As Piney Point saga unfolds, some residents evacuate — but others remain in danger zone
More than 100 Manatee County residents have evacuated their homes after last week’s Piney Point gypsum stack collapse near Tampa Bay. But others choose to stay in or near the evacuation zone.
They live in a danger zone.
A leaking mountain of toxic water threatens their homes, their neighborhoods, their waterways, maybe even their health.
Hundreds of people — raising families, tending livestock, enjoying the spring weather in their backyards — are on ground zero of what could be one of Florida’s worst environmental disasters.
What will happen at a former industrial site called Piney Point? For the past few days, many have had to watch from afar as crews work feverishly to divert the dirty water into Tampa Bay after a breach in one of
the holding ponds.
Will the breach blow? It looks like the crisis is easing for now.
A few days ago, emergency crews wanted neighbors to leave, even though some preferred to stay. Manatee County ordered an evacuation Friday into Saturday across a one-mile radius and including more than 300 homes. The order was lifted late Tuesday afternoon, but the worry continues.
In a home just outside the zone, the Fitzsimmons family wonders what’s next.
‘I’M SHOCKED’
It was Friday night when Melissa Fitzsimmons first heard about the crisis at Piney Point, the toxic grave site of a former phosphate plant in Manatee County. Her husband, Aaron, mentioned it in passing.
“I kind of brushed it off not thinking it was anything major,” Melissa Fitzsimmons said.
Within 24 hours, though, an environmental crisis was in full bloom at the site. An evacuation zone was set up, and Melissa and Aaron Fitzsimmons, who have a 19month-old daughter, were just a football field away.
Living in the shadows of a potential disaster zone wasn’t something mentioned when the Fitzsimmons family bought their home four years ago.
“I’m shocked, I’m angry, I’m completely worried about longtime impacts,” Melissa Fitzsimmons said.
“I don’t want to say I feel misled, but I feel like they are really trying to have people move into this area. The development and the infrastructure they are building for new homes and new families to move here in the Palmetto-Parrish area, especially around this Moccasin Wallow corridor, they’re about to expand the road, they know people are coming. But there is no disclosure about this being here. None.”
Now the world knows. The headlines blare not only in Manatee County but across the network news.
Fitzsimmons said the biggest shock is the threat of a 20-foot wall of water that could come washing down what is the highest point in Manatee, and ruining their quality of life.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency on Saturday afternoon, which made way for additional equipment to be sent to help contain the leak by diverting wastewater into Tampa Bay.
Evacuation zones were set up Friday night and into Saturday, reaching about a block from the Fitzsimmons home. By Monday, Manatee County had helped place 102 evacuated residents in hotels.
Even though they are just out of the zone, the Fitzsimmons family is staying with in-laws a couple miles up the road.
But Pat Krohmer, who has a home in the evacuation zone, isn’t going anywhere.
‘WE HAVE GOOD ELEVATIONS’
“We’re sort of puzzled how we can just pick up and leave this home,” Krohmer said. “We know that we have good elevations in the house itself. We do have a pull-down attic, which we are prepared to go into. Even though this is a one-story house, it looks like two stories. … There’s a lot of open space we could’ve actually gone up into the attic if we felt in any way threatened.”
She said she has been impressed with how leaders have handled the situation
“We are so impressed with Governor DeSantis. He seemed to rescue Manatee County for us.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis visited Manatee County on Easter Sunday, gave updates and flew over the site. His emergency order helped pave the way for more resources to deal with the leak.
Unlike a belching volcano that spits ash as it builds to a blow, or an encroaching wildfire with its haze and choking smoke, the peril of Piney Point is mostly invisible to the people in the area. But it is on their minds and in their lives.
While streets and homes remain dry, another crisis can be brewing as millions of gallons of the contaminated water get pumped through the port across the street and into Tampa Bay. The environmental fallout of that could result in algae blooms devastating to marine life, although leaders say that drinking water will not be affected. What’s not clear is the health effect to humans should a full breach send walls of water rushing into the streets or the debris of radioactive gypsum stacks into the air.
Until late last week, the words “gypsum stack” were a foreign concept to Melissa Fitzsimmons.
