Clean air buttons distributed by AQMD California State Senator Joseph Dunn , school officials, and environmental professionals met with Kennedy Elementary School parents in a town-hall style meeting in Santa Ana Thursday evening. The parents aired their concerns over health issues at schools and workplaces, including a rash of leukemia cases in the student population, and began a dialogue they have been working toward for years. Five boys attending Franklin were diagnosed with the same type of leukemia in Spring 2002, raising the initial concerns. Attempts to gain an investigation from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) into possible causes were not successful as the case cluster, though intense, still fell into the range of natural chance. During the corresponding time period, in December of 2002, the Orange County Sanitation Department had cited and fined Markland Manufacturing, a business located directly across the street from Kennedy Elementary, $21,000, a second time, for illegally dumping nickel, copper, lead, and arsenic into city sewers. These toxic substances have a range of health risks from carcinogenic to reduced IQ and increase in fatality risk. Markland Manufacturing is a steel plating company located directly across the street from Kennedy Elementary School. Next to speak was Franklin parent Socorro Molina. Her son Steven was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia in May of 2002, along with four others at Franklin, and she wants an investigation. She says apartment kids are suffering from leukemia and dying. Audience Another mother voiced concerns about her child: "My daughter had anemia . Next to where I live, there is a shop where they paint cars and cut metal, and it all blows toward me. When I called the city of Santa Ana, they told me to move. [This] city does not consider the Hispanics. I ended up calling the police. [When they arrived], they said 'is it life or death, because otherwise we are going to leave'. I want you [AQMD] to pay attention to not only to large businesses, but to the small stuff."
Clean air buttons distributed by AQMD State Senator , school officials, and environmental professionals met with Kennedy Elementary School parents in a town-hall style meeting in Santa Ana Thursday evening. The parents aired their concerns over health issues at schools and workplaces, including a rash of cases in the student population, and began a dialogue they have been working toward for years. Five boys attending Franklin were diagnosed with the same type of leukemia in Spring 2002, raising the initial concerns. Attempts to gain an investigation from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) into possible causes were not successful as the case cluster, though intense, still fell into the range of natural chance. During the corresponding time period, in December of 2002, the Orange County Sanitation Department had cited and fined Markland Manufacturing, a business located directly across the street from Kennedy Elementary, $21,000, a second time, for illegally dumping , , , and into city sewers. These toxic substances have a range of health risks from carcinogenic to reduced IQ and increase in fatality risk. Markland Manufacturing is a steel plating company located directly across the street from Kennedy Elementary School. Next to speak was Franklin parent Socorro Molina. Her son Steven was diagnosed with in May of 2002, along with four others at Franklin, and she wants an investigation. She says apartment kids are suffering from leukemia and dying. Audience Another mother voiced concerns about her child: "My daughter had . Next to where I live, there is a shop where they paint cars and cut metal, and it all blows toward me. When I called the city of Santa Ana, they told me to move. [This] city does not consider the Hispanics. I ended up calling the police. [When they arrived], they said 'is it life or death, because otherwise we are going to leave'. I want you [AQMD] to pay attention to not only to large businesses, but to the small stuff."
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California State Senator Joseph Dunn
State Senator
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leukemia
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Center
Centers
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nickel, copper, lead, and arsenic
, , , and
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acute lymphocytic leukemia
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anemia