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A majority of the money set aside to reimburse residents for their evacuation expenses during the Weaver fertilizer plant fire remains unclaimed. The City of Winston-Salem allocated $1 million to reimburse low-income residents who were affected by the days-long incident back in February. Since then, only about $300,000 has been distributed.
Nearly three months after the Winston Weaver fertilizer plant fire left Winston-Salem holding its collective breath for five days, members of the city’s public works committee sat rapt in council chambers, listening to city staffers present their thoughts on how to prevent the incident from repeating itself. Then came the big question, from Councilmember John Larson: “Is there another fertilizer plant type example out there somewhere that we should be worried about?”
The City of Winston-Salem will accept fire reimbursement applications from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Fairgrounds Home & Garden Building.
Firefighters were called to the Winston Weaver Fertilizer plant several times over the past five years, before a blaze in January prompted evacuations. Winston-Salem emergency crews have been called to the plant for fire-related incidents a total of five times since 2017, according to reports obtained by WFDD.
Years before a fire at the Winston-Weaver Fertilizer Plant prompted a mass evacuation, the company was fined thousands of dollars by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Records show OSHA fined the company $25,000 in 2007 after an employee was fatally electrocuted by a 120-volt cord.