"Residents learned at Love Canal that even low levels of chemical exposure have an effect on the human body, and that the government will protect you from this only when you force them to. If you think you’re safe, think again. We can count only on ourselves to safeguard our families’ health through vigilance, knowledge and collective action."
After the LCHA presented the findings to the New York state health authorities, they were soon after dismissed. The study was called "useless housewife data" and that the illnesses were "all in their heads," birth defects were genetic, and this was a genetically defective population. They also suggested the urinary diseases were a result of sexual activity. After, the community went back to the streets to protest and gain public support. They wrote letters and sent telegrams to the Governor and President Carter. They created a public outcry and put a lot of pressure on health authorities that they were forced to do their own investigation. On February 8, 1979, the health department confirmed the findings and issued a second evacuation of pregnant women and children under the age of 2. However this was not everyone.
They found that in terms of miscarriages, within 22 births between January 1979 and February 1980, only four infants were born normal. The rest of the infants resulted in miscarriage, still birth, or birth defects. Of homes that were found on the stream bed that crossed the canal, 56% of children were born with birth defects between 1974 to 1978. The defect included double row of teeth, three ears, and mental retardation. The study also concluded that those living in wet areas were 6 times more likely to have a nervous breakdown including attempting suicide or admission to a mental hospital.