ROCKDALE COUNTY, Ga. — Emergency dispatch audio released from the day of the BioLab chemical fire in Rockdale County back in September is raising questions about the immediate response.
The fire created a massive plume of smoke and forced 1,700 people to evacuate, while also forcing schools and businesses to close for days.
"Ask fire if we need to be worried about this smoke," one first responder asked. "I'm not sure if they're clear what type of chemical this smoke is," another person responded.
"Losing visibility over Rock Bridge Road, that there is a ton of black smoke in that area," someone else later said.
Those are some of the initial clips of audio from first responders in Rockdale County on Sept. 29 as a large plume of smoke spread over the county.
As the winds shifted, it pushed the mysterious plume around, and initially, it remained unclear what exactly was burning inside the BioLab chemical plant.
"The Rockdale County Sheriff's Office's role during that time was to ensure that roads were closed. If evacuations needed to be done, we assisted with those evacuations and secured the perimeter to keep any civilians or anyone from going into the contaminated area," Lt. Lee Thomas told 11Alive on Wednesday.
During the fire, Thomas was working out of the Rockdale County Sheriff's Office command post, overseeing the sheriff's office operations.
"A large majority of our senior leadership was here and has been through a BioLab incident before," Thomas said while referencing previous fires at the facility. However, Thomas said this was his first.
While the fire department and other first responders were handling the fire, sheriff's deputies spread out both in the evacuation zone and at the perimeter to keep residents safe.
During the afternoon hours, county dispatch audio recorded first responders questioning their own safety at times.
"What are they saying about the air quality? Do we need to take any precautions?" one person asked.
"Don your gas masks," someone else warned. "Put the canisters in and utilize them. Put them on, especially if you start smelling anything."
"For deputies that were setting up roadblocks. And they were going to be in the containment zone. Those deputies had the proper PPE (personal protective equipment)," Thomas said.
But dispatch audio captured some first responders from unknown agencies saying they didn't have masks with them.
"I've got the black smoke over me. I don't have a gas mask," one man said.
"I have a gas mask for you if you need one," someone replied.
"Can you head over to incident command and grab some gas masks for the units out on the perimeter that don't have any?" another first responder said.
In the hours after the fire ignited, the sheriff's office quickly bought more protective equipment to cover its entire staff, no matter their location.
"The county -- they approved and granted the funds, and within 72 hours, we had enough PPE to supply and outfit the entire sheriff's office," Thomas recalled.
Thomas said that since September, the sheriff's office has reviewed its portion of the incident response and made adjustments for any similar events in the future. The main action taken, he added, was the purchase of additional equipment.
Further changes could come from other county agencies that were closer to the actual fire.
"There is a planned after-action review that is going to be conducted by the county EMA in conjunction with the EPA and several other agencies that assisted with this critical incident," Thomas said.
11Alive also requested an interview with the Rockdale County Fire Department, as the dispatch audio included moments of first responders struggling with water supplies.
The fire department declined 11Alive's request due to ongoing litigation involving the county related to the fire.