Although township, county and federal officials are stating there are no health concerns related to the North Brunswick warehouse fire, preliminary screenings have been set up for North Brunswick employees and first responders.
Firefighters were equipped with their protective gear during the nine-alarm blaze that was battled from about 1:30 a.m. July 22 through July 26 at 1600 Livingston Ave., but law enforcement officers and other employees who worked extended shifts in the area of the 1-million-square-foot warehouse were not outfitted with masks and such.
“But, to my knowledge, they were working around the perimeter of the fire,” Business Administrator Robert Lombard said.
An exact number of workman’s compensation claims was not disclosed as of press time, but any police officers, Department of Public Works employees, emergency management staff, township personnel, volunteer firefighters, volunteer rescue squad members and other volunteers on site were offered screenings about three days after the fire was declared out to create a baseline in case of any long-term concerns, Lombard said.
The examinations serve “as a precautionary measure being provided by the township’s insurance fund,” Lombard explained. “There are no known after-effects that we’re hearing at this point.”
Responders from outside the township are not covered by North Brunswick’s insurance carrier, however.
Nor are residents, who should contact their own medical insurance or property insurance carriers if any respiratory problems are suspected, Lombard said.
Despite the screenings, township officials are standing by their original statement that there is little concern to anyone involved with the fire, based on environmental testing conducted by county and federal agencies.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was one of the first agencies on scene just hours after the fire was reported.
Neil Norrell, an on-scene coordinator for the EPA, said air monitoring was conducted at the fire site, which he explained as a realtime snapshot of air quality.
“It helped us give the firefighters and local departments information as the fire was ongoing,” he said.
EPA set up different instruments that kept track of readings and averaged them at five locations downwind of the fire, Norrell said.
The instruments checked levels of chemicals, such as chlorine and cyanide, and particulates, which are components of smoke that are combusted as the fire burns.
Particulates are a complex mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets such as acids like nitrates and sulfates, organic chemicals, metals, and soil or dust particles, according to the EPA’s website.
EPA officials had the ability to read the instruments from a remote location, Norrell said. They were also able to move monitors and change signals based upon wind direction — which he said changed at least twice before the fire was declared out on July 26.
“We didn’t see any high readings that caused any concern” in terms of chemicals, Norrell said, but he added the thick black smoke caused “very heavy” particulate concentrations.
“As the fire was put out, there was less and less smoke generated, and you see the numbers go lower and lower and lower. The lower the numbers, the less the threat,” he said.
According to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Air Monitoring department, there is a permanent fine particulate (PM2.5) monitor located off Ryders Lane on the Cook College campus of Rutgers University, which is closest to the fire, DEP Press Director Bob Considine said — though it is not located downwind from where the fire occurred.
However, the 24-hour PM2.5 average concentrations from this monitor ranged from 4.6 micrograms/cubic meter to 15.7 micrograms/cubic meter from July 22 to July 29, according to Considine.
“These concentrations are equivalent to good and moderate air quality levels,” he said.
It is not known if any representatives from DEP were monitoring on site.
In addition, Middlesex County HazMat did set up monitors early during the fire to supplement the EPA monitoring, according to county health officials.
The analysis of the air monitoring readings was performed by EPA, DEP, HazMat and the Middlesex County Office of Health Services. References from the Centers for Disease Control, National Institute of Occupational Health and Safety and the U.S. Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) were used to determine action levels to protect public safety, county health officials said. Therefore, township fire officials called for the immediate evacuation of the nearby residential complexes due to the proximity of the buildings to the fire, according to information provided by the Middlesex County Department of Public Safety and Health. A combined effort of local, county, state and federal officials ordered the secondary evacuation and establishment of an American Red Cross shelter at Linwood Middle School as a precautionary measure due to smoke and particulates in the smoke.
“We are grateful we didn’t have any readings that would’ve required any further business or residential evacuations,” Lombard said.
Lombard said that two of the buildings in the back of the complex caught fire, one on the roof and one on the siding. He said due to embers flying around the property and a concern of other fires starting, residents were evacuated in the immediate vicinity.
“The evacuation was not related to smoke as much as to fire,” he said.
Although Lombard did acknowledge that there was “definitely a noticeable odor,” especially when the area of the plastics manufacturing company was on fire, he said, “We were advised by environmental personnel that if there were any kind of gases or emissions, they would be traveling up.”
He said most of the wind was directed west to east, except for after sunset when the cooler weather caused a smoky haze.
Norrell clarified that there is no set guideline for keeping a safe distance from a fire, but that the determination of how far to stay from the scene depends more upon wind patterns because “that is where the smoke is going to go.”
In terms of residual follow-up with the residents of the Hearthwood condominium complex, Lombard said that there have only been one or two complaints about soot on the walls or the smell of smoke.
He said the township is in discussions with the property owner about which entity will be entertaining any claims by residents or other parties.
In terms of emergency services personnel, firefighters were wearing protective gear so they should have been protected in the depths of the fire, according to Norrell.
“First responders, we weren’t that concerned about them … because they have protective equipment,” he said.
“Our concern was with folks downwind of the fire because they don’t have the same protective equipment.”
Going forward, according to Norrell, air sampling — or sending results to a laboratory for analysis after the fact — is not necessary in this situation because “once the fire department declares a fire out and there is less danger from smoke particulates, there really is no further need for monitoring.”
“At this point with the fire out and no more smoke in the area, there is really no reason for more air sampling or monitoring. There will be really nothing else for us to find,” he said.
The Middlesex County Department of Health stated that any air quality monitoring during the cleanup would be overseen by North Brunswick.
An official report from the EPA is not available because Norrell explained that the instrument readings do not provide validated data, as they have not been analyzed by a laboratory. However, Middlesex County is awaiting a summary report on air quality from the EPA and a report on groundwater from DEP, county officials said.
DCH Collision Center is a multi-tenanted warehouse building that dates to the 1930s, when it was originally a Studebaker factory.
The eight tenants of the building included Achim Import, the recently closed DCH Collision Center/Brunswick Toyota Body Shop, Fabian Transport, Hja Logistics, Aflex, Jordan Accessories, DMD Mechanical General Contractors and a car export company.
North Brunswick Fire Marshal Craig Snediker did not know if there were any structural concerns, such as asbestos or lead in the paint, since the building was so old.
The arson investigation is complete, Lombard said, but investigators from the North Brunswick Fire Marshal’s Office, the North Brunswick Detective Bureau and the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office are now looking at other causes of the fire source, he said.
To compensate for costs related to the fire, the Township Council amended its 2016 budget to include $170,000 in incurred expenses, including overtime. Lombard said the township is looking for the property owners to reimburse the township for some extraordinary expenses for the fire and for the evacuation of residents who were downwind of the fire.
Contact Jennifer Amato at jamato@gmnews.com.