LOXAHATCHEE, FL -- More than a thousand people spilled out of the emotionally charged auditorium at Seminole Ridge Regional High School Tuesday night as representatives of the State Heath Department, who were ridiculed for offering too little, too late, attempted to offer sympathy.
"We are sorry for the loss of your children," said Shairi Turner of the Department of Health.” Sorry for the loss of your property values. We understand your frustration."
But it was quickly clear that charts, PowerPoint, and Geiger counter demonstrations weren't the kind of information the overflow crowd was after.
The meeting was held after the Palm Beach County Health Department confirmed what many families and scientists had suspected all along... that there is a 'cancer cluster' in The Acreage.
Dozens of people did not bother to approach the microphone that had been set up and shouted down health officials as they tried to explain their efforts to move the investigation forward.
A pediatric oncologist, alarmed by the cancers he is seeing, tried to offer advice and counseling to parents on the warning signs for pediatric brain cancer.
But the anger built up over 8 months of waiting, for what turned out to be the worst possible news, couldn't be contained.
"Every day this plagues us," said one resident. "Most people can't afford the insurance that would get their kids treated."
Pediatric brain tumors are the reason the state suddenly brought a sense of urgency to the investigations. But adults’ cancer rates in The Acreage are elevated as well.
There were passionate calls for testing of every single well in The Acreage. Demands that water be piped in.
The panel from the state was even heckled for drinking bottled water.
It was angriest public meeting on The Acreage yet. A venting of frustration, fear and exasperation.
Fears of a cancer cluster have driven down some home values.
Two big personal injury law firms, one in West Palm Beach and another in New York, have launched their own investigations into soil and water, looking for a smoking gun.
Many left the informational meeting early, shaking their heads as a panel of health experts looked stunned on stage of the auditorium.
The state says federal agencies are on the case but they could not offer a timetable if or when a massive investigation would begin.
