ATLANTA — Residents of Rockdale County can breathe a sigh of relief as the officials announced the lifting of the shelter-in-place that's been in effect since the BioLab disaster a few weeks prior. Rockdale County Public Schools also told 11Alive students will now be returning to in-person classes on Monday.
Rockdale County officials said frustrations remain, namely toward the BioLab company, which declined to attend the news conference. A fire broke out at the facility on Sept. 29, which sent a plume of smoke in the sky across metro Atlanta for days.
County fire and rescue officials noted 780 gallons of water had been used to neutralize the chemicals inside the facility. Officials note that all the chemicals have been removed. Meanwhile, the EPA has continued air monitoring, noting that as the chemicals have been removed, the size of the chemical plume has decreased. As a result, the EPA said community air monitoring was pointing to the shelter-in-place being removed.
Rockdale County health leaders stated that, thus far, exposure to the chemicals has only led to minor symptoms. However, they are working with poison centers and hospitals to continue to gather the number of folks affected.
The challenge: health officials pointed to the current cold and flu season as a complicating factor in gathering information since such viruses often mean an increase in respiratory symptoms similar to those who encountered the chemicals.
Still, health officials said those experiencing symptoms should contact their medical providers and seek emergency care if they are severe.
Rockdale County Chairman Oz Nesbitt additionally declared that all schools and businesses in the affected area can now reopen and gave thanks for what he called a "sense of normalcy."
However, Nesbitt did not shy away from his disappointment in BioLab's corporate management, calling the company's absence at the meeting "a slap in the face."
"I feel like the citizens and business owners who have been held hostage for the last 19 days deserve to hear directly from the leadership and corporate management of Biolab," he stated before declaring, "Enough is enough."
For the time being, though, the county said its work is done, adding that whatever cleanup exists is BioLab's responsibility and that the public health and safety job is now complete.