“It felt like my blood was on fire”

After a US Navy jet fuel leak in 2021 contaminated their drinking water – causing health problems, significant stress and potentially long-term damage – families in Hawaii sued the US government in what could be a landmark lawsuit, the Guardian reported.

What happens?

In November 2021, NPR reported that Hawaii “ordered the U.S. Navy to cease operations … after a petroleum leak was found to have contaminated Honolulu's drinking water supply.” The leak occurred at a storage facility that had recently been fined for violating key maintenance regulations, according to Hawai'i Public Radio.

Affected families, both military and civilian, found the Navy's response haphazard and largely ineffective. A written court filing by one soldier's wife, Nastasia Freeman, quoted in another NPR report, details the effects of the contaminated water: “I had a rash on my arms, sores and lesions on my scalp, feet and hands, accompanied by headaches. I had a very strange sensation that I had never had before – it felt like my blood was burning.”

At first, Freeman's family thought they had food poisoning from Thanksgiving dinner. The Navy “[waited] several days to inform the public about the crisis,” the Guardian said.

“It felt like we were being manipulated,” Freeman explained, according to NPR.

The government defended itself by saying that while the leak was “a nuisance, it was not large enough or of too short a duration to cause long-term health problems,” according to court documents seen by the Guardian.

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Why is clean water so important?

Flavored drinks may be trendy, but petroleum-infused water? Never.

After the Hawaii oil spill, children, adults and pets (even Freeman's dogs vomited, NPR reported) became ill with a myriad of ailments, including vomiting, diarrhea and rashes. People also developed “persistent health problems,” from asthma to seizures, NPR added.

Cases of water contamination (and delayed or no information to those who consume these toxic substances) are alarmingly widespread. This year alone, cancer-causing chemicals, toxic lead and lethal arsenic have been found in American drinking water., according to Environmental Health News and USA Today.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that annually, “waterborne pathogens cause an estimated 7.15 million illnesses and 6,630 deaths…resulting in $3.33 billion in direct health care costs.” Contaminated water seeps into numerous sectors: it can harm agriculture, the food supply, tourism, real estate values, small business revenue, and more.

What can we do for cleaner water?

As families in Hawaii fight for justice, many efforts are underway to prevent another disaster. Up-to-date water safety standards, government policies banning harmful contaminants, local cleanup projects, plastic alternatives, and innovative cleaning methods are critical to protecting natural resources, preventing water shortages, and ensuring healthy hydration.

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