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Cove Landfill Fire Burns Again
January 24, 2013
The Cove Landfill in Ensley was burning again Thursday morning, sending huge plumes of smoke skyward — just hours after the fire was declared extinguished.
Escambia County Solid Waste officials declared Wednesday night that the fire was completely out with no smoke or ashes, but the fire reignited by morning.
The Cove Landfill, located directly behind Pine Meadow Elementary School, started burning last Friday, often producing large amounts of smoke. The fire was burning underground, where natural debris such as tree limbs, stumps and other natural material spontaneously combusted. Officials say there is no construction debris in the material.
As the smoke billowed from the site Tuesday, children at Pine Meadow Elementary were relocated from portable classrooms into the main building as a precaution. Air conditioners and fans were used to keep air circulating for students.
The smoke prompted the Escambia County Health Department to issue a health advisory.
Pictured: Smoke billows from the Cove Landfill behind Pine Meadow Elementary School Thursday morning. Reader submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Comments
19 Responses to “Cove Landfill Fire Burns Again”
For the concerned citizens of Escambia county Florida: The individual(s) that own this property has in fact been informed of the situation at hand and will do everything possible to resolve the issue at hand. Please be kind! The owner(s) are not like the previous owner(s) by no means!!!!
Respectfully
SAH
Mr. Malcolm Thomas has still not stepped up to the plate guess as long as it is not affecting him then let it burn. Poor kids and teachers. Malcolm our kids are your ultimate responsibility, where are you?????
P.S.
An underground fire like this could last for years.
Very common occurance.
Some days, weeks it can really smoke, then go down to near zero.
Weeks later it will crank up again.
The area burning is owned by:
NIT MANAGEMENT INC
Mail: 1828 DEW VALLEY DR
CARROLLTON, TX 75010
The road frontage and building are owned by Rapid Management.
Both owe property taxes of around $10k for 2010, 2011 & 2012.
That tells me they are going to pull a Saufley Field landfill scheme and walk away from this site and all responsibilities.
The county, state and feds were unable to force the owners/operators of Saufley landfill to pay or fix anything.
That has set a precedent and notified all other landfill owner/operators that they can do the same also and walk away scott free.
I drove down Cove and 9 1/2 Mile Road this morning at 6:00. Smell of vegation was strong on Cove. Smoke/vegetation smell thick on 9 1/2 Mile Road.
The fog seems to really be holding the smell this morning. Would not want to be at the school.
There may be noxious plants such as poison ivy and Oleander, etc. that will cause serious problems if inhaled. This should be looked into by EPA. They seem interested in everything else, maybe this is something that should be on their adjenda?
I figure all who have spoken here to be tax paying citizens…
So we will all soon be the not so proud owners of this mess.
WE live on west nine mile road. The stinch from the burning land fill reached our home today. Teary eded and coughing ( bronchidus ) along with headaches are starting to occur. Was at the hospital to see family tonight when I met a friend. His mother in law lives near the dump. She was admitted to the hospital for inhalation of the burning trash today with extreme life threatening issues. Someone needs to put effort in getting this placed extingushed . Very unhealthy.
Where are our elected officials? Are they or their loved ones breathing this contaminated air? The parents at ths school need to put thier foot down and demand that this school be closed until this issue is COMPLETELY resolved. Just limbs and stumps that makes it sound ok. Does anyone know how many dangerous plants there are that can cause illness andd even death if burned?. Remember the uproar over the BP oil spill? Oil is natural so what is the difference? Guess our beautiful white beaches are more important than our beautiful innocent children who do not have any say in this matter. Parents stand up for your childrens safety and well being. BP had to pay this company should pay as well.
1. Sounds like another Saufley landfill mess to me. The company that ran the Saufley landfill were located in LA and they skirted and the county got stuck with the tab (your tax dollars hard at work) You think the county would have learned a lesson from the disaster at the Saufley landfill….
Business Address
RAPID MANAGEMENT COMPANY
3223 MILFORD RD
County FL 32526
Here’s the business tax receipt info for the property that’s burning:
Mailing Address
STRAZA RICHARD
10005 RAYMAR ST
PENSACOLA FL 32534
Units 0
Status **ACTIVE
Occupation
LANDFILL
From the Escambia County Tax Collector’s Website:
http://escambiataxcollector.governmaxa.com/collectmax/collect30.asp?sid=3F799DF6153648A2BE5A78B82855475B
Business Tax Receipt Fee $26.25
The company who owns it is in Texas. they are removed, they don’t care.
Search ESCPA.org for Raymar St. You can find the owner, then search Sunbiz.org for the business info.
I went to the landfill myself just about an hour ago. Definitely still smoking, so it’s definitely still burning. I also spoke with members of the EC Public Safety Dept who advised that it’s a “clean” burn and not to worry. My question is if there is nothing toxic and nothing to worry about, why will they not use water to completely extinguish this fire. Okay, they are worried that it may seep into the water table. Wait, Mr Safety Director, didn’t you just tell me everything was safe with nothing to worry about?????
Well, there you go. Since my daughter-in-law has been keeping my grandbaby home and away from that mess, no more comments from me on this issue. If parents would follow suit this issue would be resolved in a hurry. She told me that the teachers are wearing masks when the kids arrive and leave school for the day – that was enough for her. She talked to my son (on deployment) via Skype) and he totally agreed that he did not want his kid sick now or later because he had to breathe his. Also, for those of you who keep saying it is just yard debris – have you ever heard of oleander (deadly poison) even in smoke form. I am with Oversight about investigating this fire and landfill- but if the people who live over there and continue to send their kids to school the so be it. Once again I would remind Mr. Malcolm Thomas that he is ultimately responsible for these children while they are in the care and custody of the Escambia County School Board.
I heard Commissioner Barry on one of the radio stations a few minutes ago.
Based on his comments, the concerns of parents, educators, and neighbors of the landfill have been heard.
Will now have to see how this plays out…
As a parent, I’m very upset because my child has allergies and has been having more problem breathing the last two days. As I’ve said before there is no reason for there to be a landfill next to a school. There is always a smell coming from here, even when it’s not on fire. This is just not a healthy situation.
The smoke continues to billow from the landfill site Thursday morning. A shift in the wind will have it over the school again.
Ok, just who owns this landfill? A search of business records at sunbiz.org does not show a business name under “Cove Landfill.” The owners should be charged by the county for the time and equipment that was expended baby sitting this fire.