SATELLITE BEACH, Fla. -- Earlier this month, the city of Satellite Beach's water tested positive for cancer causing chemicals.
- Satellite Beach water contained cancer causing chemicals
- City officials say the water is below what's considered dangerous
- Residents raised money to have the water tested
City officials say it falls below the threshold of what the Florida Department of Health considers dangerous.
However, cancer survivor and activist Stel Bailey is not buying it. She, along with a group of people, put together thousands of dollars to test the water themselves and sent it to an independent lab for testing.
“I opened up Florida health connection and I’m going to do my own testing,” she said.
Jeff Dubitsky bought a piece of paradise about a year ago but he never thought moving his family from Ohio to the Sunshine State could pose a health risk that could be deadly.
“When you’re researching for a house you research communities, schools you don’t even think about checking the water. This is a risk for my family,” Dubitsky said.
He soon found out, Satellite Beach is considered a cancer cluster caused by firefighting foam containing chemicals known as PFOS and PFOAS that Patrick Air Force Base used for many years.
Research results published this year, revealed that animals living near the base did contain traces of these cancer-causing chemicals.
According to National Institute of Standards and Technology, West Indian manatees, sea turtles, dolphins and alligators also tested positive for the chemicals.
As for Dubitsky, he’s not even taking chances with his dog, since finding out the chemicals are in the water, his pets drink only bottled water. His kids are not allowed to play on the grass or when the sprinklers are on because he heard the chemicals can become airborne.
The lab results from Test America Lab will be available in about three weeks. Around that time, well-known environmentalist Erin Brockovich might visiting to the Space Coast.