LONG ISLAND, NY--(Marketwired - February 22, 2018) - Napoli Shkolnik PLLC has filed a lawsuit against five manufacturers of aqueous firefighting foams ("AFFF") containing perfluorooctanesulfonic acid ("PFOS") and perfluorooctanoic acid ("PFOA") for the contamination of the groundwater relied upon by its 7,000 customers of the Hampton Bays Water District. The complaint was filed in the Supreme Court for the State of New York, Suffolk County, and names the The 3M Company, Tyco Fire Products L.P., Buckeye Fire Equipment Company, National Foam, Inc. and Chemguard Inc. as the defendants.

As part of the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Third Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule, the Hampton Bays Water District detected two perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), PFOA and PFOS, in the raw water serving its Well 1-1, prompting the Water District to take the well off-line in May, 2016. Additional monitoring of the other two wells at the well field also showed PFOS and PFOA contamination resulting in the closure of those wells in the summer and fall of 2017. The Complaint seeks to recover past and future treatment costs for the total removal of the chemicals from the production water served to the customers, which will run into the tens of millions of dollars.

"These persistent and toxic chemicals should have never been produced and released into the environment. It is vital we hold these companies accountable and not let them pass the costs on to the public," said Napoli Shkolnik attorney Tate Kunkle.

Studies have shown an association between increased PFOA and PFOS blood levels and an increased risk for several health effects, including effects on the liver and the immune system, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, changes in thyroid hormone, as well as kidney, prostate and testicular cancers.

If you are a water district or water company and have detected PFOS or PFOA at any levels in your water supply, you may be able to recover damages. Napoli Shkolnik PLLC is ready to help those who provide water, the world's most precious resource, and make sure those responsible for the PFC contamination pay for any increased costs, not the customers or tax-payers.