Update: Officials build dirt dam to contain solvent spill
By Elizabeth Robinson
Updated 5:07 pm, Friday, September 23, 2016 Update, 5 p.m.: City and county officials turned operations over to GE Betz personnel, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office announced in a release.
The Jefferson County Office of Emergency Management, City of Beaumont Office of Emergency Management, Beaumont Fire Department and Jefferson County Sheriff's Office were on the scene of a solvent spill that led to a shelter in place order for about 100 households west of Beaumont.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality will continue to monitor air and water quality as well as oversee cleanup in the Willow Marsh Bayou.
The solvent product was identified as a "premium solvent mixture with a heavy aromatic."
People are asked to stay away from Willow Marsh Bayou as cleanup continues.
Update: 1:30 p.m.: Officials have confirmed that a dirt dam has been built across Willow Marsh Bayou south of Brooks Road to prevent the flow of the spill to any other areas.
Officials said spill booms have been placed across the bayou in multiple locations to slow the flow of the product and contain it.