Erin Brockovich Team to Test Ground Samples at Leroy High School Ground
By: Deanna King
Updated: January 24, 2012
Twelve girls who developed Tourette-like symptoms will undergo more tests this weekend. The National Institutes of Health is stepping in to rule out other possible causes. The girls will have a MRI and get checked for things like Lyme Disease Bacteria. A pediatric neurologist is also coming to town to rule out a disease called Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal Infections.
"These girls are getting sick like crazy up there. We got four new cases over the weekend," said James Dupont. His daughter, Brooke, is one of 12 girls who have developed the uncontrollable tics. Doctors treating the students diagnosed it as Conversion Disorder. It means there are real symptoms, but no underlying cause. Back in the day it was called Mass Hysteria. Dupont isn't buying it and wants the school grounds tested. "If you read news articles from back then engineers were warning them not to build on that land because it was a known swamp and they didnt' really know the past history of it," said Dupont.
Dupont says he has been contacted by other parents, outside of Leroy, whose children have similar symptoms. In one case, a teenager who lives near Albany, documents her illness on YouTube. Lori Brownell and her classmate both ate at a Leroy restaurant last summer. It could just be a strange coincidence, but Dupont doesn't want to take any chances. In the next few days environmental activist, Erin Brockovich, is sending a team to test ground samples at the school. "This is about getting the girls the proper help, finding the problem and correcting the problem," said Dupont. "It's not about any gain for any one family. That is not our intention. We just want to get the kids better."
"These girls are getting sick like crazy up there. We got four new cases over the weekend," said James Dupont. His daughter, Brooke, is one of 12 girls who have developed the uncontrollable tics. Doctors treating the students diagnosed it as Conversion Disorder. It means there are real symptoms, but no underlying cause. Back in the day it was called Mass Hysteria. Dupont isn't buying it and wants the school grounds tested. "If you read news articles from back then engineers were warning them not to build on that land because it was a known swamp and they didnt' really know the past history of it," said Dupont.
Dupont says he has been contacted by other parents, outside of Leroy, whose children have similar symptoms. In one case, a teenager who lives near Albany, documents her illness on YouTube. Lori Brownell and her classmate both ate at a Leroy restaurant last summer. It could just be a strange coincidence, but Dupont doesn't want to take any chances. In the next few days environmental activist, Erin Brockovich, is sending a team to test ground samples at the school. "This is about getting the girls the proper help, finding the problem and correcting the problem," said Dupont. "It's not about any gain for any one family. That is not our intention. We just want to get the kids better."
