RICHMOND, Ind. — Indiana State Fire Marshal investigators are looking to speak with former employees of the My-Way Trading Warehouse in Richmond, which was destroyed in a massive fire that prompted local evacuations and nationwide concern.
The 14-acre warehouse for chipped, shredded and bulk plastics caught fire on April 11 and burned for several days, leading to the cancellation of schools for several days as plumes of black, toxic smoke billowed into the air.
Air quality tests revealed asbestos in some of the debris, which was found several miles away from the site, including in parts of Ohio, the Indiana Department of Homeland Security said.
The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, and investigators are asking former employees of the facility to contact them with the hope they may be able to shed light on how the fire started.
The Indiana Department of Homeland Security said the investigation into the fire's origin may take several weeks as crews continue putting out hot spots and searching through the remnants of the building.
Former employees of the warehouse are asked to contact investigator Ross Keasling at 317-509-0381 or rkeasling@dhs.in.gov.
Images show Richmond recycling facility before the blaze, efforts to clean-up
The City of Richmond released images from 2019 showing piles of recyclables that leaders feared could, and ultimately did, fuel a massive fire.
13 Investigates reviewed aerial images that show conditions on the property improved over the years, but not enough to prevent a weeklong inferno that led to thousands of evacuations.
On Tuesday, Fire Chief Tim Brown declared the fire was out. Firefighters continue to monitor the area for hot spots, but residents are starting to move back home after being evacuated for days. Children also returned to school full-time this week.
Thousands of people were impacted by the blaze. Almost immediately, city leaders blamed the owner of the former My-Way Trading company for the disaster. The business now goes by the name Cornerstone Trading Group and is owned by Seth Smith.
Officials warned the warehouse buildings on Northwest F Street were a fire hazard years earlier.
During a September 2019 hearing, Deputy Fire Chief Douglas Gardner told the Richmond Unsafe Building Commission utilities were not connected.
"We have no electric for emergency lighting,” Gardner said. “We have no electric for smoke detection. We have no electric for water for fire protection systems."
The commission also received images of the materials which were inside and outside of dilapidated buildings, which had caved in roofs, crumbling exteriors and broken fire suppression equipment.
City of Richmond My-Way Trading 2019 inspection photos
At the time, the city worried if the materials caught fire flames would get out of control. The fire department created an incident pre-plan. It also asked a federal agency to complete an air plume study showing where smoke could go.
"So when we look at this, we look at possible evacuation areas,” Gardner said in 2019. “And we've done this for four wind directions."
My-Way Trading 2019 smoke plume projections
During that same hearing Smith told the commission materials accumulated inside and outside of buildings after he fell seriously ill in 2015. Smith says a bankruptcy filing also contributed to the state of the plots of land on Northwest F Street.
"I've always been a good neighbor,” Smith said. “But during that period of time, I will admit openly, got out of control. I have a plan now; I've been working on that plan."
Part of that plan included selling and shipping the stacks of materials abroad.
"There’s a lot of work to be done there,” Smith said in 2019. “It's not going to happen, you know, in a short period of time. This is a long process. But I am dedicated to the process.”
Ultimately, the Richmond Unsafe Building Commission issued an Order to Repair, Demolish or Vacate, which a judge approved in 2020.
13 Investigates reviewed aerial images from 2019, 2021 and 2023. The most recent images showed it was improving.
However, the property was never vacated and remediated, and the evacuation concern became a reality more than three years later. The costly inferno is still being investigated. On Wednesday, the fire chief said he did not know what started the blaze.
Class-action lawsuit
Some people in Richmond filed for a class-action lawsuit against Cornerstone Trading Group, LLC and its owner, Seth Smith.
They're asking for the court to award them damages as a direct and proximate result of the fire. The suit also asks the court to determine whether the defendants' "disregard of unsafe building orders and handling, storage, and maintenance of the accelerants and hazardous materials" not only led to the fire, but created health or safety risks to people living in the surrounding areas.
People in the class-action suit are asking for damages in excess of $25,000.
A jury trial was requested.