MUSKEGON HEIGHTS, Mich. — A "shelter in place" was issued for parts of Muskegon Heights after hydrochloric acid leaked from a railroad tank car Monday morning. It was lifted after about two hours.
The chemical leak was at Webb Chemical Service Corporation on 2708 Jarman Street. Employees have been evacuated. When 13 ON YOUR SIDE arrived to the scene, there was a heavy emergency presence as well as a hazmat team wearing full PPE gear.
The company said the spill happened around 11:00 Monday morning. The chemical, hydrochloric acid, is used for pool chemistry and concrete etching. The facility on Jarman packages and distributes the chemical.
"One of our goals is to provide a safe workplace for our employees and guests as we manage our day to day operations, as well as to maintain safe operations as we distribute our products," Kolin Convertini, a Webb vice president read from a prepared statement. "However, there are times when things go wrong and unfortunately, we experienced such an event today. As we respond, our goal is to ensure there's no negative effect on the health of anyone or to the environment."
Original estimates believed that two thousand gallons of the chemical had spilled, but subsequent updates published on the company's website later revealed approximately 500 gallons had leaked.
Webb has stated that the spill has not caused any contamination to the ground at the site or off of the site. Muskegon Heights Fire department was able to suppress fumes via water spray.
"We're coordinating with all relevant agencies to resolve the situation as quickly as possible," Qsun Ma, the Muskegon Heights Fire Department public information officer then noted.
No injuries have been reported and everyone is accounted for, according to company management.
Some operations have been halted at Webb while they continue to investigate what caused the spill.
"We will cooperate with all agencies in their investigation. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused," Convertini related. "We will conduct our own investigation to determine exactly what happened, why it happened, and how to keep it from happening again."
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13 ON YOUR SIDE app now.
Have a news tip? Email news@13onyourside.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter. Subscribe to our YouTube channel.