If the plant is allowed to maintain production while it fixes damaged pollution controls, a state representative said, it means choosing business over residents’ health, “and we’re here to say that that is not the case anymore.”

Some people, including Clairton’s mayor, said they didn’t hear about the fire — and the air quality problems — until more than two weeks after the fire.

They’re concerned about how much time went by between the fire that damaged pollution controls and a public notice about high pollution levels.

It’s a ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ to one resident. To others, health concerns override any potential upside.