Over 90,000 Georgia residents sheltering a day after chemical plant fire sent chlorine into the air

[Mary Wilson]

September 30, 2024, 6:30 AM
ByThe Associated Press

CONYERS, Ga. -- More than 90,000 residents in a county east of Atlanta were told to keep sheltering in place Monday and businesses were told to stay closed a day after a chemical plant firesent a massive plume of dark smoke high into the sky that could been seen for miles.

Air quality surveys done by the Environmental Protection Agency and the state Environmental Protection Division “revealed the harmful irritant chlorine” detected in the air from the fire at the BioLab plant in Conyers, Georgia, the Rockdale County government said in statement early Monday. ...

https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/90000-georgia-residents-sheltering-day-after-chemical-plant-114344731

[Mary Wilson]

Emergency Situation Updates 9/30/2024

Incident Update: BioLab Chemical Fire in Conyers, GA
Rockdale County is sheltering in place at this time.


To stay up to date, please visit the following page: https://www.rockdalecountyga.gov/upd...-fire-9-29-24/

or follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/RockdaleGov

Non-Emergency Calls: Rockdale County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) hotline at 770-278-8300.
RCSO Non-Emergency at 770-278-8200


UPDATES ON BIO FIRE (9/29/24- 9/30/2024)




ALERT: Information and Road closures due to Biolab fire:

Roads that are still closed as of 8:25 am, 9/30/2024
Lester/Sigman
Farmer/Sigman
Irwin/ Main St
General Arts / Signman
Dogwood / W. Ave
Green / W. Circle
Old Covington / Sigman
Sigman / Rockbridge
Dogwood Circle / Motel 6

(9/30/2024 6:58 AM): The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) reopened I-20 in both directions.

9/30/2024 3:22 AM : Shelter in place continues. Press release issued. View it at https://www.rockdalecountyga.gov/roc...ce-continuing/

(7:45 PM):

ALERT: 7:45 PM: SHELTER IN PLACE FOR ALL ROCKDALE COUNTY until MIDNIGHT.
(6:00 PM) : Evacuation zone includes Signman to Lakeview off Farmer Rd., Irwin Bridge to GA 20, and GA 20 back to Sigman Rd.
I-20 is still shut down from Turner Hill to Salem Rd. exits. Those on the north side of Rockdale County and not in the evacuation area should shelter in place.

(5:00 PM) :All southbound traffic on Hi-Roc Rd between Irwin bridge and Hwy 138 is shutdown.

All traffic from Hwy 138 to I20 from Turnerhill Rd to Salem Rd is shutdown.
Please follow deputies’ directions for alternate routes.
(3:45 PM): Additional Evacuation Site: General Ray Davis Middle School, 3375 E Fairview Rd SW, Stockbridge, GA 30281
(3:10 PM) NEW EVACUATION SITE: SCOUT CAMP: 218 Scout Road. Covington, GA 30016
EVACUATION ALERT ( 1:10 PM): Please evacuate the area if you are inside this zone. I-20 will be blocked off in both directions between Salem Rd and Turner Hill. Call EMA hotline if you need assistance 770-278-8300.

EVACUATION ALERT ( 1:10 PM): Please evacuate the area if you are inside this zone. I-20 will be blocked off in both directions between Salem Rd and Turner Hill. Call EMA hotline if you need assistance 770-278-8300.

• PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT:
  Questions can be directed to the Rockdale County Emergency Management Agency hotline at 770-278-8300
• Anyone between Sigman and I 20 need to evacuate.
• Anyone North of Sigman should shelter in place and keep windows closed.

As of 11 am the following roads are closed:

• 2986 – Old Covington @ 2nd Ave
• 2970 – Sigman @ Rockbridge
• 3002 – Sigman @ General Arts
• 3024 – Blacklawn @ Veterans
• 2939 – Plunkett @ Lester
• 3040 – Rockdale Ind. @ Lester
• 2920 – Lester East of Farmer
• 2998 – General Arts @ Farmer
• 3012 – Old Cov. @ Rockdale Ind
• CPD – Sigman @ Rockbridge

EMERGENCY ALERT (9/29/24 10:45 am)
To All Churches from Rockbridge to the Northside County Line
Effective Immediately:
Please CANCEL all church services for the day.
If a church service is already in session, please disperse immediately and DO NOT TRAVEL THROUGH THE AFFECTED AREA OF TOWN.
For your safety, leave the area by taking alternate routes.

###
https://www.rockdalecountyga.gov/upd...re-9-29-24/

[Mary Wilson]

UPDATE Conyers chemical plant fire: Odor, haze reported in Fulton County

Updated 17 minutes ago
By David Aaro and Rosana Hughes

A shelter-in-place order for all of Rockdale County has been extended indefinitely Monday as Atlanta and Fulton County investigate a “haze and strong chemical smell” that authorities believe is linked to a chemical plant fire....

Residents there will likely see the plume of smoke — now a chemical reaction and not a fire — for several days. ..

