{"id":43873,"date":"2024-04-30T00:59:45","date_gmt":"2024-04-30T00:59:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2024\/04\/30\/federal-trial-begins-for-red-hill-water-contamination\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T20:06:03","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T20:06:03","slug":"federal-trial-begins-for-red-hill-water-contamination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2024\/04\/30\/federal-trial-begins-for-red-hill-water-contamination\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal trial begins for Red Hill water contamination"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The U.S. government said Monday it took responsibility for jet fuel that leaked into a Navy water system<\/a> serving 93,000 people in 2021, but attorneys dispute whether the families who are suing were exposed to enough tainted water to make them sick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A trial for a mass environmental injury case began in federal court in Honolulu on Monday, more than two years after a U.S. military fuel tank facility under ground poisoned thousands of people when it leaked jet fuel into Pearl Harbor\u2019s drinking water<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of a jury, a judge is hearing about a lawsuit against the United States by 17 \u201cbellwether\u201d plaintiffs: a cross-selection of relatives of military members representing more than 7,500 others, including service members, in three federal lawsuits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to court documents, the U.S. government has admitted the Nov. 20, 2021, spill at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility caused a nuisance for the plaintiffs, that the United States \u201cbreached its duty of care\u201d and that the plaintiffs suffered compensable injuries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But they dispute whether the residents were exposed to jet fuel at levels high enough to cause their alleged health effects, ranging from vomiting to rashes.<\/p>\n\n\n\t