CHENEY—A chlorine leak in a room within the Archer-Daniels Midland facility at the 600 block of 1st St forced haz-mat response and an employee evacuation before the chlorine dissipated Sept. 9.
Within that room lies a 150-pound chlorine tank that is swapped out daily, according to Cheney Fire Department Chief Tom Jenkins.
“They do this almost 200 times a year,” Jenkins said.
Employees went to close the tank during this routine, thinking it was empty.
“Based on their log and based on the gauge, (which) read zero, they thought it was time to change the tank out,” Jenkins said. “They went to shut the tank off and open up where the tank connects to feed product.”
When employees went to shut that tank off, they “instantly” noticed that they had more pressure leaking out the line connection than a “zero” gauge reading.
“(The tank) sort of broke free and started spinning, at which point they knew they had a failure there,” Jenkins said. “Product started leaking out of that.”
Employees put a special kit that is intended to seal the tank but couldn’t get it to seal properly, while product continued to leak. They then evacuated, according to protocol.
An employee, who preferred to remain anonymous, said the evacuation order was given around 8:30 a.m. The fire department responded at 8:40 a.m., according to the PulsePoint app.
“About 12 of us were in there,” the employee shared. He quipped that he was frustrated on a personal level, because he lives only four blocks from work.
“I could still be in bed right now,” he joked.
Authorities closed 1st Street downtown from C Street to College Avenue. Officers from Cheney Police Department and Eastern Washington University Police Department helped redirect traffic off 1st Street.
Fire crews from the Cheney Fire Department, Fire District. No. 3, Spokane Fire Department and its haz-mat team responded. Spokane’s haz-mat team was requested due to Cheney’s lack of having such a team.
“(Haz-mat) recommended that we circle around the building and monitor the exterior first,” Jenkins said. “That one little room in there where the chlorine sets has an exhaust system, which was working, and it dumps the product outside.”
Jenkins explained that the concentration in chlorine is usually heavier than air, so chlorine will settle into low-line areas.
Firefighters obtained air samples around the exterior of the building and got a “zero” reading for chlorine. The same reading was reached when crews safely monitored the inside of the building, until reaching the door where the leak had occurred.
“Looking through the glass of the door, they could see the gauges on the wall,” Jenkins said before haz-mat entered the building. “They read the same exact readings as when the ADM employees left. They think those gauges are reading the highest level they’ve ever read and not going back to zero. They become sort of tainted, if you will.”
Haz-mat entered the room shortly after noon. Crews from Cheney FD and Fire District No. 3 stood by with hoses and a Decon crew ready to help de-contaminate the haz-mat crew in case of possible exposure to the chlorine.
Jenkins shared that employees had worn proper safety gear, and no one was exposed to the chlorine, felt sick or needed medical assistance after the evacuation.
Five minutes after entering the building, haz-mat crews had a “zero” reading, meaning the chlorine leak had evaporated and dissipated and employees were able to return to work after over three hours of evacuation.
1st Street had re-opened by 12:57 p.m.
Drew Lawson can be reached at drew@cheneyfreepress.com.
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