By Carl Lindquist
The York Dispatch (Pennsylvania)
More than 300 people were evacuated from their jobs Friday in a Fairview Township industrial park after a hazardous chemical reaction released a toxic cloud of smoke.
No one was injured, and no risk was posed to nearby residents.
Workers at Cycle Chem Inc., 550 Industrial Drive, were mixing several pool chemicals in a 55-gallon drum at about 8:30 a.m. Friday when the chemicals began to react with each other unexpectedly, said Bernadette Lauer, spokeswoman for York County’s Office of Emergency Management.
The reaction caused a small fire and released a toxic cloud of white smoke, she said.
The drum subsequently began to heat up. Thermal imaging showed that the drum reached temperatures of about 200 degrees, she said.
Cycle Chem’s own hazardous materials workers put out the fire, and about 15 Cycle Chem workers were evacuated, Lauer said. About 300 workers from several nearby businesses were also evacuated as a safety precaution.
About 100 other drums of chemicals stored at the facility, which Lauer said consolidates hazardous waste and ships them for disposal, were removed from the building.
“They deal with all the nasty hazardous stuff,” Lauer said of Cycle Chem.
Firefighters and emergency personnel that responded to the scene were planning Friday morning to flood the drum with water.
Lauer said the company has had hazardous material incidents in the past.
Cycle Chem officials could not immediately be reached for comment.