is jerry russell bliss still alive

Esther Hicks She traveled the country to countless rodeos, barrel races, and team ropings, often with her husband and daughter by her side. By narrowing its focus to a single, distant source, the EPA effectively eliminated more than a dozen local industries from closer scrutiny in the case even though Bliss also accepted liquid waste from them. Crystals used to make the antiseptic had been found in barn soil later used as fill dirt. Many people in town took part in personal-injury lawsuits against the chemical companies. And despite McClellans best efforts to engender compassion for him, Bliss remains an unsympathetic character to those affected by his actions. Several other sites were created because government agencies failed to prevent removal of tainted soil to other locations. Scientists disagree about how much it takes to put someone at risk. People here tend to talk about the flood more than the dioxin. Why put your tail between your legs and run now after you been living with it so long? The oil, it turned out, was laced with dioxin. Bliss son still lives on a Strecker Road property once owned by his father, from which the EPA only a few years ago finally removed more than 900 truckloads of dioxin-contaminated dirt in addition to an estimated 1,500-2,000 barrels of toxic chemicals. Obviously I have to depend upon them to do their job and hope that we do ours.. In February 1983, Anne Gorsuch Burford, the administrator of the EPA, came to grant their wish. Ultimately, there is probably more than one correct answer to that question. Over several weeks, 11 cats and four dogs dropped dead nearby. It was like everybody was related to everybody, Leistner says. Those who do return, however, are eager to have the EPA check their homes for dioxin and fill out CDC health questionnaires as part of a $500,000 statewide study of potential dioxin victims. The biggest fish appears to have either slipped off or broken the line, however. If the city approves their respective developments, Wurm and Byrne hope to avoid this legal pitfall by having buyers sign a disclosure form saying that they were told in advance of the lands history. "We're still paying dearly," local activist Yolanda Bohrer said. February 13, 2022 1 Min Read. Bliss could not be reached for comment. For four or five months, that site has been standing there idle. Then we left when they drug us out kicking and screaming, she quips. Yet the poisoning of Times Beach, and 14 other dioxin sites in Missouri and six in Illinois, happened long before that, a deadly legacy by industry and government from an era when there were no comprehensive laws to protect the public from dangers that few had imagined. Some, he spread across his own farm. Or they might go fishing in the river. Bliss, 48, who for years made his living hauling hazardous wastes and used oil from factories, has been quoted here as blaming a now-defunct pharmaceutical firm for failing to warn him of the dangers in its waste. But it was not until Piatt's horses began dying and her daughter became ill that CDC toxicologists believed something was dreadfully wrong. "If they had, I wouldn't have taken it. One state environmental official then dismissed the CDC as "overly cautious.". After years of trying, Taylor had finally attracted the interest of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In the past, Jerry has also been known as Jerry Russell Bliss and Jerry R Bliss. There are many epidemiological studies that showed health effects in humans exposed to dioxins, says Dr. Hana Pohl, an environmental health scientist at the CDC. Eventually, it was. This is especially true for 2,3,7,8tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, which is the most toxic and the one found at Times Beach. A 74-year-old grandmother, Leistner looks 10 years younger and remains as feisty as ever, with no plans to retire. "You'd tell people, 'it's got to be a chemical in the horse arena' and they'd look at you like you were nuts," she said. The bulk of the park is down below, across the river. Stuff flooded in for us to have Christmas like you wouldnt believe, she says. So do two of her granddaughters. