Five people transported for treatment after chemical spill at Gehl's in Germantown
GERMANTOWN -- Five people were taken to the hospital from Gehl's Foods in Germantown Tuesday, June 7th due to a chemical spill. Others were forced to evacuate.
Officials tell FOX6 News two chemicals that should never be combined were -- and it created a dangerous situation.
Those five people taken to the hospital were treated for irritation and respiratory issues after the spill.
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Those who were evacuated were able to return to work on Tuesday -- at the facility that makes food products, including cheese.
Germantown Police Chief Peter Hoell tells FOX6 News emergency crews were dispatched to Gehl's around 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday.
"They had experienced a chemical release inside their plant," Hoell said.
More than 100 employees were forced out of the building.
"When we arrived, I was told that they have about a 100-gallon tote that had sodium chloride in it. Somebody accidentally added acid to it," Germantown Fire Chief Gary Weiss said.
That caused the container to burst, and the chemicals to spill. Weiss said the gas that was created when those two chemicals combined can be very dangerous.
Hazardous materials situation at Gehl's
"Mustard gas was used in World War I as weapon of mass destruction," Weiss said.
Firefighters geared up -- putting on protective equipment and air packs. They were then able to find the source of the spill, and they used the building's drainage system to dilute it and wash it away.
"After we put a couple thousand gallons of water, washing it down, we measured the pH. The pH was normal, so we were good there," Weiss said.
Officials said in a briefing shortly before 1:00 p.m. that the fire department's efforts were complete. A third party chemical cleaning crew hired by Gehl's would handle the rest of the cleanup.
The spill was contained to the building, so no neighbors were impacted.
Less than three hours after the spill occurred, employees were allowed back inside.
OSHA officials were on scene Tuesday -- interviewing potential witnesses and working to determine what led up to this spill.
Monitor FOX6 News and FOX6Now.com for updates on this developing story.