GEORGETOWN, Del. - People living near the Perdue plant in Georgetown were left concerned Wednesday evening after a hazardous materials response at the facility prompted a shelter-in-place alert from the Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA).
Jennifer Rodríguez, who lives nearby, described her worry during the situation.
"When we would open the door, you could kind of, like, smell it. It was kind of scary because, I mean, especially for the workers inside because we don’t know what’s going on in there," Rodríguez said.
Joelle Beauchamp, who lives at Springboard Pallet Village, described the moment she received the DEMA alert to shelter-in-place.
"Unfortunately, my husband is homeless. He’s in a tent. So it was me, him, and our dog last night in a tent, and we were so afraid of being exposed to this chemical," Beauchamp said.
Rodríguez expressed a desire for better communication in the future.
"Probably just to alert everyone in time and especially for the people that live nearby," she said.
Scared was the sentiment shared by locals Thursday when recalling what happened at the Perdue plant Wednesday evening. For now, uncertainty remains, leaving a community on edge.