Saturday, March 30, 2002
Investigators have no suspects in the setting of the blaze
Authorities offer $15,000 reward in tire fire

This weekend, EPA crews will be on site trying to determine how many tires are burning underground.

By KIMBERLY O'BRIEN
THE ROANOKE TIMES

   Roanoke County authorities want to know who set the state 's largest illegal tire dump on fire.

    And they're offering up to $15,000 to find out.

    "We're taking this very seriously," Fire and Rescue Chief Richard Burch said Friday.

    Roanoke County is footing $10,000 and the International Association of Arson Investigators is offering up to $5,000 for information. Anyone with information is asked to call 561-8060.

    Investigators have no suspects in the tire fire, which started a week ago on W.J. Keeling's property off Starlight Lane in south Roanoke County. Keeling's estimated 3 million to 5 million tires ignited from a brush fire investigators said was deliberately set in two places along a driveway near the railroad tracks.

    The wind quickly took hold of the fire. Within a few days, the brush fire had consumed 1,064 acres on Buck Mountain. But the tires continue to smolder - today is the eighth day - in steep ravines on Keeling's land.

    EPA on-scene coordinator Chris Wagner said the smoldering is from all sides - there's no longer open flame.

    There are four major piles of tires, among about 20 piles that have burned or are burning on 6 acres on Keeling's 140-acre property. One of the big piles, in the ravine partly visible from Starlight Lane, is the one producing the most smoke and causing the foul odor in the nearby neighborhoods.

    The smoke prompted a return of a health advisory Friday morning.

    Health officials said weather conditions overnight trapped the smoke and particulate matter - carbon-based ash normally associated with woods fires - close to the ground. So from 9 a.m. to noon, people from Penn Forest to Clearbrook were warned to be careful of the air.

    Penn Forest and Clearbrook elementary schools kept children inside until the advisory was lifted.

    Some residents in the Kings Chase subdivision said the smoke Friday morning was the worst its been since the fire started last Saturday afternoon. On Starlight Lane, closest to Keeling's property, the sentiment was similar.

    "You can smell it," said Monika Jernigan, 24. "In the house, in your clothes. Some nights it's worse than others."

    Jernigan, her mother and sister returned to their home a few nights ago when the smoke got a little better. Jernigan said they were going to stay with family Friday night because her mother was feeling sick.

    Both she and her mother, Diane, have had nosebleeds, she said.

    "You got to worry about it," Jernigan said.

    The air situation Friday morning was the result of a weather pattern called an inversion, when the air stills and gets trapped near the ground, said Rick Weeks, regional director of the state Department of Environmental Quality's Roanoke office. The winds tends to settle in the evenings.

    Mid-morning, the air begins to move and the quality eventually improves.

    Despite the shifting smoke, there are still no hazardous materials registering in neighborhoods nearest the tire fire, Weeks said. The volatile organic compounds, including benzene, a suspected carcinogen, are being found at the tire site, but are dissipating within 1,000 feet, he said.

    The particulate matter in the neighborhoods has been reading within acceptable limits for much of the week. When it exceeds the limits, health advisories will be issued. Those could happen for as long as the tires burn. While long-term exposure to particulate matter can be dangerous, the amounts picked up so far should be safe, Weeks said.

    Rain helps wash the particulates away.

    Air monitoring will continue, however. Friday, the DEQ also began testing for metals, such as lead, nickel and zinc, in the air near the tire site. Anyone working at the tire site is required to use respiratory equipment.

    Not much is expected to change with the tire fire this weekend. EPA crews will be on site trying to minimize the smoke - possibly by smothering some of the tires or applying foam or gel - and determine how many tires are burning underground. Earlier this week, Wagner estimated that 2 million tires have burned.

    Two environmental contractors are now on site, one dealing with heavy equipment and the other focusing on sampling and monitoring. Crews will also be working on improving access to the site for their equipment.

    Anyone with questions about the fire or health concerns can call 561-8060.

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