NOTE: This story has been updated to correct the anticipated timeline of the cleanup.
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday that a 4-month undertaking to clean up asbestos-contaminated debris from the former Illinois Cabinet Co., which was destroyed in a fire in December 2023.
The EPA said will remove unstable buildings at the site, at 2525 11th Street, and spray water on debris to control any dust, and will monitor the air to ensure asbestos fibers do not leave the cleanup area.
A temporary fence will be erected on the sidewalk outside the site on 11th Street during the 4-month cleanup program.
The Illinois Cabinet Co. operated from 1906 to 1973, making wooden furniture. A salvage company was hired in 2023 to remove valuable building materials, which severely weakened the 5-story building’s structure, the EPA said.
In December 2023, a fire caused the City of Rockford to condemn the building.
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