Hazmat situation at Fremont ice factory forces shelter-in-place order

People in a Fremont neighborhood were told to shelter in place late Friday morning because of a hazardous materials incident at an industrial ice factory, authorities said.

Fremont Police said the shelter-in-place was issued at 11:45 a.m. for the area of S. Grimmer Boulevard and Auto Mall Parkway, and west of Fremont Boulevard. 

The incident occurred at Arctic Glacier Premium Ice on the 43000 block of Fremont Boulevard. Workers from the plant were evacuated during the incident, according to the Fremont Fire Department. 

A crew in hazmat suits was seen shutting off a valve where a white vapor cloud was escaping from a cooling tower or condenser unit outside of the plant. The plume stopped emanating from the unit once the valve was closed.

There was no immediate word on what was leaking from the plant. After the vapor cloud was stopped, the hazmat crew was seen inspecting a tank of anhydrous ammonia, which is stored as a liquid under pressure but becomes a toxic gas when released into the environment.

The fire department said the shelter-in-place was lifted at 1:00 pm. There were no injuries reported.

This is a breaking news update. More information to be added as available.

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