Suit seeks $350K in chemical leak case
Carly Q. Romalino, @CarlyQRomalino 1:32 p.m. EDT July 22, 2016
(Photo: Google)
PAULSBORO - Students and faculty inhaled a toxic chemical at Paulsboro schools for two days before the refinery blamed for a chemical leak reported the hazard to school officials, according to a lawsuit seeking $350,000 in damages.
On March 18, 2015, Paulsboro High School closed early and 16 students and two teachers were sent to an area hospital. A leaking tank seal at PBF Energy refinery in the borough was pinpointed by police as the source of strong chemical fumes in the area, the Courier-Post reported last year.
The lawsuit filed in Gloucester County Superior Court last month alleges a chemical odor was reported at the high school on March 16, 2015, but the refinery's air monitoring equipment did not detect "dangerously high levels" of Naphtha until two days later.
The fume detection sent the school into lockdown, then an early release of students from the building.
The lawsuit was filed June 24 by two Paulsboro High School teachers, a school district employee, four high school students and two children attending Guardian Angels Regional Catholics School. The court filing claims those who inhaled the Naphtha, a tier 1 carcinogen, suffer long-lasting respiratory effects or exacerbated existing conditions such as asthma.
The lawsuit calls PBF Energy negligent, claiming it failed to exercise a degree of care for the safety of those filing the lawsuit.
PBF Energy does not comment on pending litigation, according to its spokesman Mark Wilgus.
Exposure to highly flammable Naphtha, a petroleum product, can cause headaches, dizziness, nausea and vomiting. It's odorless up to a concentration of 10 parts per million, according to the state health department.
Gloucester County Hazmat responded to the school the same day it was shut down. It detected vapor levels between 2 and 6 parts per trillion on the second and third floors of the school, according to 2015 Courier-Post reports.
Legal airborne exposure limits are at 100 parts per million over an eight-hour period, according to Occupational Safety and Health Administration standards.Wilgus told the Courier-Post March 17, 2015, foam was used to "greatly minimize" a strong petroleum odor in East Greenwich, were the refinery is located. The process took 24 hours, with air quality meter readings at no time being elevated, the spokesman said