The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

PUBLIC health officials yesterday confirmed that nearly 100 people participated in the first weekend of medical screening clinics for Marathon residents who may have been affected by the Rubis fuel leak.

However, residents expressed fears that the tests being administered are not enough to determine exposure to cancer causing agents.

Charlene Bain, Administrator of Community Health Services, said that this weekend’s screening exercise provided valuable experience for both health officials and the residents of Marathon.

According to Ms Bain, residents from as young as 11 to seniors of 90 have received urine and blood examinations that seek abnormalities within the patient, ensuring that the “general health and wellbeing of the person is in order”.

Public health officials had identified about 130 residents as a result of the department’s home contact programme, which aimed to highlight “at risk” residents in the Marathon area.

However, Ms Bain said that only a small percentage of that group had, up to yesterday, participated in the screening exercise. The majority of those screened, she explained, were residents that came in, identified themselves as Marathon residents and requested to be screened. 

“Really and truly we don’t have an exact number of how many people we are expecting to analyse,” she said. “There were 70 persons tested on Saturday; 26 of those persons we asked to return on Sunday to complete their screening. Then Sunday brought in an additional 27 persons that needed to be screened.”

A number of residents contacted by The Tribune last week said that they had not undergone any testing or screening since the initial fuel leak in late 2012.

Winston Ash, a long time resident of Robinson Road, immediately opposite the Rubis service station, said while sitting in the waiting room of the Elizabeth Estates clinic yesterday his quest for a “measure of comfort” led him to come in for testing.

“I think what they should do is make it mandatory that all residents of Marathon be screened. These need to be done to bring some clarity to this matter,” he said.

“There is a lot of confusion at this moment because we all feel that we were affected. The more screenings are done, the quicker we can get a better understanding of what exactly happened and to what extent residents were truly affected.

“We haven’t been exposed to this kind of thing before so everyone is confused. You have to move step-by-step in this process. This is the first step. We don’t know what to expect and as soon as this step is done, then all additional steps can be determined.

“If we get the proper testing we can identify the necessary steps and move from there. If the blood and urine tests prove to be inadequate then we have to determine a different route, a route that can gives us a clear understanding of what we are faced with as a country and as residents.”

Mr Ash said he has urged his neighbours, family members and the entire Marathon community to get screened and take advantage of the clinics, if only to “clear their minds”.

Sitting a row in front of Mr Ash yesterday was a 44-year-old east Marathon resident. Requesting to remain anonymous she told The Tribune that the testing being done should be “in-depth screenings where the results are analysed by multiple labs” to ensure its validity.

“I feel that the blood and urine samples should definitely be tested for chemicals like benzene and any other cancer causing agents that we were exposed to over time. People have a lot to say about this so I hope this shows exactly what happened and what, if anything is affecting residents.”

According to the Bahamas Environment, Science and Technology (BEST) Commission, the fuel release was discovered in late December 2012 by former station operator Fiorente Management, and reported to Rubis in January, 2013.

A Black and Veatch International report found that Marathon residents were possibly exposed to harmful chemicals, including cancer-causing benzene.

The report was completed on February 20, 2014, but it was only made public by the government after residents demanded it be made public through a series of town meetings last month.