Federal investigation Into BioLab fire could take up to 18 months

Caption

The BioLab facility in Conyers, Georgia, as seen on October 19, 2024. The plant remains partially closed following a chemical fire on September 29, 2024 that forced thousands of residents to evacuate.

Credit: Pamela Kirkland/GPB

Federal investigators say it could take up to 18 months to complete their investigation into the fire at BioLab’s Conyers facility. They’re also clarifying their role in the process, saying they do not control the company’s overall operations but are overseeing evidence preservation in the affected areas.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) says it has an Evidence and Site Control Agreement (ESCA) with BioLab that only applies to the areas directly impacted by the fire. The agreement is designed to ensure the preservation of physical evidence but does not extend to the rest of the facility.

GPB reached out to the CSB for clarification following a recent BioLab statement that said the company “is continuing to fully cooperate with the U.S. Chemical Safety Board’s investigation and its control of the facility, which is ongoing.”

The CSB, an independent agency that investigates chemical accidents, is not a regulatory or enforcement body and has no authority over BioLab’s broader operations. It can only restrict activity in areas where evidence is being collected.

The agency aims to complete its investigation within 18 months of the fire. While the BioLab plant has partially reopened for distribution, the company has not provided a timeline for when manufacturing operations might resume.

In the meantime, BioLab has offered voluntary severance packages to employees as the plant remains partially closed.

The Sept. 29 fire at BioLab’s Conyers facility led to shelter-in-place orders for nearly 90,000 people in Rockdale County and forced 17,000 residents to evacuate.