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BRAINTREE, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — A month and a half after a massive fire at the Clean Harbors facility in East Braintree, the town's mayor is continuing to press the waste management company to improve their safety features.
The fire broke out at the facility on 1 Hill Ave. on Thursday, Feb. 16 at around 10 p.m. The Town of Braintree told residents on Facebook that they should stay indoors and keep the windows closed. By the time the fire was extinguished at around 1 a.m. Friday, the blaze had destroyed three tractor trailers containing hazardous chemicals, prompting Braintree residents to raise concerns about the town's air quality.
Now, Braintree Mayor Charles Kokoros wants Clean Harbors to install permanent equipment around the facility to monitor air quality, saying that he would use legal action if necessary.
"That is not out of the question," Kokoros said Monday. "We will do anything we have to to protect our residents."
Kokoros is also demanding Clean Harbors upgrade their fire protection systems and develop an evacuation plan.
"This is a company that is in the business of cleaning up hazardous waste. To think that they didn’t have this level of protection just doesn’t make any sense," said Kokoros.
The mayor outlined these demands in a letter to Clean Harbors President Rebecca Underwood on March 2, opposing the company's request to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection to resume regular operations.
"The Town of Braintree strongly believes that Clean Harbors should not be allowed to resume regular operations until multiple critical outstanding issues are addressed," the letter stated.
Underwood told town counselors at a recent meeting that the company will continue to take the request for air monitoring under advisement.
"This is an opportunity for them to step up and do the right thing," Kokoros said. "It is really important to protect our residents and know what type of air quality do we have based on what is going on at the site."
WBZ's Kim Tunnicliffe (@KimWBZ) reports.
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