A chemical fire at a BioLab plant forces mass evacuations, revealing a pattern of industrial risks and regulatory gaps in a predominantly Black community. Residents grapple with toxic smoke, uncertain health impacts, and a lack of clear answers from authorities, uncovering a history of repeated incidents at the facility.
When a chemical fire broke out at the BioLab facility in Conyers, Georgia in 2024, a plume of smoke blanketed the area, triggering evacuations and urgent warnings to stay indoors. But for many residents, this wasn’t just an isolated emergency—it was part of a larger pattern of industrial incidents at the plant that raised serious concerns about safety and oversight.
In Manufacturing Danger: The BioLab Story, Pamela Kirkland investigates what led to the fire, how officials and the company responded, and the lingering questions about its impact on the community. Through firsthand accounts, expert analysis, and and newly uncovered details, this series explores the broader implications of chemical safety, regulation, and corporate responsibility—while giving voice to those living with the consequences.
The BioLab facility in Conyers is offering voluntary severance packages to employees seeking other job opportunities as the plant remains partially closed.
A new, three-year study aimed at tracking the long-term health effects of last year’s chemical fire at the BioLab plant in Conyers will start next month.
Members of Georgia’s congressional delegation are calling on KIK Consumer Products, the parent company of BioLab, to release updates on its investigation into the chemical fire at its Conyers facility last September.
Residents near the BioLab facility in Conyers, Ga., are still grappling with health problems months after a fire at the plant released a plume of chemicals into the air.
Newly released 911 calls and dispatch notes from the Sept. 29 BioLab fire in Conyers, offer a closer look at the early hours of the chemical fire that forced 17,000 evacuations and weeks of shelter-in-place orders.
Community organizers, speakers and residents affected by the fire at the BioLab plant in Rockdale County packed into The Movement Church in Conyers on Tuesday night to discuss what comes next for their community more than two months after a chemical plume was released into the air.
Nearly two months after a massive chemical fire at BioLab’s Conyers plant forced evacuations and raised environmental and health concerns, new details are emerging.
Six weeks after a massive fire at the BioLab plant released chemicals into the air, triggering evacuations and weeks of shelter-in-place notices, the company has partially reopened its Conyers facility to fulfill customer orders.
Weeks after a fire at the BioLab chemical plant in Conyers, residents are still grappling with the aftermath. County officials are suing BioLab and its parent company, seeking damages for those affected. Protesters are demanding the plant’s shutdown after this, the latest in a history of incidents.
