Attorney files lawsuit after smokestack demolition covers Little Village in dust

CHICAGO - There is a huge mess in Little Village after a planned demolition at the former Crawford Coal Plant left the community covered in dust.

Now, Mayor Lori Lightfoot has put a hold on all non-emergency demolitions.

The mayor says the work only increased fear and anxiety over respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19, and now she and some Little Village residents are taking action.

“It came down, the ground shook and I didn’t expect as much dust as there was,” said David Liska.

Liska worked at the former Crawford Coal Plant and captured the moment a smokestack came down. Mayor Lightfoot is now holding Hilco Redevelopment Partners accountable for the excessive dust caused by the scheduled implosion.

“We’re not happy with what happened. It shouldn’t have happened,” Lightfoot said.

Several actions have since been taken, including a stop-work order at the site effective immediately, a full review of the event and a directive to Hilco to clean up the neighborhood.

The mayor’s office says while Hilco received the proper permit to conduct the implosion, the promised precautions taken by the company were not adequate.

“If we would’ve known, obviously, that they weren’t going to do what they said they were going to do, we wouldn’t have allowed this to go forward,” Lightfoot said.

Meanwhile, attorney Frank Avila is filing a lawsuit against Hilco Redevelopment Partners and, he says, perhaps others on behalf of at least seven Little Village residents.

“It’s a very sad and shocking matter that the citizens of Little Village were a victim of what I consider environmental pollution and environmental racism,” Avila said.

On Sunday, Hilco Redevelopment Partners released a statement saying it’s working cooperatively with the city to review the demolition.

“They will be held accountable,” Lightfoot said.

The city is handing out masks to residents and collecting samples of the dust to see just what was in it.