Homeowners worried after pesticide misuse

Could be 'one of the worst cases' in U.S.

November 18, 1996
Web posted at: 10:15 p.m. EST

PASCAGOULA, Mississippi (CNN) -- At least 800 worried Mississippi residents have called the state's Department of Health since Friday, when they learned that their homes may have been treated with a dangerous pesticide.

Methyl parathion is intended solely for outdoor use. It is used mostly on cotton fields to kill boll weevils -- farmers are told to stay away from fields for 48 hours after they've sprayed with the powerful poison.

In Pascagoula, however, the pesticides were sprayed indoors to treat for cockroaches and other insects. Two Mississippi men have been charged with applying pesticides without a license, after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency evacuated 47 homes recently sprayed by the two.

Dock Eatman and Paul Walls, Sr., operators of separate extermination businesses in the Mississippi Gulf Coast town of Moss Point, allegedly sprayed methyl parathion in area homes, businesses, and schools as a roach and ant treatment. Residents alerted EPA and state officials after two infants suffered symptoms of pesticide poisoning.

The men are suspected of having misapplied the pesticide for between five and 15 years, according to Dr. Robert Hotchkiss, of the Mississippi Department of Health. EPA investigators are also looking into the possibility that they sprayed homes and businesses in Alabama and Louisiana.

Authorities say more serious charges could follow. Carol Kemker of the Atlanta regional EPA office said this case "could be one of the worst cases of pesticide misuse" in U.S. history.

Proving that pesticide exposure causes illness is difficult, Hotchkiss said. The symptoms tend to be nonspecific -- vomiting, dizziness, nausea, tremors, blurred vision and headaches are typical.

"So we don't really have a good way of differentiating this from a virus or any other number of problems. All that we can say is we have association, but it's hard to prove cause and effect," Hotchkiss said.

The state health department first became aware of the pesticide problem two weeks ago, Hotchkiss said, when a Moss Point church called them, asking about a yellow stain on walls and carpets and a foul odor after the church had been sprayed for pests.

The Environmental Protection Agency is trying to determine the scope of the illegal spraying. Six day-care centers have voluntarily closed; three others have been tested and are awaiting results. Two motels have also been sampled; one closed voluntarily, the other is awaiting test results.

Pesticides are widely used on the Gulf coast, which is a subtropical coastal plain. "Household pests are a major problem here. Primarily roaches, but you name it, and you get em," Hotchkiss said. The area gets only about three heavy frosts a year and is full of swamps, he said.

"As a result, the insects reproduce year-round. Humidity is very, very high, and the warm air from the Gulf keeps the place warm and moist for the vast majority of the year. It's a very hospitable environment for insects. Things like flies and mosquitoes reproduce year round," he said.

Methyl parathion is always labeled with a skull and crossbones and other warnings; users don't have to be literate to see that they are dangerous. So, Dr. Hotchkiss said, "I would have to assume they knew what they were doing."

 

Related stories:

• Clinton signs law regulating pesticides - August 3, 1996
• Turf battle rages over golf course chemicals - April 11, 1996
• Study focuses on weed-killer in water - August 17, 1995

Related sites:

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• Environmental Protection Agency
• ToxFAQs on methyl parathion from the CDC's Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

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