On September 25, 1942, the area presently known as Marine Corps Air Station, Camp Pendleton, California was designated an auxiliary landing field and served as a sub-unit of Marine Corps Air Station El Toro. MCAS Tustin by Paul Freeman This field was originally built as a blimp base in 1942 as Santa Ana Naval Air Station. MWU3NmJmYTQzMjhjMGNlOTlkZGUzOGM5MmQ1OWVlYjZlZDM2OTRmZTUyYzEx I found it odd that a large amount of land at the end of Tustin's runway 24 was leased to a company to grow vegetables, with a similar arrangement in place at El Toro. this was before all the problems were out in the open. Though the Marines have refused to acknowledge full responsibility, county, state and federal officials say the El Toro base is the primary source of the TCE found in the contaminated ground water. The good news is that Tustin's Website includes the relevant Web links and the first few paragraphs about the base disclose the environmental problems. Lets go over the history of MCAS(H) Tustin chemical exposure and how West Coast veterans are still suffering from service-related illnesses based on testing and analysis. i have had abdominal problems since a year after being discharged. Studies have found a strong link between parents exposed to TCE and heart diseases in their children. TCE also causes cardic arrhythmias, I was diagnosed with Afib and PVC's in 2009. its interesting to hear all of you havi.g these colon problems and digestive priblems and cancers. YTkxZGNmNWUzNGUyNDU5ZTdkMTE3YWQ0MWM5NDNlYzVkYjE0NTMxNDcxM2Zi It was used to clean many other items also and Marines were never warned of its severe health-compromising effects. When you pass through the Marine Corps Air Station (Helicopter) Tustin, you will see two giant decommissioned blimps reminding you of the height of US innovation and their road to military success. we did have kitty litter sometimes. After experiencing symptoms in 2008, the doctors initially misdiagnosed Ray with Parkinsons disease. Four areas are currently closed, while eight are still in the study phase. Has Orange County been utterly devastated by TCE and PCE? Thanks, (I am in Portland). . I am going to site Camp Lejeune as possible proof that MCAS Tustin and El Toro caused these conditions. He does not eat strawberries anymore. I was stationed on Tustin and El Toro from 1992 to 1999 and a year later I was diagnosed with leukemia. See the California water data here. There are a number of Marines who served 1980 to 1985 that work in 610 & 620 shops in the vans at the 3rd hanger that have severe medical problems and also passed away from ultimately using cleaners that were know to be dangerous and the OIC's didn't warn the young Marines, but the Officers kept away from the hazards. To this day, these servicemembers are denied protections under the PACT ACT. My generation is only one; Salem-News.com writer Bob O'Dowd was at the base a few years before Roger Butow, and John Uldrich was there a few years before Robert, in the 50's. YWNiMzgzMTYxYmZjODhmMDFhYThkZTA0ODQ5YTNlZTI5ZWI0ODliODg4Yjlj Orange County salutes the Marines, 1988: map recto (MCAS Tustin) found : Tustin Marine Corps Air Station WWW site, Feb. 1, 2002 (Tustin Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS); the installation is approx. The VA has done very little to assist me in finding out what is going in. I later met an owner of a pesticide spraying company that the farmers on Tustin used to spray their fields. PO Box 149200. The Marines owe the county more than $108,000 in fees and penalties as producers of hazardous wastes and owners of underground storage tanks, Merryman said. Nobody in both sides of family has any of these problems. Tim, Thank you for reporting this. El Toro, California Marine Base contaminated with TCE and PCE solvents lot of information on sites below: A trichloroethylene (TCE) toxic plume was discovered in 1985 off of Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) El Toro, California. ZDc1ODgwN2VhNzk5ZWZjNjUwOGUwZTU3Zjc1ZmYyZmVlOGJiNWRlZTIwZjBi The Tustin Marine Corps Helicopter Air Station and El Toro Marine Corps Air Station have long been among Orange Countys largest producers of hazardous wastes, according to county records. I live near Tustin and have commented to my wife that I cannot believe they let homes be built around the base. Service members continue to get exposed to poisonous chemicals, and the worst part of all is that they are not aware of the damage from exposure to TCE and other chemicals while on duty at installations. I cannot support surgery of any type for my lungs as I would no survive the surgery. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency last year recommended placing the entire El Toro base on the national Superfund list for toxic waste sites. He past away in 2003 in Salem as a result of many medical complications. I still love the corps, semper fi. The Air Force failed to disclose to the U.S. Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs that George Air Force Base, CA had several radiological decontamination centers for aircraft and personnel that were involved the nuclear cloud sampling program in the 1950s-60s. As Roger Butow pointed out at the time, Agron knew damned well that the ground under the flightline was more toxic than anything we already knew about, they had no choice. Aircraft parts were then lowered in a basket into the vat. But he predicted that the Marines new attitude will be tested as water and health experts begin acting to clean up what is potentially the largest ground-water contamination case in Orange County history. The Air Corps Station in Tustin is fundamental to the overall history of the Marine Corps since people here patrolled California's coast during World War II. Tustin Markers The top of a hangar is partially visible between the apartment buildings. That is much much higher than the general public. Generated by Wordfence at Wed, 18 Jan 2023 