Maritime Corps Base Camp Lejeune, situated in North Carolina, served as A significant U.S. army education facility from 1941 till its deactivation in 1997. Throughout its active yrs, thousands of service customers as well as their family members lived on The bottom, making it a lively and shut-knit Group.

Nevertheless, the latest revelations with regards to the contaminated water source at Camp Lejeune have elevated worries with regard to the wellness of those that lived on The bottom. With the nineteen fifties to your eighties, drinking h2o at The bottom was contaminated with harmful substances, including benzene, vinyl chloride, and trichloroethylene. These chemical substances, which were Employed in dry cleansing, degreasing, and metalworking procedures, are connected to many significant health conditions, which include cancers, start defects, and developmental Issues.

In 2012, the Division of Veterans Affairs (VA) identified eight disorders connected to exposure towards the contaminated water at Camp Lejeune:

Adult leukemia
Aplastic anemia along with other myelodysplastic syndromes
Bladder cancer
Kidney cancer
Liver cancer
Various myeloma
Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
Parkinson’s disease
For people who lived or worked on The bottom for at least thirty days concerning January one, 1957, and December 31, 1987, the VA delivers health and fitness treatment Gains for the above pointed out circumstances. In addition, the VA has proven a presumptive company relationship for sure disabilities, which means that veterans and their families can receive payment Rewards without having to confirm a immediate connection between their sickness and their military service.

Irrespective of these initiatives, several former citizens of Camp Lejeune still battle to accessibility the care and assist they will need. The VA has confronted criticism for its gradual processing of statements and its rigorous eligibility requirements, which many previous citizens believe that are far too restrictive.

It is necessary to note the contamination at Camp Lejeune will not be a unique concern. Many other military services bases and civilian communities have confronted similar challenges, Former residents at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune and the government has taken techniques to handle them. However, for the former inhabitants of Camp Lejeune, the wellness results of their publicity on the contaminated water will go on being felt for generations to come.

In summary, the previous citizens of Marine Corps Foundation Camp Lejeune should have our support and recognition for their service to our country. It is our responsibility to ensure that they have got access to the treatment and Rewards they need, and to operate to circumvent similar environmental dangers from influencing other armed forces communities Later on.