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A nuclear reactor meltdown in 1959 at a California test laboratory has been linked to hundreds of cancer cases in the nearby community, and toxic chemicals continue to contaminate water and ground, according to a new report.

The independent advisory panel, comprised of experts from all over the U.S., evaluated the Santa Susana Field Laboratory site and estimated that the nuclear reactor meltdown may have released radiation, which could be the cause of the 260 cases of cancer suffered by residents within 60-square-miles around the site.

“People have been asking for 20 years what was the impact of the meltdown, and now they will at least have an approximation of how many people may have been hurt,” said the co-chairman of the Santa Susana Field Laboratory Advisory Panel Dan Hirsch.

However, the lab''s previous owner, Rocketdyne, has claimed for years that the meltdown caused no significant release of radiation. Starting in the 1940s until the 1980s, the 4.5-square-mile site was used for nuclear research and rocket engine testing.

The current owner, Boeing, the state of Calif., and the Energy Department have all been taking measures to decontaminate the test laboratory site, which is estimated to contain 500,000 gallons of toxic trichloroethylene saturated into the bedrock.

The advisory panel also concluded that the local groundwater and soil may have been contaminated with chemicals that have been known to cause numerous health complications.

While Boeing contends that the site is not contaminated, they agreed to pay $30 million last year in a lawsuit settlement, which claimed that pollutants from the test lab caused people in the nearby community to develop cancer.

Suffered from toxic chemicals? Please contact us today to speak with a qualified and compassionate personal injury attorney who can inform you of your legal rights and options.