Residents of Lakewood and the neighboring West Park area of Cleveland are asking what is behind a strong, chemical-like odor, and investigators say they do not yet have an answer.
Roman Fedorko, chief of air pollution enforcement for the Cleveland Division of Air Quality, said more than two dozen formal complaints have been filed since Oct. 22 about the smell, which has been reported between Lakewood and Cleveland.
Lakewood resident Sheari Connor said she filed a report with the county last week. She recalled stepping outside on the morning of Oct. 21 to take her children to school. "My son said, 'Mom, what is that awful smell? It's hurting my lungs,'" Connor said. She described it as a pungent, leathery, chemical smell, something like melting leather mixed with chemicals. She had noticed it on and off before, she said, but never as strongly as that day.
Connor said her son is asthmatic. "I just want to make sure that there's not a chemical or a toxin that is triggering discomfort to his lungs in the place that we live," she said. She told reporters she had not received a response from the county, so she posted on social media to warn others and draw the attention of someone who could help.
That post, along with several complaints made directly to Lakewood Councilman Matt Bixenstine, brought the issue to wider notice. Bixenstine said calls began arriving last Thursday, mainly from the historic Birdtown neighborhood on Lakewood's east end. Reports have continued as a steady stream since then, he said, and have also come from other parts of the city and from West Park.
Bixenstine said he has been in touch with the Division of Air Quality. According to him, the division encourages anyone who smells the odor to report it through its 24-hour hotline, and the investigation is underway and ongoing.
Fedorko said investigators visited the affected areas on Monday and Tuesday, but the source remains a mystery to his department. The next step, he said, is to follow up with people who filed formal complaints. Three to four canisters will then be given to residents so they can collect air samples. The division hopes to run tests, gather data and identify the cause.
Bixenstine noted that the odor has mostly been noticed in the evening and overnight hours. Even so, he urged residents to call whenever they smell it, so the division has real-time data to help pinpoint the source.
Connor said she hopes the matter receives proper attention. "Just really hoping that somebody can take the time to investigate where the odor is coming from and it doesn't just get swept under the rug," she said.
Residents can file a complaint with Air Quality Enforcement by calling (216) 664-7442.
