A chemical release in Toledo, Ohio, forced residents to evacuate and disrupted work at a nearby Stellantis Jeep plant Wednesday, affecting both surrounding neighborhoods and an auto factory.
Toledo Fire & Rescue ordered people within 1 mile of a site near Progress Avenue to leave at 10:48 p.m. ET Tuesday, Oct. 20. At 4:24 a.m. ET Wednesday, Oct. 21, the city added a shelter order covering a 3-mile radius, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said. Nearly 1,000 people were told to evacuate, while more than 50,000 were covered by the wider order, The Associated Press reported.
Stellantis evacuated its nearby Jeep plant Tuesday night and told employees scheduled for Wednesday’s first shift not to report, The Blade reported, citing a company spokesman.
The EPA identified the chemical as glycidyl methacrylate. MC Tank Transport Inc. said equipment associated with its operations was involved and that it was working with emergency authorities. In a preliminary account reported by AP, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency attributed the release to an error during a transfer but gave no further details.
After efforts to contain the release failed, Toledo decided to wait for the reaction inside the damaged tank to end, the EPA said. The agency reported that the release continued and both protective orders remained in effect at 10 a.m. ET Wednesday.
Toledo Fire & Rescue said the chemical can irritate the eyes, nose, mouth and skin. The city warned that dense fog made it difficult to assess the hazard by sight. The EPA said it was monitoring air near the evacuation zone and would share the results with health officials.
