Hempstead Residents Speak Out Against Cell Towers
WANTAGH, N.Y. (1010 WINS) -- Some Long Island residents are up in arms over the proliferation of cell phone towers near their homes and schools.
1010 WINS' Terry Sheridan says more one hundred people showed up for a meeting Monday night held at the Wantagh High School Auditorium to voice their displeasure for the cell towers that have gone up in Merrick, North Merrick, Bellmore and Wantagh.
LISTEN: 1010 WINS' Glen Schuck reports
The town of Hempstead does not currently have regulations that specifically address cell phone antennas, and as a result, several companies have installed them throughout the area.
Moms of Merrick Speak Out (M.O.M.S.) -- one of the hosts for the event -- says they are fighting to keep cell antennas about 1,500 feet (1/4 mile) away from homes and schools. They say that regulation would be similar to laws in other states and countries.
M.O.M.S. and other groups say that they are concerned about over 1,000 children who attend schools near the towers and contend that the radiation emitted by them has not been proven safe.
"We are not opposed to cell towers," Pam Dempsey of the Wantaugh Civic Association told Sheridan, "we just think they have to be responsibly placed."
The groups hope that something will be done about the towers that have been put up in residential areas and that new legislation to address the issue would be enacted in the future, Sheridan reports.
