Severe storms with rain, hail, high winds, and tornadoes moved through eight counties in central/western Kansas during the evening of May 4, 2007. The city of Greensburg and outlying rural areas (Kiowa County, approximately 1,500 residents) was hit directly by an F5 tornado. This particular tornado tracked through six counties (starting in Comanche, Kiowa, Edwards, Stafford, Pratt, and Barton Counties). EPA dispatched three On-Scene Coordinators (OSCs) to the scene with the response truck and mobile command post, and they reported observing scattered miscellaneous hazardous waste, including solvents, paints, propane tanks, chlorine cylinders, anhydrous ammonia tanks, rail tankers, etc.
EPA crews continue to conduct curbside pickup of household hazardous waste (HHW) items and white goods. A total of 3,325 items were picked up on May 15, 2007, for a total of 14,994 items picked up to date. HHW is staged at the south staging areas, and white goods are transported to the south landfill.
EPA response contractors stationed at the north landfill are assisting Kansas Department of Health and the Environment (KDHE) officials in identifying and segregating hazardous substances brought to the landfill in debris loads.
EPA OSCs conducted a reconnaissance of potentially impacted rural areas to the south of Greensburg. Several downed transformers were found, including one that was leaking. Also, a crude oil tank battery was found to be impacted. EPA is working with the Kansas Corporation Commission to review the next course of action.
EPA responded to a small demolition operation at the hospital to ensure no hazardous materials were involved.
KDHE and EPA participated in an incident safety meeting at 10:00 am, which will now be an ongoing meeting for all parties.
EPA will continue to provide support for HHW and white goods collection at the north landfill as curbside pickup of HHW and white goods continues.
EPA will continue to monitor the demolition status of buildings identified as potentially having asbestos.
Per KDHE request, EPA will transport several drums of waste pharmaceuticals and narcotics to the Ford County landfill for disposal. There is no secure location on the site for these materials to be stored until other transportation arrangements can be made.
EPA met with the city of Greensburg public utilities to discuss next steps for the PCB transformers. Each transformer will be sampled and sent to a lab, and then disposal options will be investigated.
PCB transformer disposal continues to be a key item.
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