Overview:
A fire at the BioLab facility in Conyers reignited on Sunday afternoon, but has since been extinguished. Rockdale Public Schools have closed their buildings for through October 4, 2024.
Rockdale County Public Schools has announced its closure for all year-round staff starting today and through Friday, October 4, due to the environmental emergency caused by the BioLab fire on Sunday, September 29, 2024.
This announcement comes after a chemical fire broke out at BioLab in Conyers, causing 90,000 + residents in much of the area to be in an evacuation zone.
In an early-morning Monday update, Rockdale County advised that a shelter-in-place advisory for nearly 100,000 people will continue until further notice. By Monday afternoon, the haze and chemical smell had spread to the surrounding Atlanta, prompting firefighters to use detectors to check air quality in various parts of the city, Mayor Andre Dickens said.
All Rockdale Public Schools school-based positions were already closed due to Fall Break, which started Monday, September 30, and ends Friday, October 4, 2024. Now all RCPS offices are closed on Friday, October 4, 2024.
BioLab is a company that makes pool and spa treatments, and the chemicals involved in that process appeared to exacerbate the fire and send up colossal smoke clouds. According to authorities, the fire later reignited around noon and was put out around 3:30-4 p.m. on Sunday.
Families in impacted areas should take precautions and heed evacuation orders or shelter-in-place orders from Rockdale Emergency Management Agency.