UPDATE (April 19, 2023):
RICHMOND, Ind. (ADAMS) – The EPA is releasing the results of air testing after the massive fire in Richmond.
The blaze at the plastic processing facility happened over a week ago, but the evacuation order for the immediate area surrounding it was not lifted until Sunday.
The EPA says they have not detected any contaminants of concern in the air. The agency is going to continue its 24-hour air monitoring and will post validated air sample results as they get them.
Read more here
UPDATE (April 17, 2023):
RICHMOND, Ind. (ADAMS) – An evacuation order is lifted after a massive fire kept many in Richmond out of their homes for days.
City officials announced the order was lifted at 4 p.m. Sunday when the county’s Emergency Management Agency determined it was safe for people to go home. This comes after a plastics processing facility went up in flames Tuesday, causing toxic smoke.
The Wayne County Health Department is offering kits to residents to clean the rails, door handles, and other structures at their houses.
Read more here
UPDATE (April 14, 2023):
RICHMOND, Ind. (ADAMS) – A massive fire at a plastics recycling facility in Richmond is under control, but evacuated residents still cannot return home.
The blaze started Tuesday night and was extinguished Thursday, but firefighters are remaining on the scene today to put out any potential hotspots.
EPA testing found asbestos- a cancer-causing agent- in samples from the town. Richmond Community Schools will again be closed today as thousands living within a half-mile of the facility remain under evacuation orders.
Read more here
ORIGINAL POST:
RICHMOND, Ind. (ADAMS) – The owner of the warehouse that burned this week in Richmond is being blamed for the fire.
Richmond Mayor Dave Snow says owner Seth Smith and Cornerstone Trading Group LLC ignored the city’s orders to clean up the property, which he says was a known fire hazard.
The property was cited in 2019 for being unsafe. Smith and Cornerstone Trading Group sued the city, but the city won the lawsuit in 2020. The city acquired part of the property in 2021 and started cleanup efforts on that land.
Read more here
