*Updated- See Editor’s Note below*
The odor problem that has caused the closure of the St. Croix Elections Office may be being caused by a generator at a neighboring store, the board learned at an emergency meeting Tuesday.
In a separate email after the meeting, Genevieve Whitaker, the deputy supervisor of elections, said “K-Mart appliances cleaned their generator causing our office to fill with diesel fumes.” At Tuesday’s meeting, Whitaker said she has sent multiple emails to OSHA and DPNR to try to get the process started to test the air but had not heard back from anyone as of Tuesday.
One of the main concerns that the board members have is that not only is it unsafe for employees to come into work, but that they are still paying rent on a building that has been vacant for three weeks.
“We allowed things to get out of hand and were making excuses,” Williams said, “and now we’re paying for a property that no one can work in.”
According to Caroline Fawkes, the supervisor of elections, the first thing she did when she heard what was going on the 15th of the month was to get in touch with ADCON Environmental Services, a private environmental testing company, so it could run an air quality test. This test has yet to happen.
“We need to get this done immediately,” Williams said.
As of Tuesday nothing had been sent directly to the board and owners at Sunny Isle Shopping Center.
“We need be more assertive with them,” said Ephiphane Joseph, the last of four board members physically present at meeting. “We are not holding them responsible, and they are not harmless in all of this.”
The board made a motion in several parts to try to get the process of testing and cleaning the air in the building underway.
First, they intend to draft a formal letter to send to Kmart, Sunny Isle and the Attorney General’s office giving a chronological recounting of the incident, the order and copies of the emails that have been sent to DPNR, OSHA, and other departments, and stating they will not pay the rent on the building for the last three weeks and for the remainder of the time that the building is uninhabitable.
Second, they intend to get in touch not only with Adcon but with Environmental Concepts to get the air quality test as soon as possible, because without that, nothing can be done to rectify the situation, they said.
Finally, all of this must be done under a strict timeline so employees can return to work and continue to receive an income.
Until then, the Office of Elections will continue to remain closed until further notice.
*Editor’s Note: This story has been amended to remove a quote that the person quoted says is not accurate.
