VANCOUVER, Wash.
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A mishap involving a dangerous insecticide and a pottery kiln caused some people in a Vancouver neighborhood to become sick last weekend.
Firefighters were called to the Mountain View Terrace subdivision near Northeast 172nd and 32nd streets after the report of insecticide vapors in the air. Vancouver fire officials said one woman called the stench a "skunky, burning smell." She described it as very strong, acrid and something she had never smelled before.
The woman said her throat felt as if it was closing up so she decided to o back inside her home.
Several other neighbors also noticed the smell and one of them called the fire department.
Crews tracked the odor to a nearby home, where the homeowner said a container of diluted malathion, a popular but dangerous insecticide, leaked onto an outdoor pottery kiln last spring. The homeowner said he used the kiln Saturday and the heated chemical dispersed into the air.
Neighbors said it caused problems for everyone.
"One of the neighbors did have an asthma attack problem," said Chad Wunch, who lives nearby. "I know it gave me a pretty significant headache from the smell, but it literally engulfed this whole neighborhood."
The fire department called in a hazmat team, which extinguished the fire in the kiln. They also removed the contaminated bricks and placed them in water.
No one who breathed in the chemicals required medical treatment, fire officials said.
Hazmat Called In After Insecticide Mishap
Hazmat Called In After Insecticide Mishap
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