Diksha Sundriyal
In Netflix’s ‘Toxic Town,’ a group of women discover that they and their children have been severely wronged by the authorities. For years, the reclamation and redevelopment project of a steel plant was grossly mismanaged, which led to the toxic waste being spread across town and ingested by people. While it didn’t show any immediate effect on the general populace, it did have severe repercussions on the babies conceived during that time period. One of the women to be affected by the toxins is Margaret “Maggie” Mahon and her husband, Derek Mahon.
Maggie and Derek’s Son Felt the Brunt of the Toxic Waste Mismanagement
Maggie and Derek Mahon were ecstatic when they found out they were going to have a baby, but neither of them expected the impact that Derek’s job would have on their unborn son. While most of the other claimants in the case were indirectly affected by the toxins, Derek was directly involved in the transport of the toxic waste. Later, Maggie recalled the times he would come back home with his clothes covered in dust, which didn’t seem like much at the time. In 1997, she gave birth to their son, Sam, and it turned out that he was born with a club foot.
At first, Maggie and Derek were told that their son’s twisted foot might be a result of his placement in the womb. They were told that the condition might be temporary and the foot might straighten up over time. However, that didn’t happen. Their son was born with a deformity, and they had no explanation as to why this might have happened. Like most women, Maggie wondered if it was something she had done or not done during her pregnancy. Eventually, however, she chose not to dwell on it and moved on.
Over time, efforts were made to fix Sam’s foot. When he was a week old, the doctors put a splint on his foot, which they would stretch whenever the child visited the hospital. When he was six months old, boots were put on his feet, which he could never take off because they were meant to set his feet correctly. Maggie remembered it as a painful experience for her son as well as for her and Derek. The splint continued through his childhood, and the pain never stopped. He loved playing football, but he had to stop when he was eight because he couldn’t take the pain anymore. Maggie had to buy two different pairs of shoes for each foot because the affected foot was much thinner, and the size difference only increased with time. Still, she tried everything to make her son feel as normal as possible.
Maggie didn’t think about the case until she read an article where lawyer Des Collins called for families to reach out to him if they felt their children were also affected by the toxic waste. Reading that and all the other articles about the case, including the Sunday Times article with Susan McIntyre at its center, made her realize that her son’s deformity was a direct result of the dust that would come home with her husband. Soon enough, Maggie joined the legion of women who wanted someone to answer for what had happened to their children. Her husband, however, was caught up with the dynamics of his job and couldn’t testify against his bosses. However, this did not deter her, and she testified in the trial, strengthening the case by creating a link between the dust and the affected women. Eventually, the court ruled in favor of Maggie and the other claimants, who also fought long and hard to get justice for their children.
Maggie and Derek Mahon Live a Quiet Life Now
Maggie and Derek Mahon still live in Corby. Now in her 50s, Maggie works as a teaching assistant. She has another child with Derek, a daughter named Hannah. As for their son, Sam, he has found a career in chartered accountancy. This falls in line with what Maggie wanted for him. Given the deformity in his foot, she advised her son to focus on a career where he would remain seated most of the time, making a lot of things easier for him. While all seems well for the family now, it does not mean that Maggie has forgotten about the pain her son has been through his entire life. She has spoken out about the case and was happy to be involved in the Netflix series. Her husband, on the other hand, has opted to stay out of the limelight completely.
Derek has never publicly spoken about the case and he prefers to keep his thoughts private even now. Still, Maggie revealed that when he saw the show, he became very emotional. Watching ‘Toxic Town’ also stirred Maggie’s emotions. She praised Claudia Jessie for her portrayal and approved of the way the series brought out the story. She believes that it is an important tale that people should heed because it raises the question of responsibility. In the Corby case, she believes that greed and incompetence were bigger factors than someone being outright evil and wanting to hurt the residents and their kids. It was selfishness that ruined things for the townsfolk, and culprits like this need to be held accountable for putting people’s lives at risk. Maggie hopes that the show stirs those feelings inside the viewers and changes the world for the better.
Read More: Daniel and Connor McIntyre: Where are Susan McIntyre’s Sons Now?
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