MARTINSVILLE — It’s been 16 days since the county’s main hub of services was shut down after dozens of county employees went to area medical facilities to be tested for elevated carbon monoxide (CO) levels, and county officials still aren’t sure of the cause.
“We’ve not found carbon monoxide in the building this whole time,” Morgan County Administrator Kyle Swalls said on Tuesday.
But it’s not for lack of trying.
On July 29 — the day after the initial incident at the Morgan County Administration and Judicial Campus building — the county called in state agencies to assist in the effort, including the Indiana Department of Health (IDH), the Indiana Department of Homeland Security (IDHS) and the state fire marshal, while also reporting the incident to Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Administration (IOSHA).
Martinsville Fire Department personnel have repeatedly tested the building for CO, as has CenterPoint Energy.
Last week, more testing took place, which included a specialized XplorIR device — an infrared tool to identify more than 5,500 gases at low concentrations. And still nothing.
The county has also been consulting with multiple environmental science firms in an effort to solve the mystery, and they made some recommendations to the county.
“The main (recommendations) I heard were, ‘You need to have a mechanical engineering firm evaluate the (building) plans, and you need to have a someone do testing on the gas pipes to make sure they’re sealed properly and working,’” Swalls said, adding that the pipe installer had already performed two “bubble tests” of its own on the joints, looking for leaks but finding none.
Last week, the county also had four volunteers spend at least half a day inside the building. They had their blood drawn before and after to see if elevated CO could be detected.
Two showed elevated levels though not dangerous, while one stayed the same and the other dropped “considerably.”
“It just doesn’t make sense,” Swalls said of the mixed results.
Earlier this week, a mechanical firm was on site to pressure test the pipes, and another engineering firm was slated for a visit later this week. The Indiana Department of Labor is also scheduled for an INSafe Consultation today to assist the county in shoring up its safety programs and reducing workplace hazards.
By week’s end, Swalls will present his findings to the county commissioners, who are tasked with making the decision whether to open or remain closed.
“I’m going to present the information I’ve got from this experience to the commissioners as I have all along and let them make the decision if we’ve exhausted all options, or if they have other ideas,” Swalls said. “I don’t know that there’s anything left.”
“Now if there’s recommendations from the consultants we have this week and they’re substantial, that might go into their decision-making,” he added.
In the meantime, county departments have scrambled for a new temporary home. Within days of the initial incident, the county clerk and courts made their home at city hall in Martinsville. The health department set up shop in the basement of the public library. And the Purdue Extension Office moved to the 4-H Building at the county fairgrounds.
And this week, other departments — including the commissioners, planning and zoning, treasurer, surveyor, recorder, auditor, assessor and veterans services — set up desks and chairs inside the Community Room at SCI REMC at 300 Morton Ave. in Martinsville.
Swalls said Tuesday that those temporary offices had seen a “steady flow” of residents on Monday, despite the limited services provided due to lack of equipment, records or technology typically available at their normal offices.
“But what we wanted to provide was at least the ability to consult with experts on next steps and interact with your government,” Swalls said, thanking residents for their patience despite the frustrations.
He’s hoping the consultants coming in this week might shed some light on the ongoing mystery. But whether the county’s administration and judicial campus building is reopened next week will lie with the commissioners.
“It’s pretty disruptive,” Swalls said. “So we obviously want to open as quickly as possible.”
