Mattawa apple pickers file lawsuit for spraying incident


Yakima Herald-Republic

Links
Email_black_18  E-mail           Print_black_18  Print            Talk_black_18  Comments
Advertisement

More 'Local'

  1. Pneumonia outbreak will force killing of 90 bighorn sheep
  2. Rollover crash kills Chelan man near Cle Elum
  3. Sunnyside shooting suspects sought
  4. Man shot in shoulder
  5. Yakima woman swerves to miss deer, receives minor injuries
  6. YVCC, CWU students protest proposed tuition hikes, budget cuts
  7. State Senate moves to toughen Washington cell phone driving law
More Stories:   Today's News | This Week

 

MATTAWA, Wash. -- Three apple pickers have filed a class-action lawsuit against a Connell-based pilot for allegedly spraying dozens of workers in Mattawa last year with a toxic herbicide.

Filed in Franklin County Superior Court in Pasco, the lawsuit seeks compensation for injuries the workers say they suffered when Bernard Eskildsen, a pilot with B & R Aerial Crop Care Inc., sprayed them with Clethodim, a restricted-use herbicide. The lawsuit says Eskildsen was spraying an adjacent alfalfa field but also sprayed 15 feet above the apple pickers while they were eating lunch.

The pilot sprayed even while workers waved their arms hoping to get him to stop, according to a news release by the workers’ lawyer, Ernest Radillo of Columbia Legal Services in Wenatchee.

Eskildsen has not yet returned a phone call requesting comment.

Approximately 60 workers suffered exposure symptoms, including headaches, nausea and vomiting, blurred vision, dizziness, shortness of breath, rapid heartbeat and tightness in the chest, according to Radillo. Most were treated at local clinics.

The alleged incident occurred Sept. 10, 2008.



Commentsicon2
Log in or Register to leave a comment.

Posting Guidelines - Updated Aug. 21 2009
Readers are encouraged to use these forums to discuss issues affecting the Yakima Valley. Debate the ideas presented in stories and other comments, but refrain from personal attacks and offensive remarks aimed at others; e.g., you may call an idea idiotic, but don't say the person is an idiot. The Herald-Republic reserves the right to remove any comment for any reason. Examples include material that is obscene, encourages illegal activity or stereotypes based on race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs and other factors. Continued violation of these guidelines can lead to suspension or revocation of your ability to post comments. If you believe a comment is inappropriate, you can bring it to our attention by clicking the "report violation" link by each comment. Guidelines revised Aug. 21, 2009.

Registered User?