Because of a fire at a chemical lab that began on Sunday, chlorine was found in the air on Monday, prompting the extension of a shelter-in-place advice for a county in Georgia.
At five in the morning on Sunday, the chemical fire broke out on the top of the BioLab facility in Conyers, Rockdale County. According to Marian McDaniel, the fire chief of Rockdale County, a sprinkler head malfunction resulted in a mixture with a chemical that is reactive to water.
The blaze has been extinguished.
The consequent leak of toxic gas led to the county’s 93,570 residents being advised to stay indoors until midnight, along with obligatory evacuation orders for those living close to the facility.
In an advisory released early on Monday, Rockdale County advised people to remain indoors.
The chemical in question was not confirmed by authorities. Operator KIK Consumer Products, which manufactures chlorine-based pool cleaning products under the Clorox brand, oversees the BioLab facility.
Because chlorine is not water-reactive, according to Gary Hoyle, an emeritus professor of environmental and occupational health sciences at the University of Louisville, another chemical most likely played a role in the fire.
However, the county announced on Monday that the Environmental Protection Division and the Environmental Protection Agency had found chlorine in the air flowing from the facility during air quality surveys.
“For everyone sheltering in place, the best practice is to turn the air conditioning off and keep windows and doors shut,” the county stated.
In addition, the county said that all government buildings would be shuttered on Monday and recommended companies to stop activities until the shelter-in-place order was rescinded. The date of that was not made clear by the county.
The EPA was keeping an eye on Georgia’s air quality for “chlorine and related compounds,” according to an advisory sent by the state’s emergency management agency on Monday afternoon. It also stated that “chemical levels are unlikely to cause harm to most people.”
Low quantities of chlorine in the air might cause coughing fits and wet eyes in healthy individuals. Chest pain and breathing difficulties may be more common in those with respiratory conditions.
According to him, exposure to high amounts of chlorine might be fatal or necessitate hospitalization. Evacuations are generally prompted by such levels.
According to KIK Consumer Products, the fire did not result in any reported injuries to employees. It’s unclear at this time if any locals suffered injuries.
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The investigation into the fire’s cause is still ongoing. The fire chief, McDaniel, stated on Sunday that it’s possible that by adding more water to the chemical reaction, the sprinkler system and then the firefighters intensified it.
McDaniel said that it was too soon to determine whether Hurricane Helene and its aftermath had any role in starting the fire and the chemical reaction.
The county announced that Interstate 20, which was closed following the incident, has already reopened. However, a number of the area’s highways remained closed on Monday morning.
According to Hoyle, it’s unclear how many people in the vicinity may have been exposed to chlorine based on the information that has been made public thus far.
By: nbcnews.com
