Extra-alarm fire guts chemical plant in LaSalle

LASALLE, Ill. (CBS) -- It took five hours to bring a fire under control at a chemical plant in the small city of LaSalle on Wednesday afternoon.

The fire was still smoldering for several more hours after that in the city of less than 10,000.

On Wednesday night into Thursday, the Environmental Protection Agency was testing the air and water near the chemical plant - while fire crews were in active cleanup mode.

The EPA is trying to determine the answer to this question – is the neighborhood near the plant safe? Officials will provide an update Thursday at 2 p.m.

There was still no straight answer Wednesday night on air quality – and the City of LaSalle says masks are not necessary as a protection from pollutants right now.

But as CBS 2's Marissa Perlman reported, we do know schools will be open on Thursday, and the city says it is safe to go to work.

The fire sent plumes of thick, colorful smoke billowing into the air as if a volcano were erupting. Residents were told to stay in their homes for safety.

The fire started around 9 a.m. at Carus LLC in LaSalle, about 80 miles southwest of Chicago. In a statement, company officials said the fire started in the plant's shipping area.

LaSalle Fire Chief Jerry Janick said there was heavy fire at the plant when the first crews arrived on the scene, and additional crews were brought in from surrounding suburbs. Janick said the cause of the fire is unknown.

By about 2:30 p.m., the LaSalle Fire Department said the fire was under control – but it was still not completely out as late as 6 p.m. One firefighter suffered minor injuries and was treated and released, Janick said.

There were no other injuries.  

Earlier, the cloud of smoke stretched through the sky, while the sound of the blast from the fire shook the city of LaSalle.

As CBS 2's Sabrina Franza reported, the look of it all was absolutely terrifying.

According to the company's website, they produce potassium permanganate, an oxidant used to treat drinking water, wastewater, and industrial chemicals. They also produce phosphates, polymers, and other chemicals.

Earlier, the cloud of smoke stretched through the sky, while the sound of the blast from the fire shook the city of LaSalle.

As CBS 2's Sabrina Franza reported, the look of it all was absolutely terrifying.

According to the company's website, they produce potassium permanganate, an oxidant used to treat drinking water, wastewater, and industrial chemicals. They also produce phosphates, polymers, and other chemicals.

Neighbors told us minutes after they heard a loud boom as the fire broke out, fire engine sirens sounded. Emergency crews were on the scene within minutes.

The plant was evacuated, and all employees were accounted for, according to the company and fire officials. No one was injured in the fire, but the blaze has caused significant damage to the plant.

"We are thankful everyone is safe, and we are also grateful to the LaSalle Fire Department and crews from the surrounding area who responded to address this situation to keep the area safe," said Carus vice president of operations Allen Gibbs. "Carus' priority is to protect the health and safety of the employees, emergency personnel who are responding to this fire and the nearby community,"

People who live north and west of the plant were told to shelter in place in their homes as a precaution, due to the large amount of smoke created by the fire.

Veronica Borzumato, who lives a few blocks away from the plant, said she was walking past her bedroom window around 9 a.m. when she heard what sounded like "a dozen dump trucks rolling through," and looked outside to see "this giant plume of yellowish, greenish, bluish-pink smoke."

"It was like nothing I've ever seen before," Borzumato said. "As soon as I saw it, I woke my roommate up. I was like, 'You need to get up right now, because Carus is on fire,' and we were even scared to open our windows. We have not opened our windows yet. I'm still inside."

Another neighbor said, "Why is there a chemical plant next to these houses where this could happen?"

Gibbs said potassium permanganate is typically a fine powder, but will turn into purple liquid if it is exposed to water. It may look slightly pink or green when it is comes into contact with water.

The potassium permanganate turned cars brown with its stains. Much as Gibbs described it, the chemical also made nearby waterways look like they were full of grape soda.

LaSalle Police also said an oxidizer has been released in the area as a result of the fire, and people should not touch the green substance seen on cars and patios.  

