ROSELAND, La. — Tyreik Taylor had barely wiped the oil from his hands when the sky behind him lit up.
Fifteen minutes after the 26-year-old drove home, a roar thundered from the plant where he helped mix chemicals for motor oil and had just punched out. Fire consumed the air, the collapsing metal groaning and liquids hissing as they escaped into the surrounding water, soil, and air. From his yard, he saw neighbors pointing at the rising smoke, not knowing he had been inside the plant only minutes before.
Last Friday afternoon, Aug. 22, a catastrophic explosion erupted at Smitty’s Supply, a major lubricant manufacturing facility in a predominantly Black town about 60 miles northeast of Baton Rouge. The blaze swept through the 15-acre complex that housed half a million gallons of flammable materials.
Oily droplets spattered from the smoky sky as far as 20 miles away, coating rooftops, cars, and front lawns in a slick, shimmering film that glistened like tar. Cancer-causing air toxics such as benzene can be released in refinery and lubricant fires; officials say sampling is underway.
Although no deaths had been reported as of Thursday, the fire inflicted environmental anxiety, residents said. The inferno at Smitty’s Supply is just the latest flashpoint as states and the federal government make it harder to hold industrial companies accountable for damage by rolling back regulations and oversight.
“They don’t care about us,” said Taylor, referring to both the industrial company and government officials. “There is no way people don’t get sick, because we need help over here and we’re not getting it.”
Last year, Louisiana became the focal point for the erosion of civil rights protections against environmental injustice. A state court case stopped the federal government from using the Civil Rights Act to block the expansion of toxic facilities in Black communities.
Now, under the Trump administration, permits for polluting plants are being approved with little oversight. Facilities are also allowed to release more chemicals into the environment as parts of the Clean Air Act get weakened.
For days, an industrial explosion led to a fire burning in Roseland, Louisiana, a predominantly Black town about 60 miles northeast of Baton Rouge. The cause of the explosion is under investigation. (Courtesy of the EPA)
At the same time, the administration has moved to repeal a Biden administration rule that strengthened the country’s ability to plan for and address the fallout from hazardous industrial events. These disasters overwhelmingly burden Black families, who are more likely to live nearby and face the greatest health, economic, and environmental harms.
On Aug. 22, more than 80% of residents in the town, including Taylor, were forced to abandon their homes. Over 250 people crammed into a tiny community center overnight, with most sleeping on plastic chairs. Roseland’s mayor and housing director, who handled the evacuation, did not respond to requests for comment.
By Aug. 26, most of the community returned to their homes, but the air remained heavy with the pungent scent of petroleum.
“I’m probably already sick with something,” said Tevin Moore, 33, another former employee of Smitty’s Supply. On Sunday, Taylor and Moore were laid off, along with hundreds of other employees, from the plant. They both said they were offered about $250 in monthly severance.
In every reporting period since 2022, Smitty’s has been cited for significant Clean Water Act violations. The Clean Water Act is the nation’s governing law regarding water safety, but the Trump administration has proposed weakening the rule. Among those violations, the company reported polluting local waterways with organic chemicals, which may include benzene and toluene, at approximately 20 times the legal limit, oil and grease at over four times the cap, and fecal bacteria at four times the cap.
Residents here are exposed to more oil and gas facilities than 90% of Americans and face higher rates of respiratory illness than 95% of the country. As soot from the explosion settles on playgrounds and porches, many locals say the consequences of industry-friendly policies and the erosion of civil rights guardrails are evident.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry cautioned residents not to clean their homes until investigators have determined what chemicals are in the ash. He said at a press conference that the explosion had not caused an “immediate danger to wildlife or to human health.”
State health departments say breathing oil fumes for even a day can cause severe lung irritation, peeling skin, and chemical pneumonitis, and may also trigger neurologic effects and more serious health problems such as cancer, liver and kidney damage, and blood effects.
Read More: Black Louisianans Grapple With a Climate Change-Denying Governor-Elect
On Monday, the regional Environmental Protection Agency took over the cleanup of the disaster. Still, residents expressed distrust in the process. The current head of the regional department, appointed by President Donald Trump, is Scott Mason, a former energy official for the state of Oklahoma. Mason was also an author of the Project 2025 plan that called for ending certain pollution regulations, toxic chemical clean-up programs, and research on the impact of pollution on human health.
