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The Gesner family knew nothing of the land's history when they bought their nice house at Manchester-By-The-Sea in Massachusetts. Not until they tried to sell it did they discover that it had apparently been built on an old dump. So they had the soil tested and found that it contains several heavy metals such as mercury, arsenic, cadmium and chromium, all within four inches of the surface. Testing also revealed that the lead content is about six times the EPA's limit for children and pregnant women.

Julie Gesner was pregnant

So the family moved out immediately. During their subsequent investigations, they found a letter dated November 2000, written from the Board of Health to the builder. It ordered the builder to stop construction on that house. They could find no follow-up to that letter.

The town administrator, one Wayne Melville, has said he was unaware of this letter until April 18 of this year, when it was brought to his attention. He states that there is no evidence that the land was ever a dump or a landfill. The site is 1.3 acres and apparently there are some old records that indicate a dump did operate there in the 1950s.

The Gesner family considers that the town should have informed them of the fact that their house was on a previous dump, if in fact this is true. The broker who sold them the house mentioned at the time that he had heard a rumor that it was built on a dump. But the Gesner's knew no more than that, and went ahead and bought the house.

Now they can neither live in it nor sell it

The EPA has ordered the town of Manchester-By-The-Sea to either explain how it plans to clean up the site, or prove that it is not responsible.

When we buy a house, it's an emotional event, and sometimes an urgent one if we have our old house in escrow already. People often become attached to a house before they actually own it, and may disregard vague rumors rather than pushing for more information.

If you have sustained financial or other injury through somebody else's negligence, please feel free to contact us. In a free consultation, we can listen to you and start to determine whether you might have a valid legal claim.