Calling themselves the Group Against Gas (GAG), the residents have been organizing meetings to educate each other about the hazards they face, get the facts about the spill from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), and discuss out ways to keep the pressure on local, state, and federal officials to take action to clean up the spill.

About 400 homes in this working-class community are affected by the spill so far, estimated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at a minimum of 50,000 gallons. The main source of the pollution came from leaking underground storage tanks at Tranguch Tire Service, Inc. Three other gas stations in the area also had leaking tanks. Benzene, a component of gasoline, is a known cancer-causing agent when inhaled.

Two years ago, most residents had no idea how large the leak was or what dangers were posed to their health by the fumes. In an interview, Pat Tomsho said she remembers coming home to strong gas fumes as far back as 1993. Officials of the Department of Environmental Resources (DER), the predecessor to the DEP, advised her to leave the windows of her house open for a week to air it out. Following that, tests indicated there were no fumes left, and no further tests were done until last year. Tomsho was never informed of the potential health hazards, which can take as long as 15 years to develop. Her home is two blocks downslope from Tranguch.

At a February 21 Hazleton City Council meeting attended by 50 members of GAG, a resolution was adopted calling on the mayor to declare a state of emergency in the Tranguch Spill Site. This would be one step toward having Pennsylvania governor Thomas Ridge declare the area to be in a state of emergency, opening up access to state funds. At a February 1 meeting of GAG, Robert Stevens, a resident of the polluted area and a member of the city council, received loud applause when he stated, "There is no alternative for us but to get out. We must impress this upon our elected officials. And, if it takes for us to go to Washington, D.C., then I say do it!" Those attending the meeting supported a resolution calling for a rally in Harrisburg, the state capital, and then in Washington if necessary.

All this activity has forced several big-business politicians to show some concern. In one week, both senators from Pennsylvania, Arlen Specter and Richard Santorum, and Congressman Paul Kanjorski toured the spill site and heard complaints from the residents on the unhealthy conditions they face.

Mauro Cabell told them that the dangers from the gas are "invisible. It's like a silent bomb. Nobody sees it. Nobody hears it." In response, Specter wrote a letter to Christine Whitman, the head of the EPA, asking that the homes be bought out. Santorum agreed to meet with Whitman on the spill.  
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home