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. During the Depression, a lot of the people in the city moved into their homes in Times Beach to ride out the hard times, Leistner says. Donna Lopers family moved to Times Beach when she was 6 months old. There was an appeals process that could net disgruntled residents a few extra dollars. One residence has had to be evacuated because of interior contamination. The paper had purchased the land from a farmer and rebranded it as a resort, a place for doctors from St. Louis to relax or catch a few fish on the weekend. One daughter had cancer and endometriosis. Thats why just about every physician will tell his or her patient to stop smoking cigarettes, Schecter says. And since the buyout checks were so meager, the residents couldnt afford much, anyway. More than 150 beverages delivered to woman's home without explanation. As things stand, Byrne Builders holds an option to buy the land from its current owners, Gerald and Patricia Primm. According to a 1981 IEPA document, Piatt recalled that Bliss possibly obtained waste from Monsanto. The IEPA summary goes on to state: Judy Piatt has a diary and pictures of such activities, but will not release these to (EPA) Region VII on the advise of her attorney., But perhaps the most damning indictment comes from Bliss himself. At the Lemar site, the dioxin levels are even higher. Meanwhile, Faron Rowden, a beefy bartender, is among 300 locals fed up with waiting for answers. I guess Wildwood is just going to have to look at it from a credibility standpoint, says Shea. JERRY-RUSSELL BLISS v. HAZARDOUS WASTE - Casemine Another possible alternative was eliminated in December, when the only available commercial incinerator licensed to accept dioxin-contaminated waste was shuttered in Coffeyville, Kan. No one is testing them. Taylors overarching complaint is that the EPAs focus was too narrow. The next day, he was sure that somebody was doing it to get even with him, Leistner says. Horses became sick, and eventually, Piatt would bury more than 50 of them. Evening Standard/Getty Images. William Powell was St. Louis Magazine's senior editor from September 2012July 2016. They conveniently avoid the giant ash pit. When I talked with the (St. Louis) Post-Dispatch, I got misquoted. When asked to comment last week, Monsanto spokeswoman Diane Herndon responded with this prepared statement: No information exists that any dioxin material was hauled by Bliss for Monsanto and so no material from Monsanto would have been sprayed on roads. Jerry Why were they in such a hurry to clean up the Callahan site? But as you see, Bliss drivers consistently stated that Monsanto was a client.. The kids all played together, she says, and we had birthday parties and invited all the neighbor kids. She misses being able to ride her bike to the mailbox or the store. Natalie M. Bliss, 58, passed peacefully on Tuesday, February 2, 2021, in her home with her husband and daughter by her side. Jerry As the offers improved slightly, many of the holdouts grudgingly gave in. Staff writer Dale Russakoff contributed to this report. Eventually, they moved into a place of their own and started a family. A venerable columnist, McClellan hedges his bets by saying Who knows? about dioxins dangers, rather than drawing any final conclusion. He was 80. Just little bullshit. This was hazardous waste It wasnt milk and yogurt.. One document that TBAG copied is a verbatim transcript of an interview conducted by an EPA official in 1980 at the Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City. Even so, he has consistently denied having any knowledge that the materials were toxic. Eventually, in 1985, there was only one couple left living in the town, George and Lorene Klein. A copy of the written request obtained by the RFT shows the agency inquiry is specifically focused on the disposal of hazardous wastes generated by Monsanto and the now-defunct Wagner Electric Co. Taylor and the environmental group have until the end of the week to provide the agency with the information or be fined $25,000 a day until they comply. You can see it, deal with it. Joseph P. Teasdale wrote a letter to Monsanto chairman John W. Hanley, requesting that the St. Louis-based chemical company pay for the cleanup. Some Times Beach residents evacuated, but many defiantly stayed. She remembers being able to let her kids run free without having to worry. The greatest surface concentrations, 169 ppb, are present in a wooded ravine, which is currently being fenced off. It appears that it is possible that certain leads werent followed up on because they didnt fit their theory of where this waste came from.. And some, he mixed together with oil in storage tanks in both Missouri and Illinois, before selling it as a dust suppressant. Man, I loved living down here, he says. The more you smoke, the worse it is for your health. But