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- Officials are preparing for a “tank at risk” after responding to an industrial chemical leak in Garden Grove, California.
- Officials say an estimated 40,000 people are affected in evacuation areas.
- One official said the “best case scenario” was a spill. Authorities are also preparing in case the tank “explodes.”
An estimated 40,000 residents of Orange County, California, were under evacuation orders as of May 22 as officials prepare for two alarming options, including the potential failure of tanks storing explosive industrial chemicals.
Orange County Fire Department officials outlined the dangers posed by “currently endangered tanks” after responding to an industrial chemical leak in Garden Grove the previous day. Efforts to mitigate the tank failure were unsuccessful, authorities said, leading to expanded evacuation efforts on May 22.
The tanks contain what health officials describe as “highly toxic” chemicals used in the production of resins and plastics, according to an Environmental Protection Agency fact sheet.
“We understand this is a unique hazardous materials incident and appreciate the public’s concern and willingness to assist. We want you to know that our subject matter experts are working around the clock to safely and effectively mitigate the emergency,” OCFA said in a post to X.
In a May 21 post to
An update posted by city officials on May 21 said authorities were working “to bring the incident under control” and an evacuation order had been issued for Garden Grove, a city in Orange County.
Covey said cooling operations were initially successful and residents were allowed to return to their homes later that night. However, according to information obtained by officials on the morning of May 22, the “tanks in greatest danger” “cannot be made safe or mitigated with the current information we have from the manufacturers.”
“You’re literally left with two options,” Covey said.
“One is that the tank failed and a total of approximately 6 to 7,000 gallons of highly hazardous chemicals were spilled into the parking lot and that area,” he said. “Or two, the tank will undergo a thermal runaway and explode, impacting the surrounding area.”
Covey said there are no active gas leaks or plumes in the area, but officials are setting up evacuations “for two options: failure or explosion.”
“For lack of a better word, our tanks are in danger right now,” he said. “We have worked very hard to mitigate this issue, working with both the manufacturer and third-party contractors to help mitigate these types of incidents, as well as our hazardous materials team,” he said.
Garden Grove Police Chief Amir El Farah said authorities expanded the evacuation zone just before noon on May 22. Covey urged area residents to follow the latest evacuation orders, a sentiment echoed by Garden Grove’s mayor.
Shortly after 2 p.m. on May 22, Garden Grove Mayor Stephanie Klopfenstein said, “To everyone who is still in the evacuation zone, please leave immediately. This is a serious situation and now is not the time to wait. Please leave now.”
Garden Grove activated its emergency operations center and opened two shelters in Garden Grove and Cypress.
Officials say ‘best case scenario’ is leak
Officials said at a May 22 press conference that full mitigation efforts involving the tank were hampered by a damaged valve.
Covey said officials are “reaching out to people across the state and country” for ideas on “how we can safely get in there and depressurize the pressurized tanks.”
Officials installed a “containment barrier” in anticipation of about 7,000 gallons of “liquid spilling onto the ground,” he said.
“We built a sand barrier,” Covey said. “We have worked hard to reduce intrusion into storm drains, river channels, and the ocean that we know is nearby.”
Covey said this is the “best-case scenario.”
“Once that happens, it’s no longer an explosion hazard and our hazmat teams in chemical hazmat suits can go into the scene and neutralize and abate the vapors coming out of it,” he said.
Covey said it’s unclear when the tank will fail.
What we know about possible health effects
OCFA said the tank contained methyl methacrylate, an industrial chemical that is “highly toxic,” county health officials said at a May 22 press conference.
County health officials said very limited cases have been reported.
“If there is limited exposure over a short period of time, meaning some of the vapor may have been inhaled, it can cause significant irritation to the lungs and nasal passages, and may also cause nausea and dizziness,” the county health officer said. “Very high levels can cause severe breathing difficulties and hospitalization, which is why everyone should follow evacuation orders.”
County health officials said the “long-term effects” “will affect other organs.”
“The reason we expanded the evacuation zone was to account for the possibility of a plume,” she said.
Paris Barraza is a reporter covering Los Angeles and Southern California for the USA TODAY Network. please contact her pbarraza@usatodayco.com.
