Knox City Council Discusses Backlash of IDEM Burn

Knox City Council

The Knox City Council this week discussed the results of their controlled burn to dispose of tree waste from the June and July storms. Mayor Rick Chambers explained to the council that he had received several complaints concerning ash and soot from the fire, and one resident had filed a police report regarding damage to his vehicle from burning ash that had fallen on the car.

Chambers told the council that he sent the incident report of the damage to the city’s insurance company. The man is claiming $492 in damage, stating that the car requires a “wash and buff job,” and while Chambers feels that’s a little expensive for such a job, he has forwarded the information to the city’s insurance company to allow them to deal with sorting it out.

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management granted the city’s burn permit on Aug. 9, allowing the city 30 days to conduct the burn. According to the permit, the city was allowed to conduct the controlled burn at the Starke County Highway Garage, Knox City Dump, or Wythogan Park, and the council decided that the dump was the safest place for the burn.