This week at Honolulu’s federal courthouse, families affected by the November 2021 spill at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility are detailing their lives since being exposed to jet fuel.
During the trial, up to two dozen so-called bellwether families affected by contaminated water could testify in court.
The U.S. government has already admitted responsibility for the Red Hill leaks, but now it’s arguing the contamination wasn’t actually enough to get people sick.
Kristina Baehr, the attorney representing the families, argues that the federal government is “presenting a conciliatory public face on the billion-dollar environmental cleanup, but continuing to avoid accountability and trying to discredit victims of the contamination behind the scenes and in court.”
Their symptoms were stress-induced and not a result of the jet fuel, the government argues.
Richelle Dietz, 37, lives with her family in a home connected to the Navy’s contaminated water line. She said the trial finally gives a voice to those affected.
“For my family in particular, I'm so excited to get to tell their story because a lot of the symptoms that my children developed are easily attributable to other things," Dietz said.
"But we know, very detailed, what our children's health is as parents, as a mother. I know what they had before November (2021), and I know what happened after — acutely and chronically,” she continued.
Dietz, whose husband is in the military, has two children — a 6-year-old daughter and a 13-year-old son. She and her daughter have been dealing with asthma since the fuel leaks, and her son now has debilitating headaches and migraines.
Even one of her dogs has become sick.
Dietz said her family still lives in the same home because it would be too difficult to move. She uses filters on their sinks and showers but still doesn’t cook or drink with that water.
“Every vegetable that gets washed and all the rice that we rinse is with bottled water,” she said.
Healani Sonoda-Pale, of O'ahu Water Protectors and the Red Hill Community Representation Initiative, said the importance of the current trial extends beyond the 7,500 families represented in federal cases related to the Red Hill leaks or even the 93,000 people connected to the Navy’s contaminated water line.
“This isn't just their story, but it's all of our story because of the water. The water belongs to all of us, and living on an island, we only have one aquifer. So, it's important to support these families getting justice,” she said.
The families are seeking damages for exposure to fuel-contaminated water in this trial.
