Ten PA Firefighters Sent to Hospital after Chemical Fire

    May 17, 2019
    A hazmat team responded to the chemical plant fire early Friday in Chester, and the firefighters, as well as three workers, were decontaminated before going to the hospital.

    By Joseph A. Gambardello

    Source The Philadelphia Inquirer

    Delaware County, PA, Emergency Services
    A fire at a chemical plant in Chester, PA, sent 10 firefighters and three employees to the hospital early Friday after they were decontaminated at the scene.
    A fire at a chemical plant in Chester, PA, sent 10 firefighters and three employees to the hospital early Friday after they were decontaminated at the scene.

    Ten firefighters and three employees were sent to hospitals early Friday as a precaution after a fire in a Chester chemical plant office extended into a nearby lab, officials said.

    No serious injuries have been reported following the blaze at the Norquay Technology Inc. complex, located at 800 Front St., officials said.

    Chester Fire Commissioner William C. Rigby IV said firefighters responded to a blaze in an office at the plant about 1 a.m. Friday.

    Delaware County, PA, Emergency Services
    A fire at a chemical plant in Chester, PA, sent 10 firefighters and three employees to the hospital early Friday after they were decontaminated at the scene.
    A fire at a chemical plant in Chester, PA, sent 10 firefighters and three employees to the hospital early Friday after they were decontaminated at the scene.

    The fire extended into an adjoining lab, prompting officials to call in a hazmat decontamination unit in case firefighters and employees in the building had been exposed to potentially harmful chemicals, Rigby said.

    After on-scene decontamination, the 10 firefighters and three employees went to three area hospitals for further examination, Rigby said. There was no immediate indication that anyone had been adversely affected by exposure to any chemical.

    Delaware County, PA, Emergency Services
    A fire at a chemical plant in Chester, PA, sent 10 firefighters and three employees to the hospital early Friday after they were decontaminated at the scene.
    A fire at a chemical plant in Chester, PA, sent 10 firefighters and three employees to the hospital early Friday after they were decontaminated at the scene.

    Norquay’s product line includes chromic, electronic, catalyst, ligand, medical adhesive and UV performance products, according to a statement announcing the company’s acquisition by MPD Chemicals in January 2018.

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    Every four years, the U.S. Department of Transportation updates the Emergency Response Guidebook (ERG) and distributes it to emergency responders across the United States. Among the sources of information that are listed in the ERG is CHEMTREC, which is provided by the chemical industry. Resources from the chemical industry can be notified by CHEMTREC, including having strike teams dispatched from companies that are familiar with the hazardous materials that were spilled. Several other private sector agencies are also mentioned on the inside of the back cover. Page 396 lists information for contacting the National Response Center (NRC). The NRC is operated by the U.S. Coast Guard and is the main contact point for hazmat releases to activate federal assistance for a chemical release anywhere in the United States. The NRC’s capabilities include the computerized version of the Coast Guard chemical data base, which is the largest collection of safety data sheets (SDS) in the world.