LOUISVILLE, Ky. — As plans remain uncertain to conduct a controlled burn on a Highview home suspected of containing hazardous chemicals, officials from the Environmental Protection Agency are expected to visit the property.
The EPA and incident response representatives are expected to go inside 6211 and 6213 Applegate Lane to determine what materials are inside as well as provide options for removing chemicals instead of burning.
An attorney for the home’s owner, Marc Hibel, had filed a motion to stop the planned controlled burn to preserve evidence. Hibel maintains he had the chemicals at the Applegate Lane home because of his former experience as a chemist.
They argue that if the city burns down the home, it will unnecessarily destroy everything Hibel owns and could also destroy other materials that could be used in his defense.
Police had received tips from neighbors in late July regarding a person possessing dangerous chemicals and making homemade explosives at the Applegate Lane property. Police also allege Hibel showed them an explosive compound he said was “picric acid”, a highly sensitive explosive.
This led to police obtaining a search warrant for both of the properties occupied by Hibel in which they allegedly found explosive substances and other substances that could harm first responders.
City leaders determined a “planned, monitored and controlled burn” of the home would be the safest way to dispose of the contents inside.
Before the city could go through with the burn, Mayor Craig Greenberg told residents at a community meeting he was consulting with the EPA before making that decision.
“We are not going to move forward with any plan, until I am satisfied that it can be done in the absolute safest possible way,” Greenberg said at that meeting.
The property at 6213 Applegate Lane is fenced in and only members of incident response are allowed access. A portion of the street near both properties have been restricted to local access while the EPA investigates.
The city said no chemicals are expected to be removed on Monday and even if a controlled burn is decided, it would not happen this week.
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