Congressman Ruiz Condemns Bad Practices at Oasis Mobile Home Park

Thermal, Ca. – Today, Congressman Raul Ruiz, M.D. held a problem-solving roundtable with representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, County Supervisor V. Manuel Perez, and other county and state officials and called for immediate action to remedy the bad practices at the Oasis Mobile Home Park in Thermal.

"I am outraged by reports from residents that the Oasis Mobile Home Park owner is severely restricting residents' access to clean water by only allowing the leaseholder to collect water on behalf of their family within restrictive timeframes on weekdays and weekends. Even more startling, residents are being threatened with eviction if they don't pay the sudden 30% rent increase," Dr. Ruiz said. "Most concerning is that Oasis Mobile Home Park management has posted false claims that their water is safe to drink, violating EPA orders and putting residents' health at risk. I'm calling on Oasis Mobile Home Park to do the right thing, eliminate restrictions, and provide undeterred access to clean drinking water. These disturbing practices must end immediately."

Dr. Ruiz also cautioned that residents should not consider their water safe for drinking unless directly communicated by the EPA. Unofficial notices by the park owner should not be considered accurate or reliable.

Background:

High levels of arsenic found in the Oasis Mobile Home Park drinking water system poses a significant health risk to the residents. The EPA issued an emergency order to the Oasis Mobile Home Park owner to provide one gallon of water per resident per day at no cost to the residents. Shortly after the high arsenic levels were discovered, residents were charged $100 more per month in rent – an unprecedented rent increase of almost 30%. Eviction warnings have already been sent to residents if they are unable to pay the amount.