Times beach disaster in Missouri left a considerable mark on the lives of the people back then as they were forced to move out of their homes. The disaster happened after the Meramec River busted its banks and as a result, the town was submerged. People were left homeless as the flood stage was estimated to be at 18.5 feet while the water crested at nearly 46 feet. After the flood, the city reopened, but only a few people went back to their homes in Times Beach.
Soils test were conducted, and the results were that the grounds contained PCBs and dioxin. However, according to a report by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the levels of PCBs were low, and so there was no cause for alarm. However, dioxin that was found in the soil samples proved to be a significant challenge. The dioxin levels were estimated to be at 100 parts per billion. Due to this, the people that had previously returned to Times Beach were instructed to leave. With such discovery, the town people were at a crossroad as the only way was to ask for a buyout through the EPA super fund.
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The other option was to clean up dioxin as there was no point of rebuilding homes in such an area given the environmental implication of dioxin. However, there were those with a contrary opinion about dioxin. These people argued that the dioxin was not a significant threat as it had been there for many years with no known harm and as such, they wanted to rebuild their homes. People who were once good neighbors became enemies. Some of them divorced as a result of these disagreements. More drift was to come from the buyout as people were not happy with the amount that was offered for their homes.
Marilyn Leistner, the town mayor then, suspected that Russel Bliss was behind the spraying of dioxin. To ascertain her claims, she conducted an investigation which proved her allegations. However, there were no laws regarding spraying back then, and Bliss was held responsible for other attempts other than that of contaminating the soils with dioxin.
Today, people no longer occupy Times Beach as it was turned into a park, with only one building which hosts a museum and a gift shop. Dioxin was the reason why people moved out of their homes.
