EQ Attorneys Ask Judge to Keep Records Sealed

Attorneys for an Apex hazardous waste warehouse that burned to the ground in October have asked a Wake County judge to seal records about the company’s inner workings.

A temporary order last week halted the North Carolina’s Division of Waste Management's decision to release information that EQ Industrial Services Inc. gave the state after the Oct. 5 fire. The blaze at EQ’s facility resulted in the temporary evacuation of thousands of Apex residents.

In court Monday, an attorney for EQ argued that information could put the company at a disadvantage. The documents would give EQ’s competitors inside information on how the waste management company conducts business, Richard Keshian said.

Attorneys involved in a class-action lawsuit against EQ asked the Division of Waste Management for the documents. In late January, the lawyers told EQ that they intended to provide the information to reporters and other people who requested them.

Attorneys with the Attorney General’s office told Judge Howard Manning that some of the documents that EQ has requested be kept under sealed are standard forms are required to be filled out under state and federal law. Other states require hazardous materials companies to file that paperwork for public viewing at any time.

Manning has not indicated when a decision on the paperwork will be made. He requested that EQ attorneys prepare redacted information to be made public pending his decision.