Residents of a Braintree neighborhood are afraid the air they’ve been breathing could be harmful to their families.
What do they think is putting them at risk?
This frightening scene continues to haunt the people who live near by.
“People are not sure whether they want to stay here. They’re concerned about the health of their kids,” Braintree resident Max Feldpausch said.
Thick smoke engulfed part of Braintree as fire erupted at the Clean Harbors waste disposal center back in February.
“There’s trailers and fuel and toxic chemicals stored there. When I found out that was the stuff on fire, I was completely shocked,” Braintree resident Tricia McColgan said.
Documents reviewed by 7 Investigates show more than 100 chemicals including lead, acetone and formaldehyde were stored in the trailers that burned.
“The quality of the air was bad at that time,” Braintree resident Hieu Huynh said.
The state says its testing shows the air in the neighborhood was safe in the days after the fire. However, state data also shows pollutants soaring as the fire raged.
Some health experts say the black cloud from the fire contained an alarming amount of hazardous substances.
“They are reporting these spikes into the triple digits — which are far far outside of the healthy accepted standard,” Dr. Brita Lundberg from the Massachusetts Medical Society Environmental and Occupational Health Committee said.
Clean Harbors claims that no health hazard has been identified in the air in the days after the fire.
But it’s not just neighbors that Dr. Lundberg said were potentially exposed to toxic fumes…
“I’m very concerned about the health of those first responders,” Dr. Lundberg said.
Our investigation found a series of missteps unfolded when the fire broke out:
- Two fire hydrants didn’t work.
- Hazardous waste warning signs on containers were unreadable.
And while residents were in bed sleeping as the fire raged – no evacuation was ordered and no emergency alert call went out.
“People woke up in the morning and were pretty angry that they hadn’t known what had taken place the night before…Who knows what came through our vents and our windows and people weren’t given really an opportunity to do anything about that,” Braintree Town Councillor Elizabeth Maglio said.
“We should have made a robo call at minimal the next morning…”
Braintree Mayor Charles Kokoros issued an apology for failing to send an automated emergency call. He says the town is now revising evacuation plans.
“We need a more strategic plan it’s going to give us specifics on each business and how we go about doing it,” Mayor Kokoros said.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection has allowed Clean Harbors to re-open with a few restrictions.
“I strongly object to them reopening any part of the business,” Mayor Korokos said.
In a statement, Mass D.E.P. Tells 7 Investigates Clean Harbors cannot transfer materials from truck-to-truck, which was the source of the fire.
“It’s like we definitely have no authority in our community,” resident Hieu Huynh said.
“Massachusetts is supposed to be one of the best environmental states in the country –where is it?” resident Max Feldpausch said.
Clean Harbors declined an interview, but told 7 Investigates in a statement, “We are confident that there were no public health or environmental impacts.”
Meanwhile, neighbors say they just want to feel safe.
“We’ve got kids and we want to protect them,” resident Hieu Huynh said.
“Like anyone else would hope for their daughter, just that she can play safely in her neighborhood,” Max Feldpausch said.
“It is a health risk and we shouldn’t be the sacrifice area,” resident Zanah Taha said.
Residents and town officials are calling on Clean Harbors to monitor air quality in the surrounding community.
The company tells us they are looking into possible solutions for future air monitoring.
For 7 Investigates – I’m Jonathan Hall.