Massachusetts man was haunted by toxins

[unhappycamper]

http://www.pressherald.com/news/mass_-man-was-haunted-by-toxins_2013-05-19.html

Ron Poirier died May 3 of esophageal cancer, which might be related to exposure to a toxin.

Massachusetts man was haunted by toxins
By ALLEN G. BREED The Associated Press

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. - Ron Poirier couldn't escape the feeling that his cancer was somehow a punishment.

As a young Marine electronics technician at Camp Lejeune in the mid-1970s, the Massachusetts man figured he'd dumped hundreds of gallons of toxic solvents onto the ground. It would be decades before he realized that he had unknowingly contributed to the worst drinking water contamination in the country's history -- and, perhaps, to his own premature death.

"It's just a terrible thing," the 58-year-old veteran told The Associated Press shortly before succumbing to esophageal cancer at a Cape Cod nursing facility on May 3.

"Once I found out, it's like, 'God! I added to the contamination."'