Almost Too Late, EPA Finally Orders Barrier to Block Underground Fire From Reaching 100,000 Tons of Nuclear Waste Near St. Louis

18 January 2016

 - Bridgeton, Missouri, a St. Louis suburb, is home to the West Lake landfill – a site where at least 100,000 tons of nuclear weapons-related radioactive material related to the Manhattan Project was illegally dumped in 1973.

Although the site has been slated for cleanup for more than 25 years, the EPA has dragged its heels until recently – but it may be too late to fix things now, as other factors have come into play that could result in a massive release of radiation in the area.

No one really knows what will happen if the fire reaches the waste. Although the EPA continues to downplay the seriousness of the situation, some believe that the radioactive material could ignite or even explode – a scenario which could have consequences almost too terrible to contemplate.