The impact had reached parts of Atlanta by Monday morning. Mayor Andre Dickens said the city is aware of reports of a smell of chlorine around the east side of the city.

”Atlanta Fire Rescue is going out with detectors to various spots east to see what is in the air,” Dickens said on social media. ...

While it’s unclear exactly what chemicals were involved with the fire on Sunday, officials said the EPA will be sampling the plume to determine its contents. Before the severity of the chemicals are determined, evacuation sites are being held at ...

A dispatcher with the Rockdale fire department confirmed that Rockdale Piedmont Hospital was evacuating some of its patients. ...

https://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta-news/metro-atlanta-chemical-plant-fire-leads-to-evacuation-of-17000/NLTZ6RLMIZCERF76B7FHUQFRYE/

[Mary Wilson]

LIVE: Rockdale County says plume has 'shifted throughout the night,' take shelter if it moves over your vicinity | Live Updates, Tuesday

Author: Makayla Richards, 11Alive Staff
Published: 5:13 AM EDT October 1, 2024
Updated: 10:09 AM EDT October 1, 2024

https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/conyers/biolab-chemical-plume-conyers-rockdale-county-updates-tuesday-oct-1/85-e90ee497-a0d4-4a01-922b-7fd3cd740315

[Mary Wilson]

Rodney Harris
19m ·

TRAFFIC ALERT >> Rockdale Co: This isn't fog. It's smoke on I-20 in Conyers from the nearby chemical plant. Use caution in Conyers.

https://www.facebook.com/RodneyHarrisTV

[Mary Wilson]

National Library of Medicine

Chlorine Gas Toxicity

Ashkan Morim; Gregory T. Guldner.

Toxicokinetics

... Experimental studies using a low concentration of chlorine gas show that the upper airway absorbs the vast majority of inhaled chlorine. The lower respiratory tract absorbs only 5% of chlorine gas. Animal models suggest that chlorine gas absorbed in the lower respiratory tract causes much greater toxicity than similar amounts in the upper airway. Thus, the upper airway functions as a protective scrubber to the exposure of chlorine gas.

When exposed to low concentration chlorine gas (up to 2 ppm), mucous membrane irritation results. Higher concentration exposures between 9 ppm and 50 ppm may lead to chemical pneumonitis and bronchiolitis obliterans. In animal models, exposure to 200 ppm leads to extensive bronchial constriction. Exposure to levels of 800 ppm proves lethal to half of all exposed animals, while concentrations of 2000 ppm lead to immediate respiratory arrest.[4]

History and Physical

Symptoms of chlorine gas exposure are usually varied depending on the type of exposure. For acute exposure at low levels (less than 5 ppm), patients can have lacrimation, nose and throat irritation, and excess salivation. Acute exposure at high levels causes dyspnea, violent cough, nausea, vomiting, lightheadedness, headache, chest pain, abdominal discomfort, and corneal burns, in addition to the same symptoms of low-level acute exposure. Chronic exposure to chlorine gas can lead to chest pain, cough, sore throat, and hemoptysis.

On physical exam, clinicians can discover respiratory findings such as tachypnea, cyanosis, wheezing, intercostal retractions, decreased breath sounds, rales, nasal flaring, stridor, hemorrhage of the respiratory tract, and rhinorrhea. Non-respiratory findings may include tachycardia, lacrimation, and salivation.[4] ...

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/N...d%20hemoptysis.

[Mary Wilson]

Conyers chemical plant fire: What to know

Updated 1 hour ago
By Rosana Hughes

... An air quality survey conducted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Environmental Protection Division and “revealed the harmful irritant chlorine, which was detected in the air emitting from the incident location of BioLab.”

Additionally, bromine — another chemical used in spa and pool treatments as an alternative to chlorine and has a bleach-like odor — was also detected, though at lower levels.

Georgia Tech professor Sally Ng said a system known as the Atmospheric Science and Chemistry Measurement Network detected a 1,400-times increase in the amount of chlorine-containing particles in the air, and a 170-times increase in the amount of bromine-containing particles in the air over Decatur on Monday morning. Typically, there is little of either element in the air, Ng said.

Bromine exposure also can be toxic, the symptoms of which are similar to chlorine exposure. ...

https://www.ajc.com/news/crime/conyers-chemical-plant-fire-what-to-know/ZECJVWIRDNCR5P2DZJFSAXUQ2A/

[Mary Wilson]

LIVE: Traffic Cam | Chemical plume from Conyers BioLab expected to reach metro Atlanta Thursday

Published: 6:24 AM EDT October 3, 2024
Updated: 6:24 AM EDT October 3, 2024

Thursday. Author: 11alive.com

Metro Atlanta residents are being warned as a chemical plume from the BioLab fire in Conyers is expected to reach the city on Thursday.

https://www.11alive.com/video/news/live_breaking/traffic-cam-chemical-plume-from-conyers-biolab-expected-to-reach-metro-atlanta-thursday/85-e1819250-d187-4bc0-8d6c-27a54eeac3cd

[Mary Wilson]

RE:LIVE: Traffic Cam | Chemical plume from Conyers BioLab expected to reach metro Atlanta Thursday
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The page you are looking for can’t be found.
Many articles have been removed from the internet also.
When clicking on an article, it will bring up a blank page.
(interesting)

[Mary Wilson]

Conyers plant fire: Haze, chlorine smell likely to move toward Atlanta on Thursday

Updated Oct 2, 2024

By Rosana Hughes, David Aaro and Taylor Croft


... Wendy Blond said she has chemical burns on her throat and vocal cords from exposure to the plant and its plume. She drives throughout Georgia for work as a mobile dental hygienist — including right past the plant in Conyers — from her home in nearby Rutledge.