“I can’t trust them, and I also can’t do it myself,” said Mary, a 68-year-old resident. “I’m just going to have to leave it and hope for the best.”
Children, older adults, pregnant people, and those with respiratory or cardiovascular illnesses face higher acute risk from smoke and chemical exposure. (Adam Mahoney/Capital B)
In a statement issued Tuesday, Smitty’s Supply apologized to the community and its employees. One of the plant executives’ daughters, Bethany Tate, however, said in a Facebook post that “no one was to blame.” An investigation on the cause of the explosion is underway.
Taylor and Moore, who both said they routinely saw chemical fires in the plant, took exception to that comment.
“They never gave us [personal protective equipment] when we worked there, and it smelled just like this. Now we’re going to be walking in and touching oil for weeks,” Moore said.
Since 2020, Smitty’s has faced five serious labor violations from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, including four for grease fires and one for a fatal incident, where a worker was struck and killed by a trailer.
The company has vowed to rebuild. Residents told Capital B they have mixed feelings about the facility’s possible return because of the health risks. Despite those concerns, some here would welcome the economic benefits of a new facility.
More than half of Roseland residents — and 90% of its children — live in poverty. In the town of 1,200, Smitty’s, which employed roughly 450 people, was an economic lifesaver. Without it, some residents said it will be harder for people to support themselves financially.
“People are gonna find themselves in the trenches,” Taylor said.
By the weekend, oil had reached waterways 30 miles south of Roseland. (Courtesy of the EPA)
With environmental protections erased, residents fend for themselves
About 1.5 miles away from the plant, Patricia Thomas was mopping the black sheen from her kitchen floor on Tuesday morning when the smell grabbed her throat. Her eyes burned, and the oily grit stuck to her shoes, tracking in from her yard. In her front yard, her green bushes had turned gray, and the mailbox was stuck shut with the black substance that had rained down in the explosion. She has to keep her great‑grandbaby away now. Even her cats, who often go outside, often return to her house streaked in a tar-like substance.
The 65-year-old said she survives on her $450 per month Social Security income. A week ago, she charged over $1,000 on her credit card at Home Depot for new wood paneling for her trailer and paid roofers to lay fresh shingles to stop a leak. The panels are now speckled and tacky to the touch, the shingles already lifting.
“They’re acting like no one is responsible, but I know for sure who isn’t responsible — we didn’t do it,” she said. “Who is paying for it?”
Patricia Thomas inspects her garden, which is speckled with oil. (Adam Mahoney/Capital B)
Thomas, who retired early due to health reasons, said issues with her back and shoulders make it difficult for her to scrub the black mystery substance that now coats her porch, fencing, and floors. She is afraid to touch any of it, afraid not to.
“This stuff could kill me if I touch it,” she said, “but what about if I keep tracking it in my house, too?”
At a community meeting on Monday, where many attendees expressed anger that no representatives from Smitty’s Supply or its insurance company were present, neighbors were advised to consult a civil lawyer. Already, six residents have filed lawsuits against the company. But Thomas did the math and shook her head.
“I don’t have money for a lawyer,” she said. “I barely cover my bills.” If there is a class action, maybe she will be included, she said. Otherwise, she worries she will be left to choose between breathing toxic this air and going deeper into debt to clean a mess she did not make.
Both Thomas and Mary said their anxiety levels have already increased.
Following a similar chemical fire in Illinois in 2021, a government survey found that half of the neighboring city’s residents experienced new or worsened health issues. And in 2019, a similar explosion led to residents in France reporting increased stress, depression, insomnia, and anxiety for a year after the event.
Just a year ago, residents in this majority-Black, low-income town would have had the legal right and avenue to petition the government to investigate the company and the disaster for elements of discrimination and wrongdoing. It would also be more difficult for the company to secure pollution permits to reopen operations.
Today, they said they’re left with complimentary water bottles and cleaning supplies.
“In the long run, this is gonna mess up for a long time, and they don’t care because of who lives here,” Taylor said, referring to what she sees as discrimination against Black people. “We don’t know what’s in this air right now or what might be in our water and bodies.”
Some residents received bottles of bleach to clean the oil splattered across their properties. (Adam Mahoney/Capital B)
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