Source: NBC

Excerpt:

This issue is no barrel of laughs.

A toxic cleanup in a New Jersey community could be a ticking timebomb, and may force families to leave their homes. Schools and homeowners in one part of Monmouth County are being told to be ready to evacuate at a moment’s notice, as crews with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are intensely working at a former industrial plant.

More specifically, they want to know what’s in a collection of barrels at a site in Farmingdale near the border with Howell.

The plant has long been shut down, but the barrels stuck around. Now it’s not clear how safe it is to move them.

In the weeks ahead, the sounds of heavy-duty construction vehicles will permeate the air at the former chemical plant, along with smells from more than 400 rusting, abandoned drums. For decades, chemicals were mixed for various customers at the site.

Read more: NJ Town Residents Must Be Ready to Leave ASAP As EPA Cleans Up Mystery Chemical Barrels