Indiana Recycling Plant Fire Prompts Evacuation for 2K Residents

Facts

• A large fire at an Indiana recycling plant Tuesday afternoon forced all residents within a half-mile of the Richmond, Indiana plant to evacuate, impacting approximately 2,011 people.¹
• Local, state, and federal agencies, including the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), are part of the response effort. Firefighters worked quickly to contain the “fast-growing” fire caused by plastics stored on site.²
• Richmond Fire Chief Tim Brown said multiple fires were still burning Wednesday afternoon within roughly 14 acres of various types of plastic stored inside and outside the site perimeter. He added that the fire is contained but not under control, and the firefighting effort is ongoing.³
• Richmond Community Schools canceled classes and e-learning on Wednesday, and Indiana State Fire Marshal Steve Jones says the “definitely toxic” fire could burn for days. The cause is still unknown.⁴
• EPA testing had not yet identified toxic compounds, such as styrene or benzene, with air quality monitoring set to continue as smoke dissipates. The agency collected measurements all night through Wednesday, monitoring particulate matter and looking for toxic chemicals.⁵
• Richmond Mayor Dave Snow said Wednesday that the plastics recycling site had been under a city order to clean up and remediate the complex but said the business owner had ignored that order. Snow called that owner “negligent.”³

Sources: ¹Abc news, ²NPR Online News, ³Associated Press, ⁴Abc11 raleigh and ⁵CNN.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by Inside indiana business. The owner of the recycling center that went up in flames is fully responsible for the devastation Richmond has experienced and needs to be held accountable. The city has known for a long time that the plant was a fire hazard, but the negligent business owner refused to address the dangers. While efforts remain focused on remedying the situation, the city of Richmond must hold the business accountable.
• Narrative B, as provided by The hill. It's too early to assign blame in this complex and hazardous situation just yet. Thankfully, there have been no serious injuries, and we should be grateful for the bravery of the town’s firefighters. It is most important to focus on controlling the fire and making sure people in the area are safe. An assessment of potential environmental health and environmental impacts, as well as blame, can be conducted literally once the smoke has cleared.