Tag: Warehouse Fire

West Virginia Approves Cleanup Plan for Burned Warehouse

West Virginia environmental authorities have approved cleanup plans by the owners of the industrial warehouse that burned for a week in Parkersburg.

The warehouse is owned by Intercontinental Export Import Inc., or IEI Plastics, which says it buys and sells an array of recycled plastics worldwide.

The blaze at the 420,000-square-foot (39,000-square-meter) property in Parkersburg began Oct. 21 and was extinguished Oct. 29.

The Department of Environmental Protection, in a Nov. 29 letter, says the plan with additions submitted by the company, Gator Engineering and Aquifer Restoration Inc., is acceptable.

It includes site control, air monitoring, storm water disposal, and excavation, transport and disposal of burnt waste.

New Industrial Fire Lawsuit Targets Chemical Manufacturer

A new lawsuit over the industrial fire that burned for a week in West Virginia targets the chemical manufacturer who sold products stored in the building.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the case filed Tuesday says DuPont Co. “breached its duty of care” by selling hazardous, flammable materials to the warehouse owned by owned by Intercontinental Export Import Inc., or IEI Plastics, and didn’t ensure materials sold were safely stored and handled.

The blaze at the 420,000-square-foot (39,000-square-meter) property in Parkersburg began Oct. 21 and was extinguished Oct. 29. The lawsuit says area residents were exposed to hazardous materials as a result of the fire and chemical explosion.

DuPont declined to comment to the newspaper, but a spokesman previously said the company wasn’t directly affiliated with the warehouse.

Suits Over West Virginia Warehouse Fire in Federal Court

Three lawsuits seeking damages following the industrial warehouse fire that burned for a week in Parkersburg have been moved from state to federal court.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports that the defendants sought the transfer from Wood County Circuit Court because of the large number of plaintiffs and sum of money in question.

The blaze began Oct. 21 in the 420,000-square-foot (39,000-square-meter) property owned by Intercontinental Export Import Inc., or IEI Plastics.

The lawsuits allege IEI and others failed to take appropriate steps to prevent the fire, that people in West Virginia and Ohio exposed to the smoke and airborne particles will require medical monitoring and that possible damages exceed $5 million.

West Virginia Warehouse Fire Produced Initial Hazardous Soot

West Virginia emergency officials say federal guidance following the warehouse fire that smoldered for more than a week in South Parkersburg shows spikes in the soot initially detected in the air.

The blaze began early on Oct. 21 in the 420,000-square-foot (39,000-square-meter) property is owned by Columbia, Maryland-based Intercontinental Export Import Inc., which says it buys and sells an array of recycled plastics worldwide.

The federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry says spikes in particulate matter occurred from after midnight until dawn the first day and ranged up to hazardous on its air quality index, meaning people with heart and lung disease, older adults and children should remain indoors.

It reports air quality improved the weekend following the fire, with air quality ranging from moderate to good.

Warehouse Facilities Inspected After Weeklong Fire

Multiple warehouse facilities belonging to a group of companies that owned the West Virginia warehouse that burned for more than a week have been inspected.

West Virginia Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety spokesman Lawrence Messina told The Parkersburg News and Sentinel that the facilities owned by the Naik group were among 12 properties inspected Thursday by two teams of representatives from the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection and the State Fire Marshal’s Office.

Messina says some of the sites were unrelated to the Naik group’s Intercontinental Export-Import Plastics company, which owns the 420,000-square-foot (39,000-square-meter) Parkersburg property that burned last week. The inspection sites included facilities in Parkersburg and Washington.

Parkersburg Fire Chief Jason Matthews says warehouses would ideally be inspected annually, but budget constraints inhibit that possibility.

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