now, she turns indignant, her jaw tightening and eyes narrowing, seething at the people who dare to argue that dioxin never hurt anyone in Missouri. April 28 (UPI) -- A Nebraska high school said it broke a Guinness World Record when more than 1,000 students participated in a water balloon toss event. The EPA, Monsanto, and the Cover Up The way we understand it, Monsanto told EPA investigators that they did not hire Bliss end of story, says Taylor. Some were rescued in boats. To pad the citys coffers, it stationed a cop with a radar gun out on the highway. Flood stage was 18.5 feet, and the water crested at nearly 43 feet. Memories of the eviction are still too emotional. In the center of the park is a large mound where the contaminated houses were buried, since only soil was burned. The haul included drums laden with cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Denial of Application. Some even refused to shake his hand. He didnt want to look at all this shit. . But even in the heat of election season, Taylor is happy to carve out a couple of hours to make his case about Times Beach and the problems he perceives with the cleanup. Yet we know there are people who are not sensitive, because of their lucky genetics. In 1925, folks who paid $67.50 for a six-month subscription to the old St. Louis Times received a tract in Times Beach. April 28 (UPI) -- A British piercing enthusiast broke his own Guinness World Record when the number of flesh tunnels in his face increased to 17. Trailers were tossed about like bumper boats. Bliss then mixes the dioxin with waste oil. Her children helped walk the horses and worked in the stables, she says. A video of a man holding a Black Lives Matter poster in Harrison Former company officials said their warnings were ignored. He drove the truck for Bliss when Times Beach was sprayed. The only building that remains is a former roadhouse, now a museum and gift shop. An early EPA investigation found portions of the Primm property and three other adjacent parcels to be contaminated. Leistner has four children, three girls and a boy. Ive been to Monsanto maybe twenty times, Rollins said. Nobody knew it then, of course, but that oil contained massive levels of dioxin, far more than the oil sprayed at Times Beach. Six months earlier, shed met a young man named Jerry Akers, a Marine who was home on leave. Remedial action is mandated by the EPA in a residential setting at one ppb or higher. She sent a petition with hundreds of signatures to President Ronald Reagan, asking for a buyout. It was only by chance that officials discovered dioxin here two weeks ago after interviewing residents who recalled that a trucker had sprayed oil on their dirt roads to keep down dust a decade ago. A guard and a caution sign were posted at the entrance to town, a bridge that came across from the high side of the river, to keep people out. During the past few months, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has taken more than 2,000 soil samples from the park, which is located near the North St. Louis County municipality of St. Ann. Donna Reed Show (TV Series In addition to the oil that he picked up at lube joints, he also hauled sludge from industrial facilities. ", "I've eaten in it, inhaled it and rolled around in it and I'm in good shape," boasted Mayor Sid Hammer, repairing a neighbor's furnace in mud-caked jeans. By 1982, the Missouri attorney generals office had entered negotiations with two other firms, American Can and GK Technologies. ", Dave Covert feels bad about what happened. He remembers being approached by an official one day while he was working. In addition to receiving a firm ass-whooping from his father, Copeland was sentenced to an hour in jail. You cant tell me dioxin has never caused anything. But he was forced to do jail time anyway, on tax-evasion charges, since he didnt report his waste-hauling income to the IRS. The town is gone, but the people remain. In all, 265,000 tons of dirt from 27 locations would be burned. WebJERRY-RUSSELL BLISS, INC. is a Missouri Domestic Gen. Business - For-Profit filed on November 15, 1978. Dioxin levels here are lower, but wider spread, officials said. WebView the profiles of people named Jerry Russell. Survived by Gregory Russell (Melissa McGuire), Barbara Russell, many family members and countless ST. LOUIS -- Waste-oil hauler Russell Bliss, who allegedly sprayed dioxin-contaminated oil around the state in the 1970s, was sentenced Friday to one year in One year on Halloween, while the men were playing cards, the