February
12, 2015
BELLE, WEST
VIRGINIA (AP) —
West
Virginia environmental workers responded to a formaldehyde leak at a chemical
plant in Belle.
Department
of Environmental Protection spokeswoman Kelly Gillenwater says a team was
dispatched to monitor the area around the DuPont plant after Wednesday's
incident.
Gillenwater
tells the Charleston Gazette (http://bit.ly/1J0jHkl ) the leak occurred when
DuPont employees turned on a piece of equipment that had been shut down for
maintenance. The equipment malfunctioned, causing the formaldehyde to vaporize
as it was released at a pump.
DuPont
workers used a water spray to contain the leak. About 10 pounds of the chemical
was released.
DuPont
spokeswoman Robin Ollis Stemple says no one was injured or exposed to the
chemical. She says employees briefly sheltered in place as a precaution.
The unit
was quickly shut down allowing only a small amount of material to be diverted
to the scrubber, according to Stemple.