sample taken. Water samples that could have revealed the chemicals present in these family’s waters — for health and for accountability — were trashed instead,” the complaint states. “This destruction of the evidence has robbed plaintiffs of the opportunity to know what was in their water.”
The lawsuit claims that the destruction of the water samples will make it harder for families to prove their case because the federal government will “seek to minimize its damages by claiming minimal exposure of plaintiffs to minimally contaminated water.”
The Navy told the Star- Advertiser earlier this year that during the initial response to the November 2021 water contamination emergency, there wasn’t enough lab capacity on the mainland to analyze all of the samples for petroleum chemicals and that in testing for total organic carbon it sought to identify areas on the water system where contamination may be present. The Navy said some of the early samples collected from homes weren’t tested at all after it became clear that its drinking water system was indeed contaminated with jet fuel and would need to be flushed anyway.
The Navy did send some early samples that it collected from public locations, such as community centers, to labs to test for petroleum.
A Navy spokesperson said the Navy doesn’t comment on current litigation.
The plaintiffs are represented by Just Well Law, based in Austin, Texas, and Honolulu’s Hosoda Law Group.
“Our legal team is working hard to hold the Navy accountable for its conduct before, during and after the Red Hill contamination,” said attorney Kristina S. Baehr of Just Well Law in a news release. “Our case has gained momentum and our investigation continues.”
The lawsuit seeks damages for past and future health problems, including physical pain and emotional distress, that resulted from the water contamination, among other damages.
Long-term impacts
In late November 2021, military and civilian families on the Navy’s drinking water system that serves about 93,000 people at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and surrounding neighborhoods began reporting skin rashes, headaches, nausea and vomiting, and burning in their throats and mouths as a result of the jet fuel contamination in their water. Many residents said the symptoms resolved once they stopped using the water, which was declared safe earlier this year by the state Department of Health.
But some people have reported ongoing symptoms, including plaintiffs who have joined the lawsuit. They’ve reported symptoms such as neurological problems, persistent headaches and brain fog.
Amanda Zawieruszynski, one of the new plaintiffs, said she was living in Halsey Terrace when her family was exposed to the jet fuel. Zawieruszynski said she ended up in the emergency room because her throat and mouth hurt so badly that she was unable to eat. She says her doctor told her that she had chemical burns in her mouth and throat. She said that her three children also exhibited symptoms, particularly her middle child, who was 13 years old at the time.
“Her whole body was hurting. Her head was in a lot of pain, and her throat, she kept saying was burning, it was like on fire,” Zawieruszynski told the Star-Advertiser.
Zawieruszynski said her children have continued to suffer from headaches and body pains but that her health has been affected the most. After continuing to suffer from severe headaches, she says that she was eventually diagnosed with occipital neuralgia, which, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, causes piercing, electric shock-like pain in the upper neck and head.
Zawieruszynski said she’s had to have six injections in her head every four months to numb the pain.
Daniel Traina, a disabled veteran, and his family also have joined the lawsuit as plaintiffs. Traina suffered a stroke two years ago and suspects he suffered another stroke a couple of months later, according to the lawsuit. But his health had improved to the point that he was back to surfing and enjoying outdoor activities with his family.
When his water was contaminated with jet fuel, he said, the smell permeated his house. Traina, who was 38 years old at the time, immediately fell to the floor, having lost all feeling on one side of his body, and had a splitting migraine, according to the lawsuit. He was rushed to Tripler Army Medical Center, where he stayed for the next six days. He continues to suffer from serious health problems and has been juggling seven medical appointments a week, according to the complaint.
Not all of the plaintiffs who have joined the lawsuit claim long-term physical health effects.
Navy officials, in the months following the water contamination crisis, have said that they haven’t seen chronic, long-term health effects from the water contamination.
During a Red Hill meeting Wednesday that included federal and state health regulators and Navy officials, Dr. Jennifer Espiritu, an emergency officer with the Defense Health Agency and chief of public health at Tripler Army Medical Center, said evidence of long-term physical health effects was still lacking.
“The trauma from this unprecedented event understandably continues to be a top concern in our community, and any ongoing health symptoms should be investigated and understood,” she said, adding that the Defense Health Agency was working with partners such as DOH to understand ongoing symptoms that may be related to exposure. “To date, no evidence-based explanation has been identified to account for these ongoing symptoms.”
