Boston Globe Reports on Silver Golub & Teitell's PFAS Class Action for Residents of Nantucket

October 11, 2024

The Boston Globe published an in-depth article on Silver Golub & Teitell's class action for residents of Nantucket whose well water was contaminated with dangerous PFAS chemicals resulting from the use and spillage of firefighting foam at the island's airport.

The publication interviewed several plaintiffs in the class action, who related how the contamination has affected their health and property and their worries about future effects. Joanne Skokan, whose levels for the type of PFAS in her system were roughly 90 times higher than the average American, told the Boston Globe: "There's probably at least 25 kids who were brought up on all of our properties from childhood to adulthood."

The cause of the contamination is Aqueous film-forming foam, which is used to fight fires and was routinely sprayed at the Nantucket Memorial airport during fire drills. Also, a contractor removing foam from a fire truck in late 2022 spilled it on the ground. Nantucket is particularly susceptible to PFAS contamination because its subsurface soils are mostly sand and are highly permeable, the Boston Globe reported. As a result, once PFAS gets into the soil, it can quickly travel into groundwater, and then drinking water.

Plaintiffs Albert and Anna Swietlik have the highest PFAS levels of anyone on Toms Way, the street where the contamination is centered. "Anna had always thought the water tasted funny, so for years, she boiled the water they drank. Now she knows that adding heat just concentrates the chemicals," the Boston Globe reported. "They always wondered, too, why the grass was always dead, no matter how much they watered it. Now that they’re on town water, it’s not a problem. The grass is green." 

Silver Golub & Teitell filed the class action lawsuit on behalf of the residents on October 7, 2024, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Margaret Ruley et al. v. The 3M Company et al., No. 1:24-cv-12564. It names manufacturers and suppliers including 3M Corp., Angus International Safety Group, Amerex Corp., Buckeye Fire Equipment Co., Carrier Global Corp., Chemguard Inc., Johnson Controls International PLC, Kidde-Fenwal Inc, National Foam Inc, Tyco Fire, DuPont de Nemours Inc., Archroma U.S. Inc., Chemicals Inc., Clariant Corp. and others as defendants.

Partner Ian Sloss, counsel John Seredynski and associates Krystyna Gancoss and Kate Sayed represent the residents.

Boston Globe: Their Wells Poisoned by PFAS, These Nantucket Families Want Justice (subscription required)