Irvine Company Sues Nearby Factory Over Fumes It Calls Noxious

An Irvine distributor of cell phones and pager products has filed a lawsuit against a Jacuzzi factory, alleging that pollution from the plant is making its workers ill.

The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana, alleges that Jacuzzi Whirlpool Bath Inc.’s Irvine plant is releasing noxious styrene fumes that waft into PageCorp Industries’ warehouse and office facilities.

Sue Edwards, president of PageCorp Industries, said the styrene, used to coat hot tubs, “has a very strong, strong smell. . . . It burns your eyes, it makes your lungs sore and puts a taste in your mouth for the whole day.”

John Artim, vice president of operations at the Jacuzzi plant, would not comment on the lawsuit. The company’s attorney, Eric Nemeth of the New Jersey law firm Edwards & Angell, also would not comment.

A lawyer for PageCorp said the company, which moved to the Irvine facility in January from Fashion Island in Newport Beach, has been negotiating with Jacuzzi since March over the situation. According to the lawsuit, Jacuzzi agreed to reimburse PageCorp for modification to a heating and air-conditioning unit, install cooling units with carbon filters and put curtains over two roll-up doors at PageCorp but did not follow through.

The attorney, Philip Green, said Jacuzzi officials “made a few interim, Band-Aid repairs but haven’t done anything permanent. . . . It’s had a very serious effect on the business.”

PageCorp alleges that the fumes have cost it thousands of dollars in lost time because of employee illness and turnover. The company is seeking unspecified damages “in the six-digit range,” Green said.