State Finds 11,000 Gallons Of Chemicals At Closed Yuba City Business
YUBA CITY (AP) — State officials say a disaster was averted when officials found 11,000 gallons of potentially explosive chemicals in an abandoned building and safely disposed of them.
Officials said Friday that the chemicals at a site in Yuba City included a variety of acids and cyanide stored in 55-gallon drums and giant open vats.
Charlotte Fadipe, a spokeswoman with the Department of Toxic Substances Control said that if spilled or mixed together, the substances could have exploded or caused serious injury.
The property was a former custom chrome and bumper business that was abandoned when the owner, Gene Hutchinson, died last year. The business had operated since 1954.
It was located in an area of homes and commercial buildings at 335 Garden Highway.
Fadipe said the department's emergency response unit spent two weeks preparing the chemicals for transport to a toxic waste facility in Utah.
The cleanup cost the state more than $250,000. The owner's business and estate fell into bankruptcy after his death.
(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.)
