Lead concerns have neighbors worried near an old factory in Delta

DELTA, Ohio (WTVG) - There are some major lead concerns from the Fulton County village of Delta.

Recent air testing around an old plant came back showing elevated levels of lead. Crews started to demolish the Bunting Bearings plant in November. Now, there is much concern about where all that dust ended up.

The demolition is on hold, so that means no new contaminants are getting into the air. But what happens when the rest of the demolition continues? And what are the concerns for what has already fallen?

Neighbors like Connie Francis watched as part of the former Bunting Bearings on Van Buren Street went down in November. On Wednesday, her son heard about the lead concerns connected to this building coming down and he called his mom.

“That’s why he called me right away last night. He’s going down the possible symptoms. He said, ‘You’ve got a couple of the symptoms,’” said Francis.

She is fatigued and has eye irritation. It could be many things, but she’s looking to get blood testing in case it’s connected to the lead.

“Kinda nervous, because that stuff is nasty,” said Francis.

According to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), demolition started in November when the company moved its operation to Mansfield. Dust from the demolition was tested and the December level was nearly 5 times the national standard for lead.

“I figured that tearing it down is going to kick up some old stuff that’s probably in there like dust, maybe if they’ve had some old asbestos in there,” said Robert Gearhart, who lives near the plant.

Very close to the factory are the Pike Delta York school buildings. District officials are now taking some extra steps to try and make sure those kids are safe.

They include limiting outdoor recess, minimizing outside time during arrival and dismissal and surface cleaning of outdoor play equipment.

According to a press release from PDY Schools, the EPA collected samples from all school buildings and school grounds Wednesday. The samples are going to be expedited to a laboratory and results are expected to be returned by Friday.

There are no concerns about water right now, but the Ohio EPA is analyzing samples from Delta and Swanton.

EPA leaders have told the company to contract with an environmental firm to determine the extent of possible contamination.

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