ladies sneaked away and toilet-papered the chief of polices house. Now, we might be veering slightly toward conspiracy territory, but again, Taylor shows restraint, making associations rather than accusations. Marilyn Leistner lives in a sturdy brick house on the top of a hill. A Post-Dispatch story dated April 4, 1983, describes the 500 cubic yards of soil stored at the Callahan site as being contaminated., A later EPA inspection showed that the land had subsequently subsided and would require stabilization. Bliss faces five lawsuits from property owners, officials said, and an unrelated indictment for tax evasion. "Hindsight would be wonderful," Lafser said. Its a thermometer with one-liners painted across its face. "Is it in the houses?" Sometimes its just best to leave well enough alone.. Man who sprayed dioxin says he tried to be responsible Its the sort of detail that might make Taylor seem like a conspiracy theorist. I didnt have anything to do with their money.. The single cell was only large enough for one, so the boys had to take turns doing their hard time. WebJERRY-RUSSELL BLISS, INC., Petitioner-Appellant, v. HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT COMMISSION, et al., Respondents. Further, the incinerator testing had a variety of shortcomings, which were enumerated in a series of stories by C.D. During the questioning, inmate Scott Rollins, a former Bliss driver, made a stuttering confession that he had picked up waste from Monsanto in Illinois. Jerry Russell Bliss, Ballwin, MO (63011) - Spokeo The sense of community, of belonging, made up for any financial lacking. I will bet you two weeks pay there is no dioxin on your streets, she recalls Bliss telling her. WITNESS SAYS DRIVER LIED ABOUT SPRAYING DIOXIN, https://www.nytimes.com/1983/01/27/us/witness-says-driver-lied-about-spraying-dioxin.html. No. Jerry Given these revelations and the luxury of six additional years of hindsight, the lack of prudence exhibited by the EPA and DNR at Terre Du Lac is indeed inexplicable. Others drove out through the rising water, trying to follow the roads they couldnt see. "I figure anyone who's been contaminated done been contaminated. Cottages on stilts were replaced with modular homes and even a few brick houses. In Taylors view, the EPA was more interested in making Syntex legally responsible for the cleanup than exploring the full scope of the contamination. "When I hear people talking about the effects they're feeling now, tears come to my eyes.". Those who returned were instructed to leave, and anyone who hadnt was told to stay away. Shipping the waste to Coffeyville would have been prohibitively expensive even if it had remained an option, according to one local official. But the company itself would still pay Russell (Bliss). Early 1970s: Waste oil hauler Russell Bliss is hired to remove dioxin from the tanks. St. Louis, MO 63119 Remember Times Beach: The Dioxin Disaster, 30 Years Later. It would be better to err on the side of safety, says Shea, than risk exposing people to more hazardous waste by digging foundations on the Callahan property and inadvertently excavating a heretofore undetected layer of toxic waste. She died less than a year later.. A dozen rabbits' ears were swabbed with a 300 ppb dioxin solution taken from contaminated soil residue. The liquor store doubled as a tackle shop, selling rods and bait. It's fear of the unknown.". Jerry Russell Bliss, Age 66. aka Jerry Bliiss. Is it in the ditches? We Those most severely exposed get follow-up physicals. The level of PCBs was low, not a major concern, but the dioxin was a problem. After Bliss sprayed the Shenandoah Stables in Moscow Mills in 1971, owner Judy Piatt watched barn sparrows die "by the bushel.". Taylors list of objections goes on and on. WebFor the first time Russell Bliss speaks publicly about the accident that forever changed the town of Times Beach, Missouri. OLeary (at right) came back to her house as soon as she could after the flood. Every morning, Bunch would come to the donut shop. However, we dont have any information that would suggest there would be. I saw people that lived in the community lose their jobs, their churches, their homes, health problems. JERRY-RUSSELL BLISS, INC He isnt here to argue that the Times Beach incinerator spewed poison from its smokestack. no. Former Driver's Testimony, Mr. Lambarth, who in 1971 hauled some of the dioxin sludge from the Verona chemical plant and later sprayed Mrs. Piatt's arena and two others, said Mr. Bliss had told him, in reference to the Verona plant, to ''forget that we picked that place up.''. Those same officials are now siding with the developers, claiming that the once highly contaminated land is no longer a threat to human health, that it is now safe enough for backyard swingsets and tomato patches. Slowly, the town grew. But she was determined to have Christmas. 'Fog of bees' briefly interrupts PGA Tour's Mexico Open. 67115. A Town, a Flood, and Superfund: Looking Back at the Times chemical plant, where the EPA presumes all of the toxins originated. Its clean as a whistle, says Wurm of the Callahan property. When a Missouri assistant attorney general asked the waste hauler in 1977 to identify his top customers, the first words out of Bliss mouth were, Oh, I would say Monsanto.. We do not have the expertise that the U.S. EPA and Missouri Department of Natural Resources have. Officials blame their inaction on scientists who once believed dioxin decays faster than it does. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the National MS Society . "But such a huge amount of dirt is not feasible to burn. Everyone in attendance says that if the town were reopened tomorrow, they would move back in a heartbeat. Bliss showed no emotion during sentencing before U.S. Dictrict Judge Clyde S. Cahill. Officials seemed to be acting as if the residents might be contagious. There are no signs to warn these park users that they are trekking through a hazardous waste site. The news, on the other hand, broke on the 22nd of December, with no mention of any accident. It went to the rooftop., Boo Sowards, a tall, muscular man wearing a Mizzou T-shirt, jeans, and work boots, grew up in Times Beach. People doubted that the water would even make it to Riverside Drive. But this blue-collar town beneath gray granite bluffs on the muddy Meramec River has become a symbol of a national trauma no one seems to know how to control. He operates a roadside attraction, a classic car museum in St. James, and he travels to flea markets. Theyve dragged me through the courts and I dont think theyre ever gonna quit, he told CNN. During its investigations in the 1980s, the EPA rejected all the sites that Bliss may have sprayed before or after accepting the Verona waste, claiming those locations could not have possibly been contaminated with dioxin from the Verona chemical plant. Waste was tracked to the Verona plant. After Bliss sprayed her stables in 1971, Piatts horses died and her daughter became seriously ill. To gather evidence for her pending civil suit against Bliss, the stable owner followed the waste oil hauler and his drivers along their daily routes. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Across the street in the park, a family of four walks with their two dogs along the asphalt trail that skirts the dioxin-contaminated site. As McClellan points out, Houk was the person who ordered it in the first place. She still blames me. She confronted Bliss, but he insisted he had used only crankcase oil. asked Bill Keffer, the beleaguered EPA engineer in command here. We feel that our residents should not be subjected to having that site next to them for an excessive period of time., On the other hand, the director of the St. Louis County Parks and Recreation Department, expressed unqualified satisfaction with the EPAs handling of the McDonnell Park site. The Registered Agent on file for this company is Evelyn J. Bliss and is located at 149 Strecker Road, Ballwin, MO 63011. We feel confident that our investigations were thorough, that we have followed up on every lead that weve been made aware of. Most lung cancer is caused by smoking, but most people who smoke dont get lung cancer. Meanwhile, EPA technicians stalk the town in "space suits," sanitary gloves and respirators, digging through muddy homes and debris and taking soil samples to see if the heavy floods washed dioxin-laced mud from the roadsides into homes. Ive got letters from EPA and DNR also stating that everything is cool on the property. But Wurm says he doesnt want to discuss the project in detail, fearing his plans will be misrepresented. My dad drove up on a little concrete pad and said, The water might get the tires wet. Shoot. "Thirty years from now we'll know more about dioxin's effect on people and it may not be as bad as we think, or it might be worse.". She currently holds the position of Senior Program Manager at The Walt Disney Company. This is only her second time coming to the reunion. Although the LaGarce lauds the EPA for its quick initial response, he