Oil on Grand Isle, LA (Michael Whitney/Firedoglake)

According to BP’s records, only two workers in the oil disaster recovery effort have reported illnesses from chemical exposure while working with oil and dispersants. That’s great news! Except for Louisiana officials say that in reality, more than 70 workers have reported chemical exposure illnesses. The Miami Herald writes:

Although Louisiana state records indicate that at least 74 oil spill workers have complained of becoming sick after exposure to pollutants, BP’s own official recordkeeping notes just two such incidents.

BP reported a wide range of worker injuries in the period from April 22 to June 10, from the minor – a sprained ankle, a pinched finger and a cat bite – to the more serious – three instances of workers being struck by lightning and one worker who lost part of a finger.

Only two were related to coming in contact with potentially toxic substances: a worker who in May was sprayed in the face with dispersant as he took a nozzle off a boom and another who inhaled crude oil vapors in June.

In contrast, Louisiana reports that 38 workers have reported becoming ill from dispersant or emulsified oil. Most of those said their symptoms cleared up quickly.

According to this report, BP only recorded two clear instances of chemical exposure: one person got sprayed in the face with dispersants, and one person inhaled crude oil vapors this month. So uh, BP? What’s the deal? Why would Louisiana officials have radically different reports of exposure to chemicals than the company that put the chemicals there in the first place?

Since the Herald wrote its report, the numbers of people reporting chemical exposure illnesses has jumped to more than 100. This includes more than 70 workers, but also 35 people in the general public who said they got sick from pollutants.

There have been 109 reports of health complaints believed to be related to exposure to pollutants from the BP oil spill, according to the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals. That number is up from 71 complaints reported as of June 10.

Seventy-four reports came from among workers and 35 from among the general population. Most workers reported having had symptoms that cleared up quickly resulting from exposures attributed to a variety of chemicals. Nine had short hospitalizations.

No word on if BP’s number reported a similar hike; I’d bet good money that their reports are still in the single digits. But as the reports of sick workers are disturbing, reports of sick residents is cause for even more concern. Crude oil is a toxic substance, and its negative effects can be airborne, causing severe, lifelong respiratory problems. Just ask the residents of Valdez, Alaska.

This incident demonstrates that BP is not only incapable of adequately monitoring the health and safety of cleanup workers, but that it has a vested interest in hiding the true extent of illnesses from exposure to pollutants. With more than 27,000 people already hired, the onus should be on the federal government to be the primary entity responsible for monitoring and protecting every person both helping with the recovery effort and that of residents whose health is already suffering from BP’s toxic disaster.

I’m looking forward to hearing about these discrepancies at next week’s Congressional hearing on oil disaster worker safety.