Rockdale County chemical plant fire: New shelter-in-place alert for people with respiratory issues

ROCKDALE COUNTY, Ga. — Here’s what you need to know:

• Shelter-in-place remains for Rockdale County.
• Other communities being impacted by the plume of smoke.
• County says the immediate response is about how to get this situation continuously under control.
• Crews spent most of yesterday clearing the product from the factory.
• The super sacks that contained the product have disintegrated.
• Crews are bringing in rolling containers to offload the products a little at a time.
• It’s a slower process but more environmentally friendly.

Rockdale County is asking residents once again to shelter in place due to a plume banking down in the county.

The new alert came hours after the county had lifted a previous shelter-in-place order for a fire that broke out at the Biolab chemical plant on Sunday.

“The EPA has been actively monitoring air quality. Residents are urged to shelter in place if the plume or smell of chlorine is over their area until the cloud has passed,” the county said in a news release Tuesday.

On Monday night, the county said the air and water quality had been deemed safe.

On early Tuesday, officials say a plume of smoke from the fire was moving throughout the county. Emergency management sent an alert to Rockdale County residents on their phone and social media accounts.

Residents who see the plume in their area are being advised to shelter in place until it moves out.

“It is essential to stay aware of the wind shifts,” the county said.

County officials said that chlorines, chloramine and chlorine compounds were released into the air from the fire that destroyed the factory early Sunday morning.

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.

Here are some resources for information regarding the fire:

Important Contact Information and Information Resources:

• For non-emergency inquiries, please call the Rockdale EMA hotline: 770-278-8300
• For poison-related concerns non-emergency, Georgia Poison Control has set up a special hotline: 404-856-6252.
• Air Quality Monitoring, visit epa.gov/current events
• GNR public website for ongoing recommendations and updates
• Rockdale County Website: www.rockdalecountyga.gov
• Rockdale County Facebook:www.facebook.com/RockdaleGov