{"slug": "ca-declares-state-of-emergency-as-fire-crews-race-to-contain-toxic-chemical-leak", "title": "CA declares state of emergency as fire crews race to contain toxic chemical leak", "summary": "California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency after a tank containing approximately 7,000 gallons of methyl methacrylate, a volatile and flammable chemical used in plastics, began to fail at a GKN Aerospace facility in Garden Grove, Orange County. Emergency crews are working to stabilize the tank's rising temperature and pressure, as officials warn it could either rupture and spill or explode, prompting evacuation orders for thousands of residents. The cause of the leak is under investigation, and crews are spraying the tank with water while constructing containment barriers to prevent chemicals from reaching storm drains or the ocean.", "body_md": "California declares state of emergency as fire crews race to contain toxic chemical leak\nCalifornia Governor Gavin Newsom has declared a state of emergency as emergency crews raced to contain a toxic chemical leak at a manufacturing facility in Orange County.\nA tank containing about 7,000 gallons of methyl methacrylate, a highly volatile and flammable substance used to make plastic, was at risk of failure, officials warned. Thousands of people are under evacuation orders as a precaution.\nOn Saturday, officials said the temperature in the tank was higher than previously thought and it was continuing to rise.\nOrange County Fire Authority division chief Craig Covey said they were planning for two scenarios: \"Does it rupture and spill, or does it blow up?\"\nThe aerospace facility in the town of Garden Grove is about 5 miles (8km) from the Disneyland theme park, which is outside the evacuation zone and is open as normal. The facility is about 35 miles southeast of Los Angeles.\nThe cause of the failing tank is under investigation, and emergency crews have been spraying the tank with water to try and stabilise the temperature. Officials said an \"inoperable valve\" had created \"additional operational challenges\".\nOn Saturday, Chief Covey said the damaged tank's temperature had risen to 32C (90F) and was increasing by about one degree (Fahrenheit) an hour.\nOn Friday evening, officials had used drones to measure the external heat levels and believed they had cooled the tank to about 16C (61F).\nBut when crews were able to get closer and read the tank's gauge, they realised the internal temperature was much higher, Covey said.\nHe expressed hope that emergency teams could slow the rate of the chemical reactions that were causing the substances to heat up and build pressure inside the tank.\n\"Letting this thing just fail and blow up is unacceptable to us,\" Covey said.\nOfficials were developing \"very aggressive plans\" for a scenario in which the tank's integrity failed. They were also creating dikes and dams to contain any chemicals if the tank spilled, which Covey said would hopefully prevent any substances from reaching storm drains or the ocean.\nLocal schools have closed as a precaution and the exits of several major roads have shut to limit access to the area.\nOrange County health officer Dr Regina Chinsio-Kwong said anyone who noticed \"a fruity and heavy smell\" should alert authorities.\n\"Smelling it doesn't mean you've reached a level that causes symptoms. But we don't want you to smell that,\" she said.\nDr Chinsio-Kwong said inhaling the vapour could cause respiratory issues, irritation to the eyes, and dizziness. She said those outside the one-mile evacuation zone should be safe.\nCovey had warned on Friday that there are \"literally two options left: The tank fails and spills... or, two, the tank goes into a thermal runaway and blows up.\"\nHe told a news conference on Friday afternoon that if the tank spills, \"very bad chemicals\" would leak into the parking area surrounding the facility.\n\"Or two, the tank goes into a thermal runaway and blows up, affecting the tanks that are around it that have fuel or chemicals in them as well.\"\n\"This is not precautionary,\" he said. \"This thing is going to fail, and we don't know when... We're doing our best to figure out when or how we can prevent it.\"\n\"I was woken up by the sirens going across our streets,\" Mark Olsen, who was evacuated to the Garden Grove Sports and Recreation Center, told NBC LA on Friday.\n\"Then I was told that they were evacuating, so I grabbed some stuff and got out of there,\" Olsen said.\nBut not knowing what would happen to the chemical plant, or when he could return home, was weighing on him.\n\"It's just frustrating,\" Olsen said.\nThe facility is operated by GKN Aerospace, a UK-based company that supplies parts for aircraft.\nA spokesperson for the company apologised to local residents and said: \"The situation remains ongoing and we are fully focused on working with emergency services, specialized hazardous material teams and the relevant authorities to ensure the safety of the local community, our employees and everyone else involved.\"", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/ca-declares-state-of-emergency-as-fire-crews-race-to-contain-toxic-chemical-leak", "canonical_source": "https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3w2l249j8go", "published_at": "2026-05-23 22:09:05+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-05-23 22:34:35.751130+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": [], "entities": ["California Governor Gavin Newsom", "Orange County Fire Authority", "Craig Covey", "Garden Grove", "Disneyland"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/ca-declares-state-of-emergency-as-fire-crews-race-to-contain-toxic-chemical-leak", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/ca-declares-state-of-emergency-as-fire-crews-race-to-contain-toxic-chemical-leak.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/ca-declares-state-of-emergency-as-fire-crews-race-to-contain-toxic-chemical-leak.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/ca-declares-state-of-emergency-as-fire-crews-race-to-contain-toxic-chemical-leak.jsonld"}}