Apex mayor: Fire fizzling; evacuees can't go home yet

Story Highlights

• Mayor says residents can't go home until at least Saturday
• Firefighters still trying to put out three fires beneath collapsed building
• Parent company of plant will reimburse displaced residents for expenses
• It could take up to 12 hours to put out the fires

Adjust font size:

APEX, North Carolina (CNN) -- Firefighters will not be able to put out the blaze at a hazardous waste plant until Saturday at the earliest, the mayor said, adding that his earlier assertion that evacuees may be able to return home Friday evening was optimistic.

Three fires were still burning beneath the collapsed building at the plant, Apex Mayor Keith Weatherly said. Environmental Protection Agency officials won't give the all-clear until the fires are extinguished, he said.

The Michigan-based company that owns the plant is reimbursing displaced residents for their expenses, a spokesman said.

Earlier, firefighters in the Raleigh suburban town of 32,000 had hoped to have the blazes out by late Friday afternoon, but that plan proved overly ambitious.

"The strategy that they employed to put out the fires has been unsuccessful," Weatherly said Friday evening. It could take up to 12 hours to put out the fires burning under the rubble.

The Environmental Quality Industrial Services building collapsed Friday as fiery explosions overnight left a gas plume hovering over the town.

The cloud forced residents to flee their homes, but Dianna Kees, spokeswoman for the state Department of Environment and Natural Resources, said preliminary tests by air and water specialists are "not finding anything alarming."

Residents had feared the blaze and ensuing explosions would send noxious fumes over the city, but a fortunate rainfall Friday morning helped wash the air of impurities, officials said.

At a noon news conference, Weatherly said experts were determining the extent of "potential hazard" from chemicals at the plant. (Watch concerns about local pets with nausea, bleeding -- 1:25)

Bruce Radford, Apex Town Manager, had declared a state of emergency and said the business district, town hall and all schools in Apex were to be closed Friday.

No major injuries were reported. Thirteen police officers who were treated at hospitals were released and expected to be back on duty immediately, Weatherly said.

At least 106 residents of a nearby nursing home were hospitalized, according to hospital officials. Others were admitted after complaining of severe respiratory distress.

Thousands evacuated

Half of Apex's residents were told to evacuate after the blasts began late Thursday night. Apex is about 14 miles west of Raleigh.

About 3,850 people left to stay with friends or family. The town set up shelters at elementary schools and shut down sections of major thoroughfares.

All area hotels were booked, Radford said. It was unclear how many residents remained in their homes, said Jane Wilson, public affairs manager for Wake County, where Apex is located. .

Scores of people were hospitalized. Practically the entire eastern part of Apex was evacuated by early Friday, Radford said.

Officials had not yet determined what caused the fire.

Early reports suggested flames from the plant caused nearby petroleum tanks belonging to another company to explode. But officials told the the Raleigh-based News & Observer that may not be the case.

Fireballs seen shooting up

John Echols, 28, who lives near the plant, told the News & Observer that blasts were "like the world's largest bowl of Rice Krispies -- pop, pop, pop! But it was real loud."

At first, fireballs "would shoot up from time to time -- it was nasty," he said.

At one point, flames reached 150 feet. Officials let the fire burn itself out to avoid toxic runoff and the threat to firefighters.

Officials told the News & Observer they still had not determined what chemicals were at the site because the company holds permits to handle numerous toxic substances, including cadmium, chromium, mercury and hazardous organic materials.

The company that owns the plant was fined by the state as recently as March 31, when state officials found six safety violations, according to the North Carolina Department of Environmental and Natural Resources Web site.

The company was required to pay a $32,000 fine for failing to "minimize the possibility of a sudden or nonsudden release of hazardous waste constituents to air, soil or surface water which could threaten human health or the environment."

The company also was cited for storing a container of hazardous waste beside an incompatible one and for not clearly marking containers to identify their contents.

It also was cited for failing to immediately carry out the procedures outlined in the contingency plan "whenever there is a release of hazardous waste or constituents which threatens or could threaten human health or the environment."

Weatherly said the most recent inspection of the plant was "done on September 28 and 29 with no violation."

Robert Doyle, a spokesman at EQ's headquarters outside Detroit, told The Associated Press about 25 employees work at the Apex plant, all of whom had left the building by 7 p.m. The blasts reportedly started around 10 p.m.

Tools:
Save |
Print |
E-mail |
Most Popular |

Next story in U.S.

U.S.

What are E-mail Alerts? | Manage Alerts | Create Your Own

Dow hits 5-year low after Fed action

Wall Street's drubbing continued Tuesday, with a 500-point loss bringing the Dow's two-day scalding to nearly 900 points, as the Federal Reserve's plan to l ...