AES Corporation illegally dumped 100 million pounds of toxic coal as on a pristine beach in the Dominican Republic. After acute health problems came horrible birth defects, Complaint alleges.

Gallery: Victims

Victims of Toxic Coal Ash dumping by AES Corporation in 2003 and 2004

Two children survived severe birth defects traced to toxic chemicals in the illegally dumped coal ash waste. First, it leached into the environment, then accumulated in the bones of child-bearing women. A boy was born without arms. Another boy had had to endure major surgery when, at birth, his digestive system was delivered outside his body. Two other children died shortly after birth, one a two-headed Siamese twin. Another child whose severe cranial deformities were discovered in utero had to be aborted. Well before catastrophic birth defects began to appear, child bearing-age women in the Arroyo Barril area began to suffer a significant increase in miscarriages. And before that, almost immediately after the toxic coal ash was dumped illegally, residents of all ages developed acute respiratory and skin problems, many of which continue today. Medical experts have stated that the dark lesions tattooed on many residents skin display the telltale signs of arsenic exposure.

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