ROCKDALE COUNTY, Ga. — The Rockdale County Board of Commissioners held a meeting on Tuesday, during which Chairman Oz Nesbitt addressed calls to shut down the BioLab facility at the center of the chemical plume disaster that began on Sept. 29.
During the meeting, Sher'ree Kellogg, a seven-year resident in Conyers, said she was "flabbergasted at the history" of BioLab and its "neglect of soundness and safety."
"To hear that this happened in 2004 to this magnitude, a couple other fires, the numerous amount of OSHA violations, I am concerned not only because they are still standing," Kellogg added. "But why are they still standing? What checks and balances are required from the board to ensure that a company that has this kind of scorecard is, in fact, moved from the county before there's an incident?"
Kellogg also asked how the county determined the evacuation zone.
"How do you determine that that line is enough and that it shouldn't go a little further? Just so many questions that I have that are not answered," Kellogg added.
These questions sparked a lengthy response from Nesbitt.
"Let me acknowledge that so many of your sentiments expressions this morning, the three of us certainly share all of them," Nesbitt responded. "The first thing that you stated was about shutting them down. I want you to hear your chairman say this: 'Enough is enough.'"
Nesbitt said crews are still working to remove debris, and then chemicals are underneath the debris.
"That has to be done in a very tedious, very methodical process so that we would reduce the possibility of continuing to have that plume, that monstrous, ugly, fearful plume that we saw looming over our county for the past three days," Nesbitt added.
The chairman said the main focus right now is public safety, health and welfare of the county.
"I'm not entering into the conversation about shutdown at this time, at this time. Listen to my words — at this time. At this time safety, safety, safety is our number one concern. As soon as I hear from the fire chief that this problem with the incident itself, the chemicals, the plume, Ground Zero is under complete control, once she gives me that green light, then we will enter into other conversations," Nesbitt said.
Chairman Nesbitt also spoke about his wife who has been employed at Piedmont Rockdale for 22 years.
"These last nine days, every morning, she's come back home and told me the influx of people crowding the emergency room. Yes, there is a major concern," he said. "Enough is enough. But right now, right at this moment, until I get that green light from the fire chief that says All is clear, I'm not going into another conversation until I get to make sure the county is safe."
Last week, 11Alive asked a BioLab representative about OSHA violations in the last 20 years. The representative shared that those occurrences did not concern the building involved in the situation at the Conyers facility, adding that "each had their own root causes, which were addressed at the time."
The statement also mentioned what the company had done over time to make enhancements through the years.
“Over the years, our company has been rigorous about actioning enhancements to our facilities, policies, and practices. Examples of adjustments we have implemented at Conyers include upgrades to our safety equipment; enhanced emergency response protocols; updated housekeeping procedures; and broad training for employees," the statement said. "We also conduct periodic tests and evaluations of our fire protection systems based on industry standards, as well as walk throughs with the local Fire Department."
The BioLab representative also mentioned the company will continue to work closely with regulators until the incident is fully resolved.
Residents in Rockdale County plan to hold a meeting Wednesday morning at Empowerment Unlimited Church at 10 a.m. The group wants more answers about the fire.
