Toxic Spills Due to Hurricanes May Cause Lasting Damage

Among the damage caused by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina are oil and chemical spills from refineries and other factories along the southern coast of the United States. A Houston Chronicle review of data from the National Response Center shows that the two hurricanes caused at least 595 spills, releasing enormous amounts of oil, natural gas and other chemicals into the air, soil and water.

"The quantity and cumulative magnitude of the 595 spills, which were spread across four states and struck offshore and inland, rank these two hurricanes among the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history," according to the Houston Chronicle. "Some have even compared the total amount of oil released — estimated at 9 million gallons — to the tragedy of Exxon Valdez."

The two storms also swept through 54 hazardous-waste sites, and in some communities stirred up and released pollution and toxic materials that had been stored at those facilities.

Meanwhile, residents returning to their homes and finding widespread contamination from the spills can't help but wonder if cleaning up the mess will be enough. Will their homes and communities ever be safe again?

"This is about the tenth disaster I have responded to, and this is the worst I have ever seen," said Wally Cooper, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's on-scene coordinator, told the Chronicle about just one of the spills, which released approximately 1 million gallons of oil over a one square mile area near Chalmette, LA, about 10 miles southeast of New Orleans. "This is worse than the worst-case scenario."

Read the full story in the Houston Chronicle.