“I had no clue of what we were talking about. I had no idea about phosphate mining ... and maybe that’s on me for being ignorant,” she said.
Fitzsimmons said she’s concerned for her daughter’s health.
“If there’s even an ounce of that water sitting or even on our property, do I want my daughter exposed to that? And obviously that answer is no,” Fitzsimmons said.
‘I’M NOT WORRIED’
Aaron Emery, who lives in the Gillette Grove subdivision on the edge of the evacuation zone, said he is “not worried at all” about potential flooding.
“It’s not gonna flood. I’m not worried about it because that road right there is right outside of the evacuation zone.”
Emery said any potential surge would only be a couple inches deep by the time it reached his home.
‘IT’S HEARTBREAKING’
When their young kids couldn’t fall asleep, Forrest and Amy Williams would load them in the car and head out for a nighttime drive until drowsiness set in.
After leaving their home in the Gillette Grove subdivision, they’d roll down a rural north Manatee County road bordered with green Florida thickets. The cruise would reach a dead end at the Piney Point site, according to Forrest Williams, where a giant hill loomed mysteriously in the night.
Williams had no idea that a toxic mess had been brewing just beyond the landmark’s horizon for decades. Or that it would one day force him and his family to leave their home at a moment’s notice.
The Williams family just made a substantial investment in their home, where they’ve lived since 2016. They plan on selling soon and moving to Pennsylvania, where Forrest says he is ready to launch a new company promoting veteran-owned businesses.
But now, everything is uncertain because of the crisis at Piney Point. Forrest worries it could destroy the home or dramatically lower its value.
“Who wants to buy a house that’s a mile away from a toxic waste dump?” Williams said. “It’s heartbreaking.”
And then there are the memories. Williams said he couldn’t bear to lose family treasures they had to leave at the house like photos of his father, who died earlier this year.
For now, Forrest, Amy, and their four children, ages 6, 8, 10 and 12, are sharing a room at the Courtyard by Marriott in Bradenton, where they were put up by Manatee County. Also along for the unexpected trip is the family pet, a yellow Labrador retriever lovingly named by the children: Maggie Banana Karate Kick Williams. Yes, that’s also the official name as registered with the American Kennel Club.
“When I said we may have to leave her home, two of my children went instantly to tears,” Williams said.
Fortunately, the hotel was able to accommodate the entire family.
The Williamses were among the residents in the second round of evacuations, issued on Saturday. The following day, officials announced projections that a worst-case scenario could send a 20-foot wall of polluted water crashing down from the leaky reservoir on the gypsum stack hill at Piney Point and into the surrounding neighborhoods.
Williams said they have been joined at the hotel by several other evacuating families with children, who have been passing the time playing in the pool. The families were told it could be 10 to 12 days before they could safely return home.
After his experience, Williams said that the government should be required to notify citizens if they live in near a toxic site.
“How many times is this going to happen somewhere else?” Williams said. “And who do we hold accountable for it? The original company has gone bankrupt. They turned it over to someone else. The government’s been in charge of it. Are the county and state just going to wash their hands of it and say, ‘Wish you guys the best’?”
‘DAMAGE TO THE BAY IS ALREADY DONE’
Dan Roberts, who lives in the Sundance community, near the Little Manatee River State Park by highway U.S. 301, said the average property there is 20 feet above sea level.
But despite being away from potential danger, Roberts, a contract scientist with Mote Marine who previously worked for Florida Fish and Wildlife, is aware of the environmental risks posed to Tampa Bay and the wildlife repercussions.
“It’s going to be devastating, no matter what, to the bay,” Roberts said. “The damage to the bay is already done, because they’ve been discharging what they call a controlled discharge. They’re getting rid of that stuff as fast as they can. And I guarantee we’re going to see the impact on the bay in the next few days.”
Melissa Fitzsimmons, the mom with the 19month-old girl, said had someone told her that they were going into a home close to a phosphate plant, she might not have moved there.
“Clearly, it was a ticking time bomb . ... It’s akin to building a beautiful community at the base of a volcano that you’ve hidden from public view. That’s how I feel where I’m living.”