Saturday, April 11, 2015

HYDROGEN CHLORIDE GAS ALERT AT WATER PLANT IN WESLACO, TX, PEOPLE EVACUATED AFTER HUMAN ERROR THAT CAUSED THE MIXING OF TWO INCOMPATIBLE CHEMICALS, SODIUM HYPOCHLORITE AND SODIUM CHLORIDE






APRIL 10, 2015

WESLACO, TEXAS

Emergency crews responded to a call of a chemical spill at a Weslaco water plant Friday afternoon, but officials said no chemicals actually spilled or emitted gas into the air.

An accidental mixture of two chemicals — sodium hypochlorite and sodium chloride — prompted officials to call emergency crews to the plant as a precautionary measure, said David Salinas, the city’s public utilities director.

Fire, emergency and hazardous materials personnel from Weslaco, McAllen, Edinburg and Pharr responded about 1:45 p.m. to the water plant at the intersection of Texas Boulevard and Sugar Cane Drive. Officials with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality also responded, and Weslaco Mayor David Suarez said U.S. Environmental Protection Agency authorities were in communication via telephone.

Just before 5 p.m. Salinas and fire officials gave the all clear at the water plant and all closed roads in the area were opened.

Weslaco Fire Chief Antonio Lopez said the people in a daycare located north of the plant and one nearby residence were evacuated and people were moved about 1,000 feet away from the area. No injuries were reported in the incident.
Precinct 1 deputies of the Hidalgo County Constable’s Office were assisting with diverting traffic away from the scene. Constable Celestino Avila Jr. said motorists and individuals who resided or worked nearby cooperated with the evacuation without incident.

Lopez said plant officials followed the proper steps given the circumstances.
Salinas said the chemical mixture was contained to a storage area of the plant.
Suarez said the shipment was supposed to be for sodium hypochlorite, and officials feared the mixture of the sodium chloride with the sodium hypochlorite, of which there was already 3,000 gallons inside a 6,000-gallon tank, could have the potential of producing a reaction that officials on the scene described as “bleach on steroids.”

Suarez said the driver of a truck carrying the chemical shipment was unaware that he was carrying sodium chloride.

“This was just the driver the chemical company sends,” Suarez said. “It was not a city driver.”

The mayor did not know the name of the chemical company that employs the driver, but he did say that representatives of the company were present at the scene of the incident on Friday.

Salinas said the two chemicals alone wouldn’t elicit a chemical reaction but officials erring on the side of caution called fire crews, as is standard protocol in a chemical spill situation. The utilities director said the water supply was never in danger and that the plant was operating just fine.

On the one side, good catch before anyone got hurt. On the other, how did the chemicals make it to the mixing before figured out?  Unless the chemical was mislabeled, in which case there is a real problem with the suppliers or the driver was clueless.

Source: the monitor.com
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Firefighters and hazmat crews are responding to a chemical leak of a poisonous gas at a water plant in Weslaco, Texas, local news reports. Buildings within 250 feet north and west of the facility are being evacuated.

The incident at the Weslaco Water Treatment Plant began when one chemical was poured into a tank full of other chemicals, which created hydrogen chloride, Weslaco Emergency Management Coordinator George Garrett told KRGV. 

A hose was hooked up to the wrong tank, causing the two chemicals to be mixed together at the wrong concentration, Weslaco Public Utilities Director David Salinas told KGBT. 

There are no water quality issues at this time, he added.
TX BLVD blocked from Delmita St to Sugar Cane as crews work chemical spill at Weslaco Water plant @krgv pic.twitter.com/f42CwzyuiO
— Leslie Aguilar (@KRGV_Leslie) April 10, 2015 

Firefighters from Weslaco were joined by hazmat crews from McAllen, Texas; Hidalgo County Emergency Management officials; and Hidalgo County Precinct 1 constables, KRGV reported. 

There is no threat to the area surrounding the water plant, and the chemicals have been contained, Weslaco Fire Chief Antonio Lopez told reporters during a briefing. 

There are no reported injuries at this time, according to KRGV. 

Weslaco is a city of 35,000 people in the southern tip of Texas. 

Hydrogen chloride is a colorless, corrosive, nonflammable gas that fumes in air.  It has a characteristic pungent odor.  It is heavier than air and may accumulate in low-lying areas.

Hydrogen chloride is not absorbed through the skin, but when hydrogen chloride gas comes in contact with moisture, it forms hydrochloric acid, which is corrosive and can cause irritation and burns. 

Inhalationis an important route of exposure to hydrogen chloride.  Its odor and highly irritating properties generally provideadequate warning for acute, high-level exposures. However,only 50% of exposed persons can perceive hydrogen chloride’s odor at the OSHA permissible exposure limit (5 ppm), and odor may not provide adequate warning in the workplace. Hydrogen chloride vapor is heavier than air and may causeasphyxiation in enclosed, poorly ventilated, or low-lying areas.