Spilled chemicals prompt closure of Foothill Blvd. in Pasadena
A hazardous materials crew cleans up after a truck dropped three one-gallon containers of hydrochloric acid onto Foothill Boulevard in Pasadena on Saturday. (Courtesy, Landon Jensen/Pasadena Fire Department) By Brian Day, San Gabriel Valley Tribune
Posted: 06/11/16, 1:24 PM PDT
PASADENA >> Firefighters and hazardous materials crews shut down a portion of Foothill Boulevard in Pasadena Saturday after three containers filled with potent acid fell from a passing truck, authorities said.
The incident was first reported about 11:40 a.m. along Foothill Boulevard, between Rosemead Boulevard and Halstead Street, Pasadena Fire Department spokeswoman Lisa Derderian said.
Three unlabeled, orange-colored, one-gallon plastic containers slipped off a truck and fell into the roadway, prompting safety concerns, Derderian said.
“They’re still trying to neutralize it,” she said shortly after 1 p.m. “Preliminary reports are it’s some kind of hydrochloric acid.”
The powerful and highly corrosive acid is used for many industrial purposes, such as controlling the acidity levels in swimming pools.
It was later confirmed the substance was, in fact, pool-cleaning acid, officials said.
Nearby businesses remained open, however workers and customers were being asked to “shelter in place,” Derderian said.
Firefighters cleared the jugs from the roadway shortly after 1:30 p.m., officials said. Both directions of Foothill Boulevard, as well as the Rosemead Boulevard offramp of the westbound 210 Freeway, were shut down as a result of the spill, officials said. Affected streets were reopened shortly after 2 p.m.