Hopewell, Va.—Two contractors with exposure symptoms were taken to the hospital for evaluation and approximately 50 employees briefly evacuated when a small amount of ammonia was released Thursday, April 26, at the Linde carbon dioxide facility here. At the same time, a shelter-in-place order was in effect for approximately 4,000 students for 30-45 minutes in the city’s high, middle, and three elementary schools. Hopewell Battalion Chief Donny Hunter described the ammonia release as amounting to a gallon or 15 pounds that became trapped when the contractors purged the lines. “The biggest thing we did was evacuate the building and monitor the area with ammonia detectors to make sure it didn’t go off-plant, and then we treated two people and transported them to the hospital,” Hunter explained. “We just moved the people from the one building outside to an open field across the street for about two hours. Everything was back to normal about noon.” Others in the industrial section, including several chemical plants, were not affected.
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