19:25:33 GMT.Your computer's time: document.write(new Date().toUTCString());. It takes time to react., Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Im afraid for her life: Riverside CC womens coach harassed after Title IX suit, Want to solve climate change? This air station started working in 1942, and it's in Orange County, CA. During the Vietnam War, Tustin became a training ground for US troops, crew chiefs, aircraft pilots, gunners, and other military personnel destined for Vietnam. NGNmN2ExZDJmYWY4OGQyNWJhYzY2NzRiZmZhM2M0Y2QwYzc0YzZkNjkxYjQz NTdhZTU5NTE2MDFhOTA1YzgxZWFmMzFiNDk2ZDkzMzczNzdiMTVmYjI3M2Rl I also spent a few months in MCAS El Toro and Camp Lejeune. ERRG's value engineering analysis during the design process saved the client $100,000 by incorporating existing extraction wells . Date Posted: 1/23/2009 10:59:23 AM. The pits were used to train Marine firefighters to extinguish fires involving jet fuel in the event a jet fighter or helicopter crashed. Is there a connection? eyJtZXNzYWdlIjoiMmE2YWZkYWE0OTdiZmRlMjQ2MTE3ZDIyZGNkOGI2NDQ3 Some days, while urinating I would pass blood and large blood clots. At home, they think nothing of going out back and dumping a couple of cans of motor oil into the stream. The building has already led to two lawsuits. There are no drinking water wells located in the TCE plume emanating from the former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station. Cost in 2015 plus expected future cost of cleanup. The Defense Department needs to notify veterans, dependents and civilian workers of the contaminants and their health effects at EPA Superfund sites. I have two other friends who have similar issues and another with Lymph Node cancer.all of which served in the same unit at the same time on El Toro. To make that determination, the corps says that within the next year, it will use more than $500,000 from the militarys $400-million Defense Environmental Restoration Account--the U.S. Defense Departments special environmental cleanup fund--to investigate the suspected hazardous waste sites at each base. Tetrachloroethylene-contaminated drinking water in Massachusetts and the risk of colon-rectum, lung, and other cancers. Perchlorate Contamination in the Mather Air Force Base Water Service Area [HTML] HC Rancho Cordova, Sacramento County 5/6/1998 Aerojet-General Corporation Preliminary Health Reviews in Rancho Cordova, Sacramento County [HTML] HC Rancho Cordova, Sacramento County 9/2/1998 Barstow Marine Corps Logistics Base (a/k/a Marine Corps Logistics Base I feel confident that exposure to chemicals on base led to my AML. YWMyYjc1OGMxNzRjODIyMDQ2NDVkNTg1NmFmZjBkYTgzZDExMmRhN2E2ZmU3 When in service, officers give their lives to protect their country, but it is a real shame that they have to battle the Department of VA for benefits while on their last leg. NzI2NmZlYjgzOTI0M2NkNzVlMDg5YjFhZjY5MDNiZGQ1ODg3OWQ4Y2YyNWI1 Lower stomach issues are commonly related including intestinal colitis which one of my sons suffers from. I now have several medical issues that I believe are related to prolonged exposure to TCE and other chemicals. But thats not to say we dont have a long way to go.. Contact usfor legal assistance ad speak to one of our attorney-members under a free consultation to learn more information about your potential your toxic exposure claim and get it moving. Since my last post I have been notified by my primary care physician that I have chronic liver disease. If you are suffering from illnesses resulting from your time as a serviceman, it could be due to exposure to deadly chemicals. Some of the emails are posted at www.mwsg37.com. I was stationed at Tustin with H&MS-16 Aviation Ordnance from 1984-1988. We (me and my wife and drs.) A year ago, we were not very happy with the Marines, said Robert Merryman, Orange Countys director of environmental health. Semper Fi! In my case, I have a 30% non-service connected pension which is 1,072.00 a month. This California farm kingdom holds a key, Six people, including mother and baby, killed in Tulare County; drug cartel suspected, These are the 101 best restaurants in Los Angeles, New Bay Area maps show hidden flood risk from sea level rise and groundwater. Were El Toro Marines Deceived Over Toxic Exposure. The contamination is about 150 feet deep beneath the base and 300-700 feet deep in the community area . Concerned that further delays would only worsen the situation, the Orange County Water District launched its own $1.2-million investigation, drilling a series of test wells near the base. The TCE is far from the only contaminant prominent at El Toro, another is PCE - perchloroethylene, another chemical degreaser, and another is Benzene, a fuel ingredient that is extremely dangerous. A retired Marine Corps SgtMaj described "the drying cleaning like operation" in Hangar 296, "When I was a member of VMR 352 or 152 in the early '50s I worked in the engine shop in Hanger 296. . However, many do not know the history behind the blimps or why the Tustin base became the center of US helicopter operations and training for the Vietnam War. We do know that watershed also released these toxins into the water supply of the nearby community. The U.S. Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against the air quality district on behalf of all military bases in the region contesting the fees. I spent several years at both bases in the 1990s. Lived on base housing at both bases. NGNiNWE0MzY3NTFiMGMxZWEyNTA2YTM5ODIyNTJkODJlY2NlYTU0NjlmODA5 In 2011, Ray was officially diagnosed with a rare neuromuscular disease that left him crippled in a wheelchair requiring a respirator to assist in breathing during his last few months. In addition, a hazardous waste recycling program has been launched on the bases to sell unused or contaminated jet fuel, solvents, paints and petroleum-based products to civilian contractors. 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