West Louisville warehouse storing chemicals catches fire, causing concern for residents

HEY, JENNIFER. HEY, RICK. YEAH, THIS BUILDING BEHIND ME IS WHERE LANSING CHEMICALS STORES THE RAW MATERIALS TO MAKE PAINT. NOW, OFFICIALS ARE STILL INVESTIGATING WHAT EXACTLY CAUSED THAT FIRE. BUT THE FACT THAT THIS FACILITY HOUSES CHEMICALS HAS NEIGHBORS CONCERNED. SO WE WERE SITTING AND JUST WATCHING A MOVIE LIKE ANY OTHER DAY. AND THEN ANGIE MERRIWEATHER LIVES NEXT DOOR TO THE LANSING CHEMICAL WAREHOUSE ON 26TH STREET AND SAYS THE FIRE WAS TERRIFYING. IT’S ACTUALLY JUST ROARING COMING OUT OF THERE. IT WAS FLAMES RIGHT THERE ACROSS THE STREET. WE SEE IT FROM THE WINDOW. THAT’S WHEN MERRIWEATHER RAN TO HER PORCH AND TOOK THIS VIDEO. BUT SHE SAYS THE HEAT WAS SO INTENSE SHE HAD TO BACK UP. THAT’S WHEN FIRE CREWS ARRIVED ON THE SCENE. WHAT YOU HAD WAS YOU HAD A COMMERCIAL BUILDING THAT STORED SOME HAZARDOUS MATERIALS THAT WERE COMBUSTIBLE, THAT WERE FLAMMABLE. SO THAT PRESENTED A CERTAIN CHALLENGES. IT TOOK FIREFIGHTERS AROUND THREE HOURS TO FINALLY GET THE FLAMES UNDER CONTROL. THE FIRE WAS DECLARED A LEVEL ONE HAZMAT BECAUSE OF THE CHEMICALS INVOLVED, BUT IT IS NO LONGER A HAZMAT SITUATION. WE HAD ON SCENE VERY QUICKLY. THEY WERE INCREDIBLY SUPPORTIVE OF MONITORING THE AIR, MONITORING THEIR SYSTEMS. AND AGAIN, WE NEVER CAME WITHIN DANGEROUS LEVELS FOR THE FOR THE AREA, THE IMMEDIATE AREA. WE HAD PERSONNEL ON SITE AND THEY WERE MONITORING INSIDE THE SEWER PIPE FOR TO SEE WHAT LEVELS OF, IF ANY OF CHEMICALS WERE IN THE SEWER PIPE. THERE WERE NOT THE LEVELS WERE SAFE, ERIN LANNING, CONTROLLER OF LANNING CHEMICAL, WHICH OWNS THE WAREHOUSE, BELIEVES THEY’LL BE ABLE TO SALVAGE SOME OF THE SPACE. LANNING SAYS THE BUILDING HAS BEEN IN HIS FAMILY FOR GENERATIONS. MY FAMILY SOLD COAL OUT OF THIS PARTICULAR LOCATION IN THE EARLY 1900S UNTIL, I GUESS THE 40S OR 50S. BUT THOSE BACK THERE IS ALL WOODEN. IT’S A WOODEN BUILDING. BECAUSE OF THAT, THE BACK BUILDING IS A TOTAL LOSS. BUT DESPITE LOSING THAT PIECE OF FAMILY HISTORY, HE’S JUST HAPPY. FIRE CREWS ARRIVED ON SCENE SO QUICKLY AND THAT NO ONE WAS INJURED. THANK GOD NOBODY WAS HURT AND IT WASN’T REALLY TOO MUCH LOSS OF OF INVENTORY OR, YOU KNOW, EQUIPMENT. YEAH. NO, THAT WOULD IN BUILDING THAT LANNING WAS REFERRED TO REFERRING TO IS RIGHT THERE AND IT IS A TOTAL LOSS. BUT THE OTHER TWO BUILDINGS AND MOST OF WHAT’S INSIDE OF IT CAN BE SALVAGED SALVAGED. NOW, AS I SAID BEFORE, OFFICIALS ARE STILL INVESTIGATING WHAT EXACTLY CAUSED THAT FIRE. AND I’M TOLD THAT THAT INVESTIGATION WILL LIKELY TAKE SOME TIME. LIVE

Lanning Chemical was storing raw materials used to make paint inside a warehouse in the California neighborhood when it caught fire Thursday night.Residents were concerned about the air and water quality due to the hazardous materials inside, but Maj. Bobby Cooper with the Louisville Fire Department said it's not a concern."We had MSD on scene very quickly. They were incredibly supportive monitoring the air, monitoring their systems," Cooper said. "We never came within dangerous levels for the immediate area."Regardless, neighbors described the scene as terrifying. "Actually, it was just roaring coming out of there," said Angie Merriweather, who lives across Howard Street from the warehouse. "The flames were right there, just across the street."Merriweather went out onto her porch to record a video of the flames, but quickly had to step away. "It was actually too hot! I could feel the heat from all the way over here by the porch," Merriweather said.Crews arrived on scene shortly after Merriweather took the video. It took firefighters just under three hours to put out the blaze. Aaron Lanning, owner of Lanning Chemicals, said they only lost one of their three buildings. The other suffered some damage, but most of what's inside can be salvaged."It wasn't really too much loss of inventory or equipment," Lanning said. "Thank God nobody was hurt."LFD is still investigating the cause of the fire.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. —

Lanning Chemical was storing raw materials used to make paint inside a warehouse in the California neighborhood when it caught fire Thursday night.

Residents were concerned about the air and water quality due to the hazardous materials inside, but Maj. Bobby Cooper with the Louisville Fire Department said it's not a concern.

"We had MSD on scene very quickly. They were incredibly supportive monitoring the air, monitoring their systems," Cooper said. "We never came within dangerous levels for the immediate area."

Regardless, neighbors described the scene as terrifying.

"Actually, it was just roaring coming out of there," said Angie Merriweather, who lives across Howard Street from the warehouse. "The flames were right there, just across the street."

Merriweather went out onto her porch to record a video of the flames, but quickly had to step away.

"It was actually too hot! I could feel the heat from all the way over here by the porch," Merriweather said.

Crews arrived on scene shortly after Merriweather took the video. It took firefighters just under three hours to put out the blaze.

Aaron Lanning, owner of Lanning Chemicals, said they only lost one of their three buildings. The other suffered some damage, but most of what's inside can be salvaged.

"It wasn't really too much loss of inventory or equipment," Lanning said. "Thank God nobody was hurt."

LFD is still investigating the cause of the fire.

West Louisville warehouse storing chemicals catches fire, causing concern for residents

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