Owners of fire site had been cited

LEAVITTSBURG — A Florida couple who own property where thousands of illegally dumped tires caught fire Saturday night had been ordered by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency last August to clean up the Risher Road site.

Frank and Lorell Naypaver ok   of Sun City Central, Fla. were supposed to have their property cleaned up by Dec. 10.

Warren Township firefighters, however, believe someone set fire Saturday night to tires at a pond embankment on the property.

Firefighters were called   at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and   battled the blaze until 3:30 a.m. Sunday.

In August, the Ohio EPA gave the Naypavers 120 days to remove 2,000 tires from their property, citing a danger to the public health and environment.

The Ohio EPA is now working with the Ohio Attorney General’s office to arrange for a cleanup of the property and to seek reimbursement from the Naypavers for the Ohio EPA’s efforts, spokesman Mike Settles said.

The Naypavers, who are in their 80s, have lived in Florida for several years and the Ohio EPA believes their son is responsible for the dumping on the property, Settles said.

They could not be reached this afternoon.

The Ohio EPA was sending two investigators this afternoon Jan. 29 to determine if there was any environmental damage at the property, Settles said.

The investigators will be taking water samples to determine if there were any toxins released into the water from the tires or from chemicals used to fight the fire, Settles said.

The pond feeds into Duck Creek, which is a tributary of the Mahoning River, Settles said.

The Naypavers since 1994 also have been repeatedly cited by the Trumbull County Board of Health for illegal dumping, the Ohio EPA said.