We return to Conyers in season two with new voices and new information. Former BioLab staff describe corrosion, leaky sprinklers, and storage beyond the stated limits. At the same time, neighbors continue to ask what they were exposed to and what lingers in their soil, gardens, and water. We connect the dots from Hurricane Helene to the 2024 fire, the Chemical Safety Board’s ongoing probe, and BioLab’s decision to end manufacturing in Rockdale County.

A chemical plume and heavy smoke rise from the BioLab facility in Conyers, Georgia, as firefighters respond to a chemical fire on September 29, 2024.

A chemical plume and heavy smoke rise from the BioLab facility in Conyers, Ga., as firefighters respond to a chemical fire on Sept. 29, 2024.

Credit: Stephanie Donnelly

 

In the Season 2 premiere, we pick up in a church hall packed with residents who still seek answers. An independent tester walks through lab reports that identify polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, while longtime neighbors describe headaches, hoarse voices, and worry that daily life will never return to normal. We hear the question you keep asking: what exactly was in that plume and what settled on yards, cars, and fruit trees.

A former on-site engineer says he replaced dozens of corroded sprinkler heads and questioned why a water-based system protected water-reactive oxidizers such as TCCA. He also lists chemicals commonly stored there and recalls emergency repairs just weeks before the fire. Meanwhile, the CSB’s interim updates and company records frame a warehouse divided by a firewall, inventory stored outside designated areas, and quantities that vastly exceeded what county officials had been told.

Finally, we track what changed after Season 1. BioLab says manufacturing will not resume in Conyers, though distribution continues. Residents balance relief with concern about ongoing storage, and they keep filing records requests after earlier small “smoker” incidents surfaced through 911 audio. We close with a look ahead at health impacts for adults and children and the stakes for federal safety oversight.

Tags: Georgia  BioLab  podcast