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<\/p>\nOne of New York state’s strangest environmental disasters resulted in the closing of a government office tower for more than a decade and a cleanup bill of tens of millions of dollars.<\/p>\n
The trouble began 45 years ago. An early-morning electrical fire and several explosions occurred in the basement of the Binghamton State Office Building.<\/p>\n
Watch WNBF News video at the end of this article.<\/p>\n
Nearly two-dozen firefighters were sent to the 18-story structure just before 5:30 a.m. on February 5, 1981.<\/p>\n
The west side of the Binghamton State Office Building near City Hall on February 4, 2016. (Photo: Bob Joseph\/WNBF News)<\/p>\n
The west side of the Binghamton State Office Building near City Hall on February 4, 2016. (Photo: Bob Joseph\/WNBF News)<\/p>\n
The blaze in a transformer caused a coolant containing PCBs to burn. Dioxin and other toxic chemicals were created by the fire. Sticky soot laced with the dangerous compounds spread through the entire tower.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of people who worked in the building were allowed to retrieve personal items after the fire, potentially exposing them to the contamination.<\/p>\n
Dr. Arnold Schecter, who was the Broome County health commissioner, urged officials to exercise caution in responding to the safety issues posed by the chemicals.<\/p>\n
The building superintendent said it might take “several days” before the building could reopen. It actually took nearly 5,000 days – almost 14 years – until office workers started moving back in.<\/p>\n
A view of the Binghamton State Office Building from the city’s South Side on January 4, 2023. (Photo: Bob Joseph\/WNBF News)<\/p>\n
A view of the Binghamton State Office Building from the city’s South Side on January 4, 2023. (Photo: Bob Joseph\/WNBF News)<\/p>\n
A few weeks after the fire, Governor Hugh Carey offered to go into the Binghamton State Office Building and “swallow an entire glass of PCBs and then run a mile afterwards.” He never did.<\/p>\n
Efforts to clean up the tower were time-consuming and expensive. Everything that had been inside the building was removed and transported to a hazardous waste landfill in western New York.<\/p>\n
Some area residents and state government workers suggested the best solution would have been to tear down the tainted structure.<\/p>\n
Officials estimated the total expense to state taxpayers of responding to the disaster was $53 million. That was more than three times the $17 million cost of constructing the building a decade earlier.<\/p>\n
WNBF NEWS VIDEO: We returned to the scene exactly 45 years after the Binghamton State Office Building fire occurred.<\/p>\n
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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph:\u00a0bob@wnbf.com<\/a>\u00a0or call (607) 545-2250.\u00a0For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow\u00a0@BinghamtonNow<\/a>\u00a0on Twitter.<\/p>\n