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.