August 20th - Kruger representative visit

It is currently 10:00 am, the representative from Kruger Energy just left...I called the two men who were here the other day to come out and have a listen since the turbines were rather loud this morning...One arrived about 9:30 and came into one of the upstairs bedrooms to have a listen. We could definitely hear the "woosh, woosh" of the turbines even with the kids watching tv downstairs. I tried to explain that when we are asleep at night that it is even louder, and that a few nights ago I could even hear it over a movie I was watching in that room. I even had him lie down on the bed because it seems to be louder when you are in a restful state. At that moment it even occured to me that the wall behind the bed could be acting as a conductor as well. He called to find out the amount being produced at present and although I can not remember the two numbers he said, he stated that they were giving max output at present. He asked "does this really keep you awake?"...I told him YES, it does. and that a few minutes of listening is nothing compared to months of the endless drone and the humm and the noise while trying to sleep...We went out back of the house to listen next and found that the turbines noise was loudest between the house and turbines, and not quite as loud when we stood over to the far side of the house. We discussed placement and my theory of the sound bouncing off the house. As we stood there, my right ear started to "throb" for lack of a better word (like being on a plane, or that thump, thump you get when a window is open in a car and you are travelling at a high speed). I asked if he could feel it, and his response was "sorry, no, I'm fine". I said maybe it was different sensitivity, or perhaps the result of exposure over a long period of time to which his response was that he works near the turbines all the time. He mentioned that when he was up on their operations building the other day with 6 turbines pointing at him he could not hear them, but he admitted that with only two (three actually) near us he could hear them. he also mentioned that this is "as loud as they would get", but I had to strongly disagree as this is not the loudest they have been...to which he indicated that when MOE has them test the noise they are measuring at lower levels and perhaps this is why. I do think they are actually louder when they are turning a bit slower, or perhaps when different environmental affects are in place (humidity, air pressure, etc.)

I still don't believe he is convinced that this noise is a problem, nor do I believe that he thinks any of our health problems or complaints of vibration and ear problems are legitimate concerns, or perhaps he does realize it at some level but certainly as an employee of the energy company I can not see that being openly admitted to us. I told him of my youngest holding his left ear this morning and screaming that it hurt. I told him of my headaches being a bit better but that my throat has been sore and I have had some problems. (My doctor is sending me to an ear, nose and throat specialist to rule out any inner problems as she can find nothing wrong and does not rule out the turbines as a possible cause of the problems I am experiencing). He said he would make a few calls and then he left. I thanked him for coming out, but I am not sure it did any good. My objective is to create an understanding of these Kruger representatives that this is not just something that is "in our heads", this is in fact a REAL problem. I regret to say that I feel it will take many more visits before we receive any type of sympathy or real problem solving effort. I hope I am wrong and that we are being taken seriously, but there always seems to be "another" point made about the weather changes causing headaches, dry eyes, etc....He mentioned that he had had some issues with dry eyes the past couple of days, and it's funny, I did not have the serious dry eyes this morning. I don't think that these people want to admit it - although, I don't know how much longer they can turn a blind eye as more and more victims come forward.
I also told the representative of our plans to try to shield ourselves from the noise by installing spray foam insulation and three pain windows as well as new siding, etc. He was either unable or unwilling to express whether that might help. It occurred to me that I should try to find out whether this type of thing has been done and been helpful in the past so I am going to ask the Energy company about that formally. Surely, there must have been others before us who have tried to block the sounds out of their home - Anyone out there who knows of anyone who has made these attempts, it would be greatly appreciated to hear from you....this is a very costly endeavour and if it doesn't work, it will be very, very disappointing...

Nik