Hospital takes steps to quiet incinerator

The hospital hopes it can lessen the problem even further.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- Soundproofing installed around an incinerator that had plagued residents with its grating noise has lessened the problem, and a hospital official says they're trying to cut the noise even more.
Residents of Grant Street said the sound from Forum Health Trumbull Memorial Hospital's incinerator occurred at regular intervals throughout the day and night, disturbing their sleep for more than a year.
A group of Grant residents attended city council meetings to complain about the problem.
What happened
Karl Kuppler, vice president of operations at TMH, said the noise intensified after the drenching rains that soaked the area about three weeks ago. Insulation that had been used to lessen the noise was exposed to the elements and got soaked. That allowed the noise to filter through.
This week, the hospital installed a casing around the insulation to curb the problem, Kuppler said.
Lewis Mines, one of the Grant residents, says it helps.
"You can still hear it, but it's muffled," Mines said. "It's not that loud clattering we had before."
Kuppler said it's an improvement.
"It's now the best it's been in the last 18 months, but we think we can do one better," he said.
The hospital plans to install more casing around what is already there to quiet the sound even more. That will likely take a few weeks.
Mines said it is hoped that will muffle the noise even more.
Talking to residents
Kuppler met with residents earlier this week to talk about the problem and inform them of steps the hospital was taking to address it.
Mines said he was satisfied with the explanation provided. The hospital runs the incinerator during the day, but Environmental Protection Agency regulations require the grate shaker, the mechanism that produces the noise, to run continually to eliminate the waste, Mines said.
denise_dick@vindy.com