Inside the fight between my small Iowa hometown and a 12 billion utility over smart meters and the radiation that some residents call 'poison'

Get the Full StorySantiago Jose Sanchez for Business Insider

Many residents in Fairfield, Iowa, home to thousands of disciples of a deceased Indian guru, claim that radiation emitted by cell phones and other devices is harmful to human health.

Those beliefs created a problem for a local utility that began deploying radiation-emitting smart meters in 2017.

Through administrative proceedings, Fairfield residents fought back against the utility's smart meter program and, for the most part, won.

At its core, the fight wasn't about the health effects of smart meters. It was about the freedom to exercise a set of beliefs, as unusual as they may be.

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FAIRFIELD, IOWA I was standing outside my childhood home on an unseasonably warm spring day when I saw my neighbor approaching from across the street.

It was May, and I had been staying with my parents months after escaping New York City. In their home, more than 80 miles away from the nearest airport, the threat of a pandemic felt distant. See the rest of the story at Business InsiderNOW WATCH: How the Navy's largest hospital ship can help with the coronavirusSee Also:YouTube is 15 years old. Here's a timeline of how YouTube was founded, its rise to video behemoth, and its biggest controversies along wayMarkets expect bank dividends to plummet 40 by next year, Goldman Sachs saysChasing a virus, glass shortages, and cold storage: 4 top execs leading the coronavirus vaccine race reveal how they're tackling the greatest challenges standing in their way

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