Memo: Health Concerns & Frost Manufacturing Site Visit - Health Concerns

Letter to John Burnett, from Mary Young, regarding visit done at the Frost Manufacturing Company site, in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

254390

1996-05-28 00:00:00.0

WID006090286

Frost Manufacturing Company

PDF

Wisconsin Department of Health and Social Services

Mary Young

Administrative Record

Emergency Response & Removal

text

Health threat

Frost Manufacturing Company

Environmental reporting

Midwest

Wisconsin Department of Health and Social Services

City of Kenosha

1996-05-28

Wisconsin Department of Health and Social Services

City of Kenosha

Copyright undetermined

eng

Kenosha, Wisconsin

PDF

STATE OF WISCONSIN
ftnnmi ,,/ Health
Bureau of Public HeallH
^ectiim <if Ennrnnmenlal Epidemiology & Prevenlinti
Health Hazard Evaluation i / n t

Date:

May 28. 1996

EPA Region 5 Recordsctr.

To: John Burnett, DNR
From: Mary Young, Public Health Educator
^~y\jU^~~
Section of Environmental Epidemiology and Prevention
/
Subject: Frost Manufacturing Site Visit - Health Concerns
On May 20, 1996, I visited the Frost Manufacturing Company in Kenosha for the purpose of
determining if public health threats were posed by the abandoned company in a residential
neighborhood. Others on the site visit included yourself and Bill Ramsey from DNR, Chris
Tanner, an environmental consultant. Randy Wergin and Jeff Kindrai from the Kenosha County
Health Department, Sharon Kreson of Kenosha City Development; and Frieda Jacobson who is
the Kenosha County Treasurer.
The site is a large manufacturing building (occupying about ]/ 2 of a city block) located in a mixed
residential and industrial neighborhood. Although the property is fenced and access to the
building locked, there is evidence that people trespass by climbing over the fence behind the
building. On the side of the building adjacent to the railroad, we found evidence that people
were entering the property through an open window in a storage shed From the window they set
up a ramp that allowed them to more easily enter the shed Inside the fence there were broken
windows high on the building through which a motivated person could enter the building We
noticed a ladder attached to the roof and another ladder from the roof to an open area inside the
building complex.
The buildings were relatively free of debris, however, we noticed several areas where people
could be exposed to residual chemicals. In several places green powdered chemicals were
spilled In one room barrels of what appeared to be plating waste were tipped out on the floor
In the plating area there were sumps with liquid and plastic covering places where plating
occurred In one room, someone opened up the valve orran oil tank which created a slippery, oilcovered
floor
"
,
Although mostly free of debris, we noticed a number of significant physical hazards. In the
northern most building there were several trenches four feet wide and four feet deep into which
someone could fall The biggest building contained several sumps with standing water Also in
the large building were several dilapidated machines, a large electrical transformer and stripped
electrical wire that could have current, ladders going to the roof, and some boards with nails
sticking up Presenting possible chemical hazards were a number of barrels with unknown

contents
The building may also present inhalation exposure issues Although we noticed no odor of
solvents, spilled plating wastes may present air quality problems As we entered the area of the
building where plating activities once occurred some of the people on the visit notice an odor of
sulfuric acid A recent fire in the office left an unmistakable odor of wet fire As we approached
the buildiny, I paid attention to other possible sources of odor in the neighborhood and noticed
none
I anticipate only one ingestion issue, that of people who might enter the site and put their hands
in their mouths or eat after having been in the building. Contaminated groundwater would not be
an ingestion issue in this neighborhood because all residents are supplied municipal water
Private residences are across the street from the company Homes are generally suggestive of
people who have limited incomes. I noticed no clustering of sensitive populations right around
the company such as day care or elder care facilities. However, I did not tour the neighborhood
beyond the area just adjacent to the building. Report from the city developer suggest that most
of the trespassers on the property are teenagers. I noticed no nearby recreational attractions that
might draw people to the area of the abandoned plant
cc

Randy Wergin
Sharon Krewson