People who live in a Polk County neighborhood say they’ve got a problem that stinks.
Lake Alfred residents say there’s an odor that's so bad in their neighborhood it’s keeping them indoors.
Karen Anderson loves her view of the lake in Lake Alfred. But she says that depending on which way the wind is blowing, her scenic oasis quickly transforms into the city dump.
“The smell is putrid," she said. "There are times when it’s a normal smell, and there are times when it gets very bad.”
So said it’s so bad it’s making her sick.
“We’ve had headaches, upset stomachs,” she said.
And if you visit this area, you quickly see and smell why.
“You can even taste it going into your mouth - that’s how gross it is,” local resident Cynthia Campbell said.
Many compare the smell to a dumpster mixed with decaying animals or vomit.
When Bay News 9 went to the neighborhood, a crew noticed it was hard to breathe without getting ill. It’s a smell people who live in the area say they had gotten used to over the years. But they say it’s gotten worse over the last couple of weeks.
Residents say they think the smell is coming from the Florida Caribbean Distillers plant.
Bay News 9 reached out to the company but never heard back.
“We want something done," Campbell said. "We kind of thought it was something we had to deal with.”
A spokesperson with the Department of Environmental Protection said the agency has received complaints in the past about an odor from the business. In fact, last year, the DEP learned the odor was from a leak, and the distillery resolved the issue.
DEP officials go on to say they regularly inspect the distillery for waste water and for air. And at last check in May, inspectors didn’t notice anything.
Still, area residents say they plan to complain to DEP officials to hopefully get rid of the stench
DEP officials said they will look into the air quality concerns if they get complaints from residents.