They dumped all year early in the morning ... the smell was so bad that we could hardly breathe ... It came over toward the house like a white cloud and killed the grass and trees and burnt the paint off the back of the houses and made the other houses all black. I know for sure they did it all in '43 because my husband ... died in October 28, 1943... (A. Warner, 78)
             The Niagara Falls School Board attempted to buy the Central Section of the canal from Hooker, but the offer was initially declined after an on-site engineer indicated that the potential for risk of lawsuits. Hooker reconsidered the offer after the school board threatened to use the eminent domain law to expropriate the land. Hooker then agreed to sell the land for a token payment of one dollar. The deed of the sale included a disclaimer stipulating that:
             1) Hooker was free of all liability concerning injury or death caused by the presence of chemical wastes.
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