Potassium permanganate may cause staining of the skin, but Carus said the staining does not pose a health threat. The stain can be removed with household distilled vinegar and 3 percent household hydrogen peroxide in a one-part-to-one-part mix. It will not take a large amount to get rid of the stain, Gibbs said.

University of Chicago associate professor of chemistry John Anderson also said potassium permanganate is not dangerous, but not without risks either.

"It's used a lot, just like those chemicals are, in purification and water treatment. It used medically to treat a few things. So it's not, you know, it's not all doom and gloom, really bad for you," he said. "But certainly, it's something that can give you burns and cause skin discoloration."

Anderson said it is a good idea for neighbors to wait for professionals when it comes to cleaning up.

"While it is active and oxidizing, it's not so good, so people should stay away from it," he said.

Sonya Lunder, senior toxics policy advisor with the Sierra Club, said potassium permanganate can be caustic, and in addition to causing damage to the skin, it is not something you'd want to inhale.

She said, while the water-vinegar-peroxide mixture local officials said can be used to detoxify the oxidant that has been released in the area, "That's not very realistic advice for someone."

Lunder said, not everyone will have all of those products at their house, "and the idea of people cleaning up and doing that job of cleanup after an industrial fire doesn't sit well with me as someone with a public health background."

"Obviously, you don't want to touch these materials. You don't want your kids out playing in the yard," she said. "I'd be worried about anyone inhaling any of those particles."

Lunder said if you have the proper materials on-hand to deactivate the green oxidant on any of your property, you can do so, but she said local officials should coordinate a large-scale cleanup effort with the company to protect neighbors.

The Environmental Protection Agency is on the scene working to assess any damage. At a news conference late Wednesday afternoon, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency On-Scene Coordinator Robert Kondreck said the EPA came to the scene around 2 p.m. 

Contractors arrived around 2 p.m. to monitor the air. They were trying to determine if there was any residual smoke plume, and if so, what would be in it.

The EPA tested nearby neighborhoods in real time.

"They're going every few blocks and they're getting real-time sample data," Kondreck said.

Kondreck said the runoff from the fire extinguishing was contained onsite, and it did not appear that any firefighting chemicals made it to the Vermilion River. 

At the news conference, one man complained that he was being told hazardous chemicals had ended up on his property, while it was left to him to clean it up.

"I've got four dogs. What am I supposed to do? You know, literally, what am I supposed to do? You're telling me, "Don't touch it, stay inside.' He's telling me, 'Yeah, we're going to shelter in place.' I go a block over, it's not bad. And that's what amazes me," he said. "I can see a block over cleaning with vinegar – but where I live, vinegar – I can't clean all that. There's no way. My yard. Where are my dogs going to go to the bathroom? What happens if they eat the grass?"

Kondreck did not answer the man's questions at the news conference, but did ask the man to provide his contact information.

"Nobody came up by our area to check on us. Nobody came up there," the man, Jamie Hicks, said in front of cameras. "I had to go down to the park and get a news crew to come up to my house to see what was going on."

Hicks, a 20-year local resident, also told CBS 2's Sara Machi his property was covered with too much chemical residue for him to tackle on his own.  

He said potassium permanganate will "eat the soles off your shoes."

"We have a chemical plant in the middle of a residential neighborhood, and you have no protocol for the residents on what they're going to do?" Hicks said.

Meanwhile, LaSalle Mayor Jeff Grove said the city is still looking for information and answers.

"I feel pretty comfortable with the Carus statement today, that it sounds like a situation where you're going to have some issues with staining and stuff," he said. "We're hoping that's the case, and that's all there is to it."

Again, multiple experts we spoke with on Wednesday said you should not do cleanup on your own – and you should be sure to keep pets and young children inside, because ingesting the chemical can be toxic.

Another update from the City of LaSalle is set for 2 p.m. Thursday.

In:
• Fire
• LaSalle County