Sterigenics Lawsuits: Recent Settlement Gives Hope to Other Victims?

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Around 870 Sterigenics claims are resolved in a $408 million settlement reached by Sterigenics.

This statement was given by the sterilizing business on January 9, 2023, in response to litigation that claimed the release of the cancer-causing chemical ethylene oxide from their Willowbrook facility put people's lives in danger.

"We will continue to fiercely defend against allegations about our ethylene oxide operations and emissions," Sterigenics added.

A corporation called Sterigenics International works all around the world to sterilise pharmaceuticals, food, and medical equipment. For the sterilisation procedure, they have sizable ethylene oxide storage facilities.

Ethylene oxide can become hazardous even at low exposure levels, even harming the central nervous system. EtO can alter DNA at greater exposure levels, which can result in congenital abnormalities in babies.

EtO was designated as a Category 1 (highest risk classification) human carcinogen by the World Health Organization ("WHO") in 1994.

Four other tracts were discovered to have higher cancer risks, two of which were near the Sterigenics facility in Smyrna, Georgia.

Following the breach in July 2019, Georgia's Environmental Protection Division (GA EPD) looked into the Sterigenics facility. The Georgia EPD reports that there have been nine additional EtO leaks and/or accidents at the Sterigenics facility since 2015.

The Willowbrook Stop Sterigenics Pollution Campaign On August 30, 2018, a Facebook group called Stop Sterigenics was created to protest the facility in an effort to prevent the release of the carcinogen ethylene oxide and to protect the residents of Illinois.

On behalf of the plaintiffs Julie Cannell, Pamela McGonigal, and others, attorneys Power Rogers Smith LLP and Korein Tillery LLC filed the first class action case.

The first case to go to trial and receive a positive decision was Susan Kamuda's. In September 2022, the jury decided to award $363 million in total damages, including punitive damages.

Following the agreement in Susan Kamuda's case, Sterigenics decided to resolve more than 870 claims it had filed against the Willowbrook facility. On January 9, 2023, they revealed a $408 million settlement.

The Cobb County Board of Tax Assessors began depreciating the homes by 10% as a result of the Georgia Sterigenic facility's infamous reputation for threatening the locals. More than 100 homeowners from Cobb County sued Sterigenics for property devaluation.

If you are affected by EtO emission and plan to pursue a lawsuit, hire an efficient lawyer to steer your claim forward. Get the assistance of a medical record review company like LezDo to unearth the strengths and weaknesses of your case.

We can only hope that the Sterigenics lawsuit settlement increases awareness among those who live near chemical factories that generate dangerous gases.

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