Clark & Martino, P.A., Files a Lawsuit against Raytheon for Groundwater Contamination in St Petersburg, FL

The law firm of Clark & Martino, P.A., along with other area attorneys, has filed an individual lawsuit against Raytheon, a technology and defense company. The lawsuit seeks damages for Colleen Galligan, whose St Petersburg residential property value is alleged to have been damaged because groundwater contamination from a Raytheon plant has polluted her irrigation well with hazardous waste.

The lawsuit was filed on Dec. 8, 2008 at U.S. District Court in Tampa, Florida. Attorney J. Daniel Clark from the law firm of Clark & Martino, P.A. is working on the Raytheon case with a number of lawyers including Scott Jeeves, David Caldevilla, and Craig Rothburd.

According to the lawsuit, Colleen Galligan did not know about the contamination until she saw an article in the Tampa Tribune in early 2008 which described a “contamination plume” underneath her neighborhood.

The lawsuit says the state, prior owners of the Raytheon property, and Raytheon were all aware of the contamination as early as 1991, but Raytheon did not notify Colleen Galligan of the contamination until several months after it was reported by the media. Due to the contamination, she claims that her St Petersburg home property value has dropped dramatically.

State records show the contamination has spread about a half-mile under the neighborhood surrounding the Raytheon property at 1501 72nd Street North in St Petersburg. The contamination may have polluted dozens of residential irrigation wells, in addition to a drainage ditch that empties into Boca Ciega Bay. The lawsuit asserts that the contamination plume contains elevated and unlawful levels of dioxane, trichloroethane, dichloroethene, and vinyl chloride, each listed as hazardous wastes by the US Environmental Protection Agency. These substances can cause many serious health problems and death.

The lawsuit says that Colleen Galligan’s irrigation well at 1211 Farragut Drive in St Petersburg is contaminated by the chemical 1,4-dioxane at a rate of three times higher than the maximum state drinking water standard.

The lawsuit filed on behalf of Colleen Galligan is separate from a May 2008 lawsuit filed by environmental law attorneys on behalf of other neighborhood residents seeking class-action status.

If you have suffered damages because of contamination by the Raytheon plant in St Petersburg, FL, please call or e-mail the law firm of Clark & Martino for a free assessment of your case.