OLATHE, Kan. — KSHB 41 reporter Elyse Schoenig covers Johnson County. She also focuses on issues surrounding the cost of healthcare, saving for retirement and personal debt. Share your story idea with Elyse.
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A new EPA review shows chemical contamination still threatens some Olathe homes near a decades-old cleanup site, and one couple who has lived across from the site since the 1960s has saved decades of documentation from the agency.
Hazel and Charles Forgey have seen a lot in the 64 years they've lived in their Olathe home. Their house overlooks the former Chemical Commodities Inc. Superfund site between South Keeler Street and South Blake Street.
"[We saw] green water running down the edge of the gutter and orange water, and we didn't know what it was and where it came from for a while," Hazel Forgey said.
The site was home to the chemical broker and recycler in Olathe until the late 1980s.
The EPA's most recent five-year review showed the contaminated groundwater is now impacting a couple dozen homes nearby, 22 of which need new or repaired air systems to keep those vapors from getting inside. The EPA confirmed this is not affecting the city's drinking water.
"We didn't notice a lot of extra smells until they started removing things, and then you could smell more," Hazel said.
The Forgeys remember watching the site's teardown and its cleanup. They kept the paper trail that came with it.
"It's got every piece of paper that they ever sent us from the EPA," Charles Forgey said.
The EPA sampled around 100 homes over the last five years to determine which needed new or repaired air systems. These repairs are still ongoing.
"It has a big fan in there, and it's on constantly. They monitor it and check it," Hazel said.
"They (the EPA) run all the tests," Charles said.
The Forgeys also showed me their most recent EPA letter, dated Jan. 17, 2025, stating contamination at their property was below levels of concern. The Forgeys had their specialized air system installed decades ago.
"We let them put it in so we could be aware of anything that they did find if it affected us," Hazel said.
KSHB 41 is still working on getting the EPA to answer specific viewer questions. On Monday, a spokesperson pointed us to the EPA's public meetings and door-to-door outreach with neighbors in the last year. The spokesperson also said the agency gained access to 107 of the 156 homes it contacted for sampling.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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