In the quaint town of Lincoln County, Tennessee, a bitter battle brews between residents and alcohol behemoth Jack Daniels. At the heart of the conflict lies a sinister black “whisky fungus” that has spread like wildfire throughout the community, fueled by the ethanol vapors escaping from the barrel houses of the Jack Daniels factory.
The residents living in close proximity to the factory are at their wits’ end, as the relentless whisky fungus engulfs their homes, porches, and vehicles. Some even blame the fungus for the death of local wildlife and obstructing street signs, making navigation a nightmare for those unfamiliar with the area.
The menace first reared its ugly head when the liquor company revealed plans in 2018 to construct six new barrel houses, followed by an additional fourteen in the future; Enraged locals now demand that Jack Daniels step up and rectify the problem before it wreaks further havoc on people’s lives and the environment.
Patrick Long, a resident near one of the barrel houses, filed a lawsuit against the county for failing to address the black mold issue. Property values in the vicinity have plummeted, and concerns for the community’s health grow as people inhale mold potentially hazardous to the human body.
“It’s in the air. And you really, probably don’t want to be breathing that in. But nobody has done a test to determine if it’s actually poisonous,” Long remarked. “I’m extremely concerned. My wife has breathing problems. One of the neighbors got cancer.”
Local officials, tired of battling the relentless whisky fungus, have resorted to replacing street signs instead of attempting to clean them. Long, who has spent over $10,000 on power washing his house throughout the years, has found that a potent concoction of water and Clorox bleach is the only solution that can remove the stubborn black residue from his property.
“If you have any decent nails on you and you rode it down the side of a tree or a property within a quarter of a mile to a half-mile of these barrel houses, your entire finger will be covered in black fungus,” he explained. “You can’t see the tree limbs anymore. Our house, we have to have it pressure-washed four times a year now.”
Long and his wife initiated the lawsuit, fearing that Jack Daniels expanded the number of barrel houses “illegally.”
Speaking to WHNT, his wife said, “We are asking the judge to force the county to issue a stop work order to stop construction at Jack Daniels. Here we are as District 6 spending our own personal dollars to stop a big corporation holding Lincoln County accountable.”
WATCH the video below for more details: