Fire officials issued urgent evacuation orders Friday for a community in California as emergency crews raced to contain a massive chemical storage tank authorities warned was “actively in crisis” and at risk of spilling or exploding.
During an emergency press conference, TJ McGovern said crews had been working continuously at GKN Aerospace, a facility that manufactures engine structures and other components for commercial and military aircraft, after discovering a large tank releasing toxic fumes, according to reports.
Officials determined Thursday night that methyl methacrylate, commonly known as MMA — a volatile and highly flammable plastic epoxy used in aerospace manufacturing — was leaking from a 34,000-gallon storage tank.
Firefighters then implemented emergency cooling operations to stabilize the tank, according to reporting from FOX 11 Los Angeles.
Initially, officials believed the situation was under control, allowing residents to return home. However, the crisis escalated significantly by Friday morning.
“We have determined that the tank that is in the biggest crisis is in fact unable to be secured and mitigated,” Incident Commander and Orange County Fire Division Chief Craig Covey said, per reports.
Officials said emergency crews are now preparing for one of two potentially catastrophic scenarios involving the tank.
“This is highly volatile, it’s highly toxic, it’s highly flammable,” Covey said during the press briefing, while urging people to evacuate.
“This is not precautionary. This is gonna happen unless some brilliant guy behind me here figures out how we can mitigate this incident,” he added.
“This thing is gonna fail — we don’t know when,” he said.
According to authorities, the container could rupture and spill an estimated 6,000 to 7,000 gallons of what officials described as “very bad chemicals” into the surrounding area and nearby parking lot.
The second concern is the possibility of a “thermal runaway” event, in which rising temperatures inside the tank could trigger an explosion.
Officials warned that such an explosion could potentially set off a chain reaction involving nearby storage tanks containing fuel and other hazardous materials, dramatically escalating the danger at the site, reports noted.
“We are setting up these evacuations in preparation for these two options: It fails, or it blows up,” Covey said.
He stated that although there is no active gas leak or toxic plume at present, residents should follow the warnings immediately out of an abundance of caution.
Fire officials did not provide any timeline for a potential leak or explosion.
Garden Grove Police Chief Amir El-Farra announced an expanded evacuation zone to protect the public from an imminent threat.
“Community safety is our highest priority, and we want to see this come to a successful resolution, but we need your help,” El-Farra said.
Two emergency evacuation centers have been established for displaced families in Garden Grove and Cypress.
Local law enforcement and mutual aid partners are present at the scene to monitor the situation.
No injuries or fatalities have been reported, as of this writing.
Rep. Derek Tran, D-Calif., is actively monitoring the toxic leak and is in regular contact with local police, fire, and emergency response officials.
“I am in contact with federal disaster relief officials, including FEMA and the EPA, to urge them to provide any available federal assistance for Garden Grove,” Tran wrote in a statement.
“I encourage everyone in the affected area to follow guidance from local authorities and avoid the impacted zones until further guidance is issued,” he added.