Thursday, 4:30 PM
More Danvers residents return to find ruined homes
By Kathy McCabe
Globe Staff
DANVERS - Weary residents pitched rotting food, soaked rugs and broken furniture into trash dumpsters, as they returned to their ruined homes today, some for the first time, since a chemical plant explosion almost a week ago forced them from their homes.
But most homes remain unoccupied and boarded up along Riverside and Bates streets in Danversport, with many still facing months of living at hotels or rented digs.
"It didn't smell as bad as I thought it might," Janet Lettich, 54, said of the Thanksgiving food that never got cooked. "We've got an apartment in downtown Danvers. We think it will be months before we get back here."
A total of 12 homeowners were allowed to move back since Sunday.
Several more families are expected to get clearance today. So far, 65 building permits have been issued, clearing the way for contractors to start working on homes.
But Danvers officials stressed it will be a long road back for many displaced residents. The early-morning blast at a building housing an ink plant and paint factory on the Waters River damaged at least 70 homes and businesses.
"For some people, it will be a matter of weeks and months," Town Manager Wayne P. Marquis, said after a morning briefing with residents and reporters. "It depends on the severity of the damage . . . We do expect the numbers (of homeowners allowed back home) to decrease over . . . Their properties are too damaged to return to now."
Deputy Fire Chief Kevin P. Farrell said safety is a top priority as residents are cleared to return home. "Windows are an issue," Farrell said, walking past homes with marked with colored stickers reading "Do Not Enter or Occupy." "People can't live in their homes, unless they have an operable window in every bedroom."
The fire investigation, led by the state fire marshal's office, is continuing today. Investigators have narrowed the scope of their interest to an unidentified part of the site, now littered with twisted metal.
"They have identified an area of interest," Marquis said. "They are making good progress."
Gov. Mitt Romney declared the blast site a disaster on Monday, paving the way for the federal disaster aid.
Although a formal declaration has not yet been made, representatives of the U.S. Small Business Administration will be at Town Hall tomorrow, starting at 9 a.m., to counsel more than 20 local businesses impacted by the blast.
