An elderly couple has been forced to don gas masks just to step outside their long-held family home, alleging a neighbour’s tiny house, equipped with a chemical toilet, has unleashed an overpowering stench.
John and Trudy Benjamin, from Portland, Oregon, have launched legal action in Multnomah County Circuit Court, seeking a quarter of a million dollars in damages from their neighbour, Karen Ward.
Their complaint paints a picture of a months-long nightmare, where sewage and chemical fumes have rendered their long-held property virtually uninhabitable.
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The Benjamins allege Ms Ward moved a tiny home on wheels onto her property, allowing a tenant to reside there without connecting its chemical toilet to the city’s sewer system.
The result, they claim, was an escalating stench so potent it seeped into their home, forcing them to keep every door and window shut.
An elderly couple are suing their neighbour after claiming toxic fumes from a tiny house chemical toilet forced them to wear gas masks outside their own home.
The situation escalated dramatically when 77-year-old John Benjamin reportedly suffered dizziness, nausea, and severe breathing problems due to the intense fumes.
This led to a fall that caused a serious knee injury, requiring surgery.
The complaint also details “extreme, life-threatening spikes in his blood pressure,” directly linked to the toxic environment.
The couple has already racked up approximately $49,000 (US$35,000) in medical bills and spent an additional $210 (US$150) on air filters and respirators, all in a desperate bid to avoid “falling unconscious” on their own property.
The tiny home (yellow roof) is being used as a rental.
Their medical provider has even advised them to abandon their home until the odour crisis is resolved.
“(They) just want to be able to use the property they have lived at for 40 years, without being sickened or having to wear industrial-grade respirators when they are outside,” their solicitor, Karl Anuta, told the Daily Mail.
Adding another layer of concern, Mr Anuta suspects bleach may have been used to mask the odour.
He warns that mixing chlorine bleach with ammonia in urine can create chloramine gas, a substance health officials caution can cause serious injuries.
The couple argue the smell is so bad, they have to wear masks. Stock image. Source: Getty
Despite assurances from Ms Ward that the toilet was being pumped and efforts were underway to connect the tiny home to the sewer, the smell allegedly persisted.
While Ms Ward informed OregonLive that the “RV toilet” and “portable septic tank” were removed in late April, and contaminated soil would be addressed, the lawsuit claims the tiny home remains occupied, and the sickening fumes continue.
Beyond seeking financial compensation of $352,000 (US$250,000), the couple are seeking a court order to prohibit the tiny home’s use until it’s connected to the city sewer, or its removal within 10 days, alongside a thorough clean-up.
Australia’s own odour woes
While the dispute is unfolding in the US, Australian homeowners and renters increasingly report being trapped indoors by putrid, sometimes sickening stenches – often linked to industrial waste, failing infrastructure or unkempt neighbouring properties.
Just last year, a Perth property became infamous when neighbours were unable to venture outside due to the rancid smell emanating from a backyard that had been transformed into a private rubbish tip, with litter scattering across the suburb.
In 2022, a pervasive bad smell in suburban Melbourne had locals holding their noses. Hundreds of residents near a local rubbish dump in the city’s southeast demanded a solution to the repugnant pong, with one resident jokingly remarking the smell was so bad “Shrek would love it.”
In 2022, a pervasive bad smell in suburban Melbourne also caused a stink with neighbours. Source: Seven News
Many feared the stench would prevent them from selling their homes.
The intense, rotten-egg-like smell was attributed to hydrogen sulphide, a by-product of uncovered demolition waste at the SBI Inert Landfill site.
Further afield, residents in Kanmantoo, South Australia, have also lodged numerous complaints.
The Environmental Protection Agency received 366 grievances regarding “composting odours” in 2024 and 2025 combined, largely linked to the town’s Neutrog facility, a major manufacturer of compost and fertiliser products.
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