Built in 1941, the military base is located 12 miles east of Panama City, Florida. It was named in honor of Lieutenant Frank Benjamin Tyndall, a World War I pilot. In 2010, there were nearly 3,000 people living on Tyndall Air Force Base. As a consequence of severe contamination with multiple toxic agents, including PFAS, the military base was labeled as a Superfund site in 1997. Because Tyndall Air Force Base is still in use, members of the military who are stationed there are inevitably exposed to PFAS, a group of toxic chemicals, from the environment, which can cause numerous harrowing diseases.
During the last century, the operations carried out on Tyndall Air Force Base led to tremendous contamination of the soil, surface water, and groundwater. The Environmental Protection Agency is currently investigating multiple Operable Units of the military base for contamination. Because the U.S. Air Force initially refused to enter the cleanup program of the agency, the removal of toxic agents from Tyndall Air Force Base was delayed.
The research conducted by the Environmental Working Group found that Tyndall Air Force Base is the 15th most heavily contaminated military base with PFAS in the country at the moment. It has a PFAS concentration in the environment of 902,460 parts per trillion, whereas the permissible limit is 70 parts per trillion, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Consequently, the issue of PFAS contamination is very serious and alarming.
The source of PFAS on military bases, particularly on those of the U.S. Air Force, is the use of aqueous film-forming foam, most commonly known as AFFF, to extinguish jet fuel and petroleum fires. Military firefighters and trainees have been using this fire suppressant since 1966 to put out Class B fires, and it was actually invented by the U.S. Navy together with the 3M company.
Furthermore, in addition to PFAS, Tyndall Air Force Base is also contaminated with lead from shotgun shells dating back to World War II. This contamination concerns the soil of the aerial gunnery school training range of the military base. However, in 2009, lead was successfully removed from the soil, a cleanup process whose cost was $5.5 million.
Without a doubt, the most serious disease exposure to PFAS, especially if it was prolonged, can lead to is cancer. Unfortunately, there are multiple types of cancer the presence of these dangerous chemicals in the body can cause. The following are the diseases associated with PFAS exposure, as well as the diagnoses for which you can file a toxic exposure claim:
If you spent time on Tyndall Air Force Base and came to struggle with a disease that is the result of PFAS exposure, do not hesitate to reach out to our legal team to recover the maximum compensation you deserve for your suffering.
We have been providing legal assistance to members of the military and veterans injured by toxic exposure for over 35 years and are ready to help you file a PFAS claim if your health was affected by toxic exposure. In a 10-minute phone call, we will assess your circumstances to determine if you are eligible to file a claim. If you meet the requirements, a skilled attorney will promptly begin preparing your claim for submission. Eventually, with our expert assistance, you will obtain the maximum compensation you qualify for.
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