Over the past week, West Jefferson Medical Center physicians have reported handling several patients with the same flu-like symptoms: headaches, nausea, and respiratory problems.

So far, 11 workers from the clean up drive have been treated by Dr. Damon Dietrich and his colleagues for what the doctors believe as symptoms caused by the BP Oil Spill. Toxic fumes from dispersants and oil itself may have triggered such flu-like symptoms.

The U.S. Coast Guard and BP believe otherwise. Heat, dehydration, food poisoning or other irrelevant factors are conceived to have caused the workers’ illness. Light exposure to dispersants and crude oil cannot cause significant harm to the body, but constant exposure cause damage to kidneys, livers, or blood. Accidental swallowing of oil leads to diarrhea, vomiting, and upset stomach.

An astounding 21 to 45 million gallons of crude has contaminated the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 contactors. John Wunstell Jr., a fisherman who joined the crew for burning oil, experienced a disturbed stomach, nose bleed, and severe headache after an overnight stay on a vessel near the main spill site. Dozens of other workers have an alarmingly same pattern of symptoms that have been declared by the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals to be directly related to prolonged oil exposure.

The health department has released federal guidelines that impose the use protective gear while working at the oil spill site. The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospital still continues to investigate this matter.