ROSELAND, La. (WAFB) - Emails obtained by the WAFB I-TEAM through a public records request show the chaos and confusion following the explosion at Smitty’s Supply near Roseland last month in Tangipahoa Parish.

In the wake of the disaster, the I-TEAM requested all emails sent and received by Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Secretary Courtney Burdette. Those emails revealed mixed messages were being sent to staff about whether a containment boom had been deployed, and how three million dollars was spent on firefighting and cleanup efforts within the first hours of the fire.

“It’s quite a cluster out here!” one manager over the emergency response operations wrote.

Hours into fighting the fire, oil was noted in the Tangipahoa Parish River. By the 7:23 p.m. update on Augu

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