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TOXIC SPILL IN MY HOME TOWN
ANHYDROUS AMMONIA GAS SPILL
WRITTEN BY CLARA
At l:40 A.M. sound asleep this night Jan. 18, 2002 I awaken with the horrible noise and shaking of our home. I got up to see what had happened. I knew it was a train. I get out of the bed room and there is this horrendous odor reaking everywhere. I called to my husband to get up, we have a horrible odor and he needs to help me find the cause. It did not seem to be coming from drains or anything we checked indoors. So I opened the door to check if it was coming from outdoors.........what greeted me snuffed out my breath, burned my eyes, & lungs. There was this very toxic chemical smacked up against our home suffocating us. This toxic fog, zero visibility, was white, thick, and you could not see a thing - up, over, through, or under. I quickly closed the door, and told my husband that this is a toxic chemical.....call the police station and see what it is. I called my sister in another part of town and she said no fog cloud cover or odor at all. She would come to get us. I told her she would not find us. The visibility is zero. She would not survive the toxic poisons......we didn't know what it was......WE WERE TRAPPED. The emergency radio and TV stations did not have anything on, just regular programing. Police station busy signals. Finally my husband got through and they said there was a train wreck but did not know what was spilled. We were told to go down stairs and put wet towels over our faces. We had a carbon filter running down there anyway, which helped us to breath. No rescue team could get in through the toxic cloud as no one could see or breathe. They left this entire part of the valley to die. They did start to evacuate people out where the cloud wasn't but the odor was. We had both and were totally trapped. People who actually thought they could leave got lost, cars stalled, they ended up hitting houses, other cars, and totally could not see, and some died. Deer, pets, squirrels, and birds died. It was horrific. We have a filtered water system in the house. We drew water, and took nutritionals, and drank lots of water through the night, held hands and prayed, listened to the radio to any kind of news to give us a hint of what happened, and what the toxic spill was. We PRAYED and waited on our Lord. My eyes burned and watered, throat swelled, lungs felt like they were on fire, ears plugged, and I have a heart problem, fibromyalgia, and severe life threatening allergies. As well as being allergic to medications. All complicates things. We did not get scared or panic. PRAISE GOD. We just waited on our Lord. We prayed and we prayed.
We also played a board game Sequence to pass some of the time. Then friends and family started calling to see if we knew and if we were alright, and if we could get out. We told them we were trapped, They will not send in any one as it was too dangerous. We heard latter they ordered a big amount of body bags as they expected many of us to be dead. There were buses that were designated as the "morque".
One of the train cars flew off the tracks hitting a house and ripped someone's bedroom in two while they were sleeping in bed.........can you imagine. These people were without electricity as well, so totally could not see even in own home. At least we had lights working. We have 4 filters since we live with allergies and we ran all of them. People expected us to end up in hospital. So far we have not. I had to see a doctor. I was sick for days & months. I still am not well. My life has been changed forever. I was coughing up blood. We do not know the long term effects and what dangers will come as a result of this. All we can do is pray, wait, and take one day at a time.
My chest still pains very much. My heart slowed down so much, I could feel my body shutting down. My breathing was labored. There was nothing left for us to do but wait on our Lord. He carried us through. This toxic cloud lasted for hours and hours as there was no wind and it just hung on us. Fortunately this was at night when most people were sleeping and many slept through it. My eyesight was poor from the poison, warbled speech, loss of balance, lathargic, and very fatigued. My husband had some of the same reactions but came out of it pretty good.
At one point I EVEN THOUGHT OF CHEMICAL WARFARE. We were so totally exhausted, bad headache, sinus trouble, very nauseous. & ill.
WE JUST THANK AND PRAISE OUR LORD FOR CARING FOR US AND WATCHING OVER US and PRAY THAT OUR BODIES WERE NOT HARMED TOO MUCH FOR NOW AND THE FUTURE. I PRAISE GOD MY HUSBAND WAS HOME AND NOT AT WORK. THAT OUR FAMILY WAS SAFE AND UNAFFECTED IN THEIR HOMES, AND THAT HE HELD US IN THE PALMS OF HIS HANDS GIVING US STRENGTH TO KEEP KEEPING ON WITHOUT SLEEP, AND TO CLEAN UP. OUR GOD IS AN AWESOME GOD AND WE PRAISE HIM FOR HIS GOODNESS AND PROTECTION. WHAT A GREAT FRIEND WE HAVE IN JESUS AND HIS ABIDING IN AND WITH US. THANK YOU GOD IN THE NAME OF OUR FATHER, SON AND HOLY SPIRIT!!! WE DO LOVE YOU~~~
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On one of my visits to the doctor I found out that as a result of this toxic spill and breathing in the fumes I lost over 70% lung function. I was put on a medication and have to do breathing exercises. We pray that I will come out of this alright and that my husband will be fine. We pray for all who have been involved and for strength and healing.
I love to sing. Now I do not have oxygen to sing, let alone carry a tune. Music has been my life. Now even playing piano is an effort.
I love to take long walks. Now it is a struggle to go across the room. One needs oxygen for everything they do. Doing anything with my hands or arms over chest high is a struggle. Ironing or hanging up clothes is a struggle. Simple things like bending over to tie my shoes is a challenge. Breathing in cold air is a huge challenge. Breathing in toxins from scented products are indeed a challenge and harmful. Anything chemical is toxic. Anything with an odor. Life is a challenge. I Praise God for each moment I can be up and around. I cling to Jesus.
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Now we learn that THIS was the LARGEST SPILL ever. 8-10 rail cars spilled.
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IN GOD WE DO TRUST!!!
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MY HEAVENLY FATHER IS MY REFUGE
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MY HELP
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MY FORTRESS
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MY REDEEMER
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MY FRIEND
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MY COMFORTER
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MY STRENGTH
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MY COUNSELOR
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MY GOOD SHEPHERD
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MY ROCK I LEAN ON
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MY REFUGE
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MY PEACE ~~
MY STRENGTH~~
MY ALL~~
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I WILL ALWAYS
GIVE PRAISE TO GOD!!
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THANK YOU GOD
FOR YOUR LOVE!!
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I WILL ALWAYS
L O V E
Y O U ~
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THANK YOU JESUS FOR HOLDING
US IN YOUR A R M S OF L O V E!
YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL!!
LOVE, PEACE, JOY, GRACE,
YOU GIVE US!
WE GIVE YOU THANKS LORD!
WE PRAISE YOU ALWAYS!!
WE LOVE YOU!!
Duane and Clara
