Jim,
My wife and I woke up at 5 a.m. (Eastern time) to NPR (you have to know what the enemy is up to) with the lead story a hazmat fire at a haz waste recycling company in Apex, NC, several miles to the east near Raleigh, NC. Something over 16,000 residents of Apex have been urged to evacuate so far as a large plume of a chlorine-like smelling substance moves through the area.
All local, state and federal agencies have been called in to assess and 300 firefighters so are are waiting until daylight (7am-ish) to go in assess and then fight the fire or at least the contain the contamination. Authorities have decided to let the fire burn itself out for now until morning since it was first reported 10pm (Eastern time) last night. Several police and one firefighter are being treated for inhalation problems Currently there is an adjacent petroleum co. next door where four tanks have also caught fire and exploded, exacerbating the situation…all schools in the apex area have been closed for the day.
If you follow local links (wral.com) and (newsobserver.com) you may get some updates on how this thing develops and is resolved…the large plume of whatever it is may shift soon due to a cold front coming through and more evacuations may result…the anticipated rains and storms with the front may be a mixed blessing….the morning commute from the SW of Raleigh should be a nightmare as the downtown Apex area is locked down….some will stay in their homes, i am advised but many left late last night….the haz waste handling facility handles discarded pesticides, paints, etc….and the heavy growth in the metropolitan area around raleigh, nc has led to many homes/some subdivisions being built near the complex (EQ recycling)……
My purpose is to notify you of a real-time scene here in NC that might be monitored for lessons learned about choosing wisely where to live, knowing your roads and how folks got by either staying shut in or leaving in a hurry….we are told that apex residents were called by phone late thursday evening by using a ‘reverse 911’ calling system that phones each home with the alert to evacuate. Was this a terrorist action? Probably not, but a wake up, nonetheless. Regards, – Redclay
Letter Re: Apex, N.C. Chemical Plant Fire as a Case Study in G.O.O.D. Realities
