GEMA says that metro Atlanta should expect to wake up Thursday morning to seeing haze and smelling chlorine from the chemical fire last that happened last weekend at Bio-Lab in Conyers.
A wind shift will bring the smoke toward Atlanta tomorrow and it’s expected to settle near the ground overnight.
“The current weather models show the winds will begin to shift from the east to the west after sunset Wednesday. Smoke is predicted to settle toward the ground as it moves toward Atlanta. There is a high likelihood that people across Metro Atlanta will wake up on Thursday morning seeing haze and smelling chlorine,” the Georgia Emergency Management Agency and Homeland Security said in a news release Wednesday.
“It is important to know that as the air settles each evening, smoke settles towards the ground as well. As the air lifts back up in the afternoon and evening, the smell and haze should dissipate. Chlorine has a very low odor threshold, meaning you can smell it before it reaches a harmful level,” GEMA added.
Crews have been working to remove much of the products from the Bio-Lab factory since putting out the fire that sparked early Sunday morning.
The chemicals produced inside the Bio-Lab facility react with water, which is why there has been a continuous plume coming from the factory.
GEMA says workers on site have continued to make progress in neutralizing the product. As the neutralization process continues, periodic increases in chlorine levels around the facility are expected.
County officials said that chlorines, chloramine, and chlorine compounds were released into the air from the fire.
Dr. Lynn Paxton, interim health director for the Gwinnett, Newton and Rockdale health district, said those chemicals can cause irritation of the skin and the mucus membranes, including the eyes and nasal passages and the respiratory system.
“People who already have respiratory conditions affecting these parts of the body may be more likely to develop symptoms from this exposure,” Paxton said during a news conference on Tuesday.
She had these recommendations for people being impacted by the plume:
- Stay indoors with closed windows and doors.
- Turn off any HVAC system that can pull in outdoor air.
- If you have an HVAC system that recirculates air, it is OK to leave on.
Paxton said she has been getting many calls and emails from people about whether N-95 masks will help filter out the chemicals. She said in this case, they will not.
“The reason for this is because the chlorine compounds are actually smaller than the size filtered by the N-95 mask,” Paxton said.
Paxton said anyone who develops emergency symptoms should seek emergency care from their primary care providers.
People with non-emergency symptoms can call the special hotline set up by the Georgia Poison Center to discuss what they should do at 404-856-6252.
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