Demolition continues on Pawcatuck mill
Stonington — Demolition continued Tuesday on the former Connecticut Casting Mill in Pawcatuck after a two-hour delay prompted by state concerns about possible PCB contamination in the building.
Meanwhile, the board of selectmen and finance have scheduled a special meeting for Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. at the police department to discuss how to finance the demolition and cleanup of the contaminated site along the Pawcatuck River.
Early Monday, a lightning strike and heavy rains onto the dilapidated mill’s failing roof caused sections of the building to collapse into the river.
The town secured emergency state approval to take down the building on Monday and work began Monday afternoon. Work resumed Tuesday morning, as Pawcatuck firefighters sprayed water on the debris to stop dust from spreading into the adjacent neighborhoods, as it is unknown what environmental contaminants in addition to asbestos are in the structure.
Simmons said the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection ordered work to stop Tuesday morning over concerns there could be toxic PCBs in the debris. But Simmons said Pawcatuck Fire Chief Kevin Burns recalled that equipment containing PCBs had been removed and soil testing done for PCBs 20 years ago and provided that information to DEEP.
After a two-hour delay, Simmons said DEEP allowed the demolition to resume. He said DEEP ordered the town to segregate rubble containing wood, brick, metal and other items so consultants could test it. Samples were collected Tuesday, he said. The town also cannot dig on the site and debris cannot be shipped out to a disposal facility until test results are available.
“Our goal now is to get (the building) down and stabilized so no more of it can collapse into the river,” Simmons said. He said a small section of the mill will remain up along the river to prevent debris from getting into the water.
The demolition and removal of the debris is estimated to cost the town $600,000, likely taken from its undesignated fund surplus set aside for emergencies. The building’s owner has not responded to calls from town officials. Simmons said Town Attorney Tom Londregan is looking into ways to recoup the costs and state Rep. Kate Rotella, D-Stonington, and state Sen. Heather Somers, R-Groton, are looking for state funding to help with the cleanup.
Cleaning up all the contamination on the site could cost much more than $600,000; one past estimate put it at $2 million.
The Stillman Avenue bridge, one of three bridge links between Pawcatuck and Westerly, remained closed Tuesday. The town has posted a police officer at the site and a section of Stillman Avenue is closed.
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