A haze covered portions of Clarks Mill Road as smoke from fire at First Piedmont Landfill continued to drift away from the lot Thursday morning.
“This is really terrible,” said Belinda Royal, a resident with one tree line of separation between her home and the landfill. The smoke and smell bathed her home as she did chores in and around the house.
As unpleasant as the smoke smelled, however, landfill operator Tom Wade said a Virginia Department of Environmental Quality representative said the air wasn’t hazardous. DEQ spokeswoman Ann Regn confirmed the smoke was not hazardous, noting that management tested the air as the fire burned Wednesday night to ensure the safety of the workers and Thursday to determine there weren’t any health concerns.