expresses concerns about any further delay in cleaning up the Lemar site. WebJerry Russell Bliss, Age 66 aka Jerry Bliiss Current Address: ETZR Strecker Rd, Ballwin, MO Past Addresses: Eureka MO, Saint James MO +1 more Phone Number: (314) 580- JRRA +3 phones Email Address: n LITE @att.net +2 emails UNLOCK PROFILE Phone & Email (7) All Addresses (4) Family (8) Social (16) Court (5) And More Phone & Email ( 7) Back in 1982, she called Bliss and asked him, point-blank, whether he had sprayed Times Beach with dioxin. Bliss testified at a subsequent DNR hearing that materials found at the site had come from Monsantos research lab. Taylor says he is unsure whether he will cooperate with the EPAs request. And they aren't the only ones angry and confused. Downstream from the Verona plant, dairyman Bill Davis watched eight cows die after they drank from a river a half-mile from the factory where all Missouri's dioxin was once produced. Most of all missing accountability, Stelzer wrote in a piece titled Why the Times Beach Incinerator Should Be Shut Down.. They received modest settlements, but the victims were required to absolve the defendants of any future liability. Times Beach officials called the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, but it said it might be a year before it would be able to test. The rabbits died. It took until the early 90s for the state of Missouri to finally acquire all of the property in Times Beach. Bliss has said publicity about his spreading of dioxin to Times Beach and other areas forced him to turn over his waste-hauling business to his son, Jerry. Keep supporting great journalism by turning off your ad blocker. But it would be wrong to think that nature has only now come under attack in this part of West St. Louis County. But what we want is a modicum of honesty.. From the picture window of her ranch-style home, Lorraine Jordan has a view of James S. McDonnell Park across Adie Road, where an eight-foot tall cyclone fence is now being constructed. Well, no. Authorities were tipped in November to the spraying in Times Beach, much as they were tipped off earlier to 15 other contaminated Missouri sites. Another has a rare form of epilepsy. April 28 (UPI) -- A South Carolina woman won a $300,000 prize from a scratch-off lottery ticket just three years after winning a $250,000 lottery jackpot. Insects fell from the air. Even if he had known that what he was hauling was toxic, there were no laws against what he did. She compiled a list of where Bliss and his employees collected waste and where they disposed of it. The area has been fenced off and excavated. In an effort to control the dust, the city hired waste oil hauler Russell Bliss to spray them down, which he did multiple times between 1972 and 1976. '', Mr. Lambarth said that in a 1974 deposition he falsely denied ever hauling chemicals ''because I wanted to keep my job.'' Sid Hammers wife didnt want to stay in Times Beach, but Sid didnt see anything wrong, Leistner says. [1] [2] [3] Jerry Hicks died November 18, 2011, from cancer. Hes been sued repeatedly. Bliss sprayed dioxin-contaminated oil on unpaved roads, parking lots, truck terminals and horse arenas as a dust suppressant. She took it to the dry cleaner, but the owners refused her business. At the moment, shes trying to find the spot where her house used to be, but with the flower garden gone, shes just not sure. Jerry-Russell Bliss v. Hazardous Waste :: 1985 - Justia Law Whether the 88-year-old wants to be is another story. first published in the Riverfront Times (St. Louis), March 25, 1998 Copyright 2023 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. I would move back in a second., After the flood, he and his brothers began rebuilding immediately. Offers were based solely on square footage, which angered the owners of newer, nicer houses. But the fire was rekindled, and the remaining soil was burned. They didnt have anything. The only reference to Times Beach is a single display in a corner of the museum. It remains a priority. Our city adopted a resolution asking them to remedy this problem as quickly and efficiently as possible, says LaGarce. Did Times Beach officials know their city was high on the list? Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Only Bliss actually knows how much he knew about what he was hauling. The Vietnam veterans got a huge settlement, Taylor says. As these families were being made their offers, they were taking the money and running, Leistner says.

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