Toledo-area hospitals had treated 35 people by late Wednesday afternoon for symptoms potentially related to the chemical release in north Toledo, according to ProMedica, as officials said the reaction inside a damaged tank at the MC Tank Terminal was still running its course. Most of those patients had been treated and released, the health system said in a statement reported by USA Today.
The release began Tuesday night, October 20, at the terminal at 1266 Progress Avenue, when glycidyl methacrylate was being transferred, according to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. The chemical, used in plastics, paints and coatings, is stored as a liquid and was released into the air, Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz said at a Wednesday news conference.
City officials ordered residents within a one-mile radius of the site to evacuate, affecting about 983 people, and told residents within a three-mile radius to shelter in place, keep windows and doors closed and turn off ventilation that draws in outside air. One Lucas County sheriff’s deputy who responded was injured and drove himself to a hospital, the mayor said.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday that attempts by the fire department to contain the release were not successful, the tank had been compromised and the chemical inside was completing a reaction. The city determined the safest course was to let the reaction complete, the EPA update said.
Officials have not upgraded the description of what happened at the tank beyond the confirmed release and reaction. City spokesperson Rachel Hart told USA Today that no explosion occurred, correcting an earlier characterization, and said that as long as material remains in the tank there is a risk and crews cannot approach it.
The health department said the chemical can cause irritation and burning of the eyes, nose, mouth and skin, and that overexposure can bring headache, dizziness, tiredness, nausea and vomiting. People with serious symptoms such as difficulty breathing, nausea, vomiting, dizziness or confusion were told to go to an emergency room or call 911.
Air monitoring was continuing with federal support, and schools in Toledo and Washington Local remained closed Wednesday. Officials said they would update evacuation and shelter-in-place guidance as the reaction completes and monitoring results come in.
Photo: MrJacon000, CC BY-SA