[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="360"]Photo of TCI fire, about 2 a.m. Thu., Aug., 2. Photo by Jeffrey Lependorf.[/caption]John Mason reported first in the Register-Star that a fire broke out around 10:15 p.m. Wed., Aug. 1 at the TCI equipment recycling business on Route 9H in Ghent. That led to a mandatory evacuation around the site, and a warning for anyone within a 15-mile radius to stay indoors and close windows. Less then two miles away, Jeffrey Lependorf told WGXC he was awoken around 2 a.m. by a flash of light, and then stayed awake for several hours watching the fire shoot in the air, and the smoke drift towards the Hudson River under a full moon. Click here to listen to Lependorf's account. A state of emergency was declared in Columbia and Rensselear counties Thursday morning, Aug. 2, as officials tried to gauge the seriousness of the large fire that caused a series of explosions due to electrical equipment, PCBs, bulk oil, propane, and other dangerous compounds at the site. Multiple county fire departments and the county Hazmat team responded to the fire. Many businesses, libraries, and other public places closed for the day. The blaze continued smoldering into the late afternoon, when Route 9H reopened. At 1:45 p.m., the Columbia County Emergency Management team hosted a press conference (aired live on WGXC, click here to listen to the archived recording), and announced all test results so far have been negative, and there is little to worry about. County Emergency Management Director William Black said Thursday air quality level tests did not reveal any local PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) but the Environmental Protection Agency and state Department of Environmental Conservation should have results Friday for other volatile organic compounds and dioxins. The 15-mile area of warning was lifted at this time too. "Real-time air testing for particulate and volatile organic compounds found nothing of concern," a statement from the New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) said. "Swipe tests for PCBs were non-detect. Further confirmatory testing is being conducted with similar results are expected. Soil samples will be taken once we can access the ground but we will not have that information until site is cleared." But David O. Carpenter, Professor at Univ. of Albany with a speciality in health effects of environmental contaminants, said it was too early to determine whether or not there is anything to worry about. Click here to play the excerpt from Carpenter's interview Thu., Aug. 2 on the "WGXC Afternoon Show" with Tom Roe, Richard Roth, and Ellen Thurston. (Click here to play the full interview.) This was TCI’s second fire in less than a year. In January, a fire broke out in two dump trailers filled with pallets and dirty rags, standing next to trailers of mineral oil. That fire was quickly contained.

WHAT TO DO

UPDATE FROM COL. CTY EMERGENCY SERVICES:
Gardens
Discard garden produce with visible soot/ash on its surface. Otherwise, all produce from any garden should be thoroughly washed with clean water and or peeled prior to consumption. Extra care should be taken with leafy vegetables, as their leaves may trap soot/ash. Constituents in soot/ash that may remain on the surface of soil are not likely to be taken up into plants or vegetables. In most areas (i.e., areas where there is no or only minor evidence of ash or soot) ample watering (or rain) is expected to be sufficient to reduce presence of soot/ash in surface soil. However, if there is extensive deposition of soot/ash (e.g., a thick visible layer) you could consider removing and discarding the soot/ash, and then tilling the soil or adding clean soil at a future date.
Pets
Exposure of pets to soot from the fire is not expected to harm them. If your pet is dirty or dusty with soot from the fire, you may wish to wash them with an appropriate shampoo or soap. If the water or food supply for pets is visibly contaminated with soot, it should be replaced. If you are concerned about substantial amounts of soot indoors or outdoors, follow the “General Recommendations for Clean-up of Soot/Ash from the TCI of New York Facility Fire.”
Home Drinking Water Wells
Contamination of home drinking water wells from this event is extremely unlikely. People can continue to use their wells as they normally would.

WGXC AUDIO
• Columbia County Emergency Services press conference.
CLICK HERE TO PLAY PRESS CONFERENCE
• Jeffrey Lependorf, Ghent resident, recounts the explosion that woke him up early Thu. Aug. 2.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO JEFFREY LEPENDORF'S STORY
• Bill Schwartz, from the New York State Department of Health, explains best procedures for folks near chemical fires. Interview by Richard Roth, Ellen Thurston, and Tom Roe.
CLICK HERE TO PLAY INTERVIEW
• David O. Carpenter, Professor at the University of Albany, with a speciality in the health effects of environmental contaminants, says he thinks it is too early to tell the environmental impact of the fire. Click below to here the interview with Richard Roth, Ellen Thurston, and Tom Roe on the "WGXC Afternoon Show."
CLICK HERE TO HEAR AN EXCERPT OF DAVID CARPENTER'S INTERVIEW
CLICK HERE TO HEAR FULL DAVID CARPENTER INTERVIEW
• Philip Grant interviews Jean Paul of Roxbury Farms in Kinderhook, NY about the TCI West Ghent Fire.
CLICK HERE TO HEAR JEAN PAUL'S INTERVIEW

Tune in WGXC 90.7-FM for a special collage of coverage of the TCI fire Sat. Aug. 4 at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m.

The Register-Star's latest account of the story is here.