17,000 evacuated from chemical fire in Apex, NC

About 17,000 Apex, NC, residents were urged to leave their homes late on Oct. 5, when a massive fire broke out in a 7,300-square-foot chemical storage facility. The facility, owned by Michigan-based Environmental Quality (EQ) Industrial Services Co., functioned as a collection and transfer station for disposal of hazardous chemicals such as paints, thinners, oils, cleansers, detergents and antifreeze. Officials still don't know what caused the fire, which started on the night of Oct. 5 with a series of explosions that created a potentially toxic plume of smoke above Apex, a town about 15 miles west of Raleigh. Scott Maris, vice president of regulatory affairs for EQ, said 2,700 containers of hazardous chemicals were on the site at the time of the fire, which sent flames 200 feet into the air. Apex Fire Chief Mark Haraway said EQ officials told him the site contained pesticides, oxides, bulk sulfur, lead and other heavy metals at the time of the fire. "It's literally the worst-case hazmat scenario you can have," he said. Town officials asked as many as 17,000 people to leave their homes because of the threat from the burning chemicals. Forty-four people went to emergency rooms, most complaining of breathing problems, but nearly all had been released by the next day. Initial reports said deadly chlorine gas may have been emitted, but Maris said no chlorine gas was ever stored at the facility. Dr. A.J. Attar, a principal in Appealing Products Inc. of Raleigh, which makes devices to detect exposure to toxic gases, said the fire probably involved organic matter, which includes petroleum products such as paints, solvents, pesticides, even plastics. Burned in large quantities, such materials can cause long-term damage to the liver and kidneys. In March, the state fined EQ $32,000 for six violations at the plant, including failing to take steps to "minimize the possibility of a sudden or non-sudden release of hazardous waste ... which could threaten human health or the environment." The company was also cited for failing to mark and identify the contents of their storage containers. EQ had passed its state inspections on Sept. 28 and 29, and claim there is no connection between the incident and its previous violation. This is not, however, the first incident for the EQ company. In Romulus, MI, one of the company's storage facilities exploded and burned for four days in August 2005, forcing 900 families from their homes. In February 2005, one of its Detroit facilities had a small fire which blew out the wall of a storage vault. In the past year, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality has issued 17 warning letters to EQ involving more than 30 violations at the company's plants in Romulus, Detroit and Belleville. Clean Water for North Carolina , an environmental group that has advocated for stronger community right-to-know laws, said the circumstances of the Apex fire reveal longstanding shortcomings in the reporting of hazardous-waste storage and shipments. According to the group, waste management facilities such as EQ's, which briefly store hazardous materials before shipment or treatment, have had a reporting loophole since the passage of the federal Emergency Planning and Right to Know Act in 1986. "The public is not aware of these facilities and the threat that they pose, or how little local emergency management can do when a fire involving such a lethal mixture occurs," said Taylor-Guevara. "These facilities handle massive quantities of explosive, flammable and extremely toxic materials. First responders, with the best of intentions to control a fire or prevent damage or public exposure, end up as the first victims of such an event."