How can Fresno allow 'hell hole' to exist?

JePahl White uses this photo to illustrate what happened to his family after they moved to west Fresno decades ago. Only three people in the photo are still living. From left, they are: Aunt Julie Griffin (living, hypertension), aunt Terry Cook (deceased, 48, breast cancer), aunt Shelly Cook (living, blind, hypertension, diabetic), father Paul White (57, deceased, kidney failure, cancer), cousin Jan Jones (61, deceased, misdiagnosed bone cancer), mother Sheila White (living, diabetes, lupus), aunt Wilhelmine Cook (50, deceased, colon cancer), and aunt Thomasee Stroud, (49, deceased, kidney failure, heart failure). Special to The Bee

After reading the sorry saga of west Fresno by Mark Grossi (Feb. 19), I am now almost ready to pack up after 27 years and move back to Ohio, my home state.

How could the decent folks of Fresno allow such a hell hole to exist in their midst? “The most environmentally, socially and economically vulnerable place in California?” And, further, “the most disadvantaged place among the state’s 8,000 voting precincts.” What? Although I occasionally attend a church in that area, I had no idea that the drinking water and the very air that the residents breathe were so bad as to lead to premature death.

The poignant story of the one resident who showed a photograph of parents, siblings and others lost to these terrible conditions stands out! These poor folks represent the “least” of these that Jesus talked about. Where are the Christians? The churches?

James E. Walton, Fresno

This story was originally published February 24, 2017 at 4:04 PM with the headline "How can Fresno allow ‘hell hole’ to exist?."

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