The Missouri Ghost Town Poisoned By Toxic Waste

The Route 66 State Park in Missouri was once home to a promising town called Times Beach, but a massive contamination wiped it off the map. Here's the story.

Footage and Visuals From:
Times Beach, Missouri documentary by Bruce Lixey
Post-Dispatch
Google Maps
St. Louis Museums
Times Beach Documentary by Katrina Parks

[battryacd]

Considering he sprayed his own horse arena with it I think that Bliss guy had no idea. Poor bastard.

[antxp]

I gotta say, my faith in humanity has been slightly restored, seeing everyone say that Bliss was just an innocent scapegoat. Screw corporations and sloppy government.

[TopHatPenguin]

If the guy knew that it was toxic I really don’t think he would willingly spray his own horse arena

[aelisuaatma]

My father was a victim in this, and has cancer clumps form spontaneously on his body. He was just a toddler when he was paid to leave, and commonly played outside as children that age did, so he's severely at risk for the town's mistakes.

[loftt_]

When you really think about it, it would have been cheaper just to pave the streets.

[LikaLaruku]

Imagine being tricked into spraying an entire town with Agent Orange because the company producing it was too cheap to dispose of it properly.
It wasn't even in their own favor. They chose to save a few bucks at the moment only to be put out of business a few years latter.
If they'd just bought the incinerator it would have been more profitable in the long run because they'd probably still be in business.
They should teach things like this in business schools to dissuade people from taking short cuts.

[TheAlmightyJello]

"Hey do you think we should tell him that the stuff might be toxic?"
"Nah he'll be fine, we told him to dump it on some dump site."
"You mean the site that doesn't exist?"
"Eh whatever he'll figure it out."

[marilynleistner]

The employees of Hoffman Taff were tested in 1967, and it was learned they suffered from chloracne and other illnesses. The employees were then required to wear protective clothing. Shower before going home and constantly was their hands. Hoffman knew the waste was hazardous.

[robinbennett]

If Bliss knew, he would not have sprayed it on his own property.

[FlackNCoke]

Can't believe someone commented on this video with "Stop making videos about useless information"; this was not only a fascinating story from history, but an important reminder for why environmental regulations and institutions like the EPA need to exist and need to be fully funded.

[coreyschmidt]

I can say with a high level of certainty that Russell Bliss was in fact scapegoat. My grandfather was a troop C highway patrolman, and a resident of Ballwin a neighboring city of Ellisville and knew Russel. He was told he was hauling waste oil, and that's what he did, most of his customers were repair shops that needed their waste oil tanks emptied, he had no clue the stuff he picked up at nepacco was toxic.

[ryanp]

My wife and I grew up in Ellisville. Literally played around the creeks and woods surrounding the site which was later identified as a Dioxin dumping site (a few miles from Times Beach). It would be interesting to talk to other people In our situation and discuss health problems. A ton of kids we grew up with, around that area, have health problems or are already dead. Infuriating.

[JohnSmith-efrn]

If Bliss was intentionally poisoning the ground, he wouldn't have used it on his own property and on land in close proximity to where he lived. No one would do that. The fact that the IPC claimed they paid him to take it to a non-existent atomic-waste dump suggests that they are the ones at fault. From an outsider's perspective, decades after the incident, it's hard for me to fault Bliss. Yes, he sprayed the waste oil - but he very likely did not know what was in it. Maybe he should have looked into it himself, but it was the responsibility of the IPC to warn him that it was dangerous.

I understand why many of the victims blame Bliss. It's easier. He's a single person they can actively hate and attribute blame. His face is known. It's easier to hate a man you can put a face on, than hate a massive corporation comprised of hundreds to thousands, any one of whom might have contributed to this mess. In reality, blame lies at the feet of a dozen or so employees of IPC, to varying degrees and it might not truly be any ONE person's fault. But that's not a satisfying target. It's not easy to shake your fist at the sky and scream "DAMN YOU FORTY OR SO EXECUTIVES AND LOW LEVEL EMPLOYEES OF IPC IN VARYING CAPACITIES AND IMPROPER STATE REGULATIONS REGARDING CHEMICAL WASTE DISPOSAL AND POOR COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE EPA AND THE PUBLIC!"

It's far more satisfying to raise your fist and the sky and scream "DAMN YOU BLISS!!!"

[tomatoanus]

this whole situation is so egregious. there were several steps along the way where if one person had taken a step back and questioned what they were doing, the whole thing couldve been avoided. in school, we were taught about events such as the t2 explosion and the piper alpha disaster to show what can go wrong when engineering standards arent followed and precautionary steps arent taken along the way. this should be added to the list, seeing as so many people/animals who werent even involved in the chemical production were harmed.

[NormalizeNotBeingaVictim]

This whole state has been a dumping ground for toxic waste for the government. There’s a lot of sick people here. It’s really disgusting

[brandycopeland]

I know this story all too well. I was conceived, carried and born here in 1981. My dad and mom are a couple of the last people left that endured this secret tragedy. I'm 40 now and have had health problems my entire life. I've endured everything from brain tumors, cancer, hormone deficiencies, and MANY other medical issues. God help anyone else that's endured the lifelong affects from the Dioxin that the US government let slide. The ( very) small settlement that my family received ( mere thousands), surely paled in comparison to the lost quality of life I've endured. - Purdom family

[antonnym]

That sign "Ignorance is Bliss" says it all. I don't think Bliss was criminally negligent. HOWEVER, after spraying it on those horse farms and the horses died, that should have been a CLUE the stuff was toxic. IPC knew it was toxic. They should have briefed him better.

[kaelibw]

I had to pause multiple times during this to just let it sink in. I saw the title and knew it was gonna be bad but the second I heard him say Dioxin, my heart stopped.

Also, no. I don’t believe for a second that the man knew what he was spraying. Like other commenters have said, he sprayed his own property. No one who knew what was in those containers would ever do that knowingly.

[jojothebard]

You know, I kinda feel bad for Bliss. He was poisoning a few farms and an entire town, a puppet of two chemical companies—and he probably didn’t realize it.

[skyblueeyes]

I’ve always lived in Missouri and I remember this “ghost town “. My aunt and her family lived in St. Louis and when we would go visit I would throw a fit to drive through it. I remember there were tons of trailers and crummy houses that were still furnished and still had swing sets and toys in the yards. I don’t really remember going down a gravel road though but I was just a kid. It seems like we would drive on the main highway and we could see the town all on one side. ( btw I was born in 1973)