“I definitely was in a tremendous amount of pain and not able to talk at all,” she said. “Every time I laid down, I thought it felt like I was going to suffocate, like it felt like my lungs were just collapsing in.”

Medical experts are advising people who experience severe symptoms to seek emergency care, while those with non-urgent symptoms are asked to call the Georgia Poison Center. From Sunday through Wednesday afternoon, the center took 475 calls from those reporting a range of symptoms and asking questions about the chemicals released and the danger posed by the smoky haze, according to Executive Director Dr. Gaylord Lopez.

On Tuesday alone, the emergency information service received 257 symptom-related calls and an additional 28 calls with general questions about the wafting chemicals. That’s more than the total volume for an average day of about 250 calls. ...

https://www.ajc.com/news/crime/conyers-chemical-plant-fire-shelter-in-place-advisory-lifts-as-day-breaks/VYSO3ANVKNFBDNZJ6PXNE2PQT4/

[Mary Wilson]

Multiple class action suits filed against BioLab over Conyers chemical plant fire, subsequent plume

Published: 4:36 PM EDT October 1, 2024
Updated: 5:42 PM EDT October 3, 2024
Author: Savannah Levins, Dajhea Jones

... Atlanta-based law firm Stewart Miller Simmons Trial Attorneys filed a lawsuit Monday against BioLab and KIK Consumer Products on behalf of two Rockdale County residents, Fannie and Albert Tartt.

The complaint alleges that the defendants' negligence and recklessness in operating the plant caused the fire and toxic plume, which affected numerous residential, commercial, and public properties near the facility. The class action includes all owners and lessees of real property in Rockdale County and surrounding communities who were subject to evacuation orders or advisories due to the toxic smoke plume. ...

11Alive previously reported that the EPA investigated a fire at the plant in 2004 and 2016, and the Chemical Safety Board noted a similar incident at the facility in 2020. More than a dozen OSHA violations were also uncovered at the BioLab facility, with most of them deemed "serious."

The latest lawsuits brings the total to nearly 10 lawsuits with six filed in the federal U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.

Second class action suit filed by Morgan & Morgan
This suit was filed on the same day as the Stewart Miller Simmons lawsuit and is on behalf of Conyers resident Tonya Long and the larger group of impacted residents.

The complaint presents several counts, including: ultrahazardous activities, negligence, willful and wanton conduct, private nuisance, and trespass, arguing that the defendants' actions led to significant exposure to toxic chemicals, causing various damages and emotional distress. ...

Third class action filed by Goldenberg Schneider, LPA
The suit was filed on behalf of four Georgia residents,Bessie Hollingsworth, Kassey Nicole Goolsby, Ernestine Simmons, and Lisa Wise, and claims that the companies were negligent in maintaining and controlling the facility and the hazardous chemicals that led to the incident.

Fourth class action filed
A fourth class action lawsuit was filed, this one in Rockdale County, on behalf of five people -- Rockdale County residents Phillip Hullum, Lori Hullum, Marcus Boss, Makalya Arrington and Thomas Brown -- and they are all seeking compensatory and punitive damages and declaratory and injunctive relief for the consequences of the Conyers BioLab fire. ...

The lawsuit was filed against BioLab and Kik International, the parent company for BioLab.

It also states that members of the class action suit in Rockdale County "suffered personal injury due to exposure to the plume" and that the direct actions of BioLab are to blame. It states that those in the lawsuit lost income and suffered emotional and psychological trauma that will last indefinitely. ...

Fifth class action filed
A fifth class action lawsuit was filed, this one in federal court, against Kik International and BioLab. The suit was filed by Cheri Forte on behalf of her child who is a minor. ...

The lawsuit states that the BioLab chemical fire was "foreseeable" due to the number of fires at the facility in years prior. It cited chemical fires at the plant in 2004, 2016 and 2020. ...

Sixth class action filed
A sixth class action lawsuit was filed on Wednesday, Oct. 2, against BioLab and Kik. The suit was filed By David Tzikas, a resident who lived within seven miles of the facility in Conyers. ...

Seventh class action lawsuit filed
Another class action lawsuit was filed against the two defendants who own the Conyers BioLab facility. ...

https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/conyers/class-action-suits-filed-against-biolab-conyers-chemical-plant-fire-plume/85-dcb3d865-09d4-4aef-a7db-4cbe9d1624a5