The first record ofMinamatadisease was in Japan in the 1950s.
Given the location, the people living here ate a lot of seafood.
In the mid-1950s, the villagers started to notice their cats were behaving strangelyspecifically, falling into the sea.
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Some people even believed the cats' behavior was an act of suicide.
Something was affecting theirnervous systembut what could it be?
They named the condition Minamata disease.
Chisso denied the allegations and continued manufacturing without changing production practices.
Chisso continued to deny that its mercury waste was causing any illnesses.
It was later estimated that Chisso Corporation had dumped 82 tons of mercury compounds into Minamata Bay.
Chisso tried to make deals with people affected by mercury poisoning.
Recovering From Minamata Disease
Chisso finally stopped poisoning Minamatas waters in 1968.
Is Minamata Disease Still Around?
By this time, more than 2,300 had died.
The court also ordered Chisso to pay 3.15 billion yen in damages to the plaintiffs.
Summary
Minamata disease was linked to poisoned water in a fishing village in Japan in the 1950s.
After decades of legal battles, the victims of the Minamata disaster were compensated.
Most people in the US can avoid mercury poisoning by limiting their intake ofseafoodcontaining high amounts of methylmercury.
For example, fish such as salmon and flounder are great choices.
Additionally, be careful when using products that contain metallic mercury.
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