DETROIT – A family living in southwest Detroit said it is having a problem with dust from a cement plant and a brand-new car.
The family lives on Dey Street, across from the St. Marys Cement plant. Neighbors there aren't happy with what's been finding its way onto their vehicles during the past week.
Ashley Sabin said her and her husband washed their new 2017 Honda Civic Sunday, but it looks anything but new.
"We took it to get it washed and noticed it was still filthy," Sabin said. "My husband took it to the self one and it was still (dirty). He though if he did it himself, to take his time, it would get off. It was still on there."
The couple lives just yards away from the St. Marys Cement plant, the huge complex that drivers can see while traveling north on I-75 into the city. Sabin said they haven't seen anything like this before.
The dusty crust on the car does not disappear when water is poured on it, so on Monday, Sabin's husband paid St. Marys a visit and heard differing stories about what's going on and whether the plant is responsible.
"Is it a chemical?" Sabin said. "Is it hazardous? It is going to ruin the paint on the car? It's a brand-new car. We don't want to keep scrubbing, and it rubs the paint off or scratches it."
Local 4 contacted St. Marys and received the following statement:
"We looked into it and found that the timing did correspond with a period of time when dust was released during the course of performing a routine maintenance procedure.
"While we haven't ruled out construction on I-75 as a contributing factor, we provided a solution to Mr. Sabin and have even offered to have his car completely detailed."
Ashley Sabin said she and her husband are happy to hear about the company's response, but they're not so certain what they're going to do about it yet.
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