Container with acids produces gases, prompts hazmat response in Fremont

FREMONT (KTVU/BCN) - A hazardous materials team responded to a Fremont business where a container full of acids began to produce gases Friday afternoon, fire officials said.

Reports came in at 2:11 p.m. about a container of acidic waste materials that was producing a gas in the 3000 block of Skyway Court, Fremont Fire Division Chief Diane Hendry said.

The container belonged to an undisclosed business there, and a shelter-in-place order was issued to employees, Hendry said.

Chief Hendry said it began as a hazardous waste cleanup crew came for a regularly scheduled pick up of chemicals from the building. As they were taking the container to their truck for transport an un-ordinary gas plume came from the container and the cleanup crew backed away from it. The container included hydrochloric acid, hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid and phosphoric acid inside.

The fire department is working with the hazardous waste cleanup company to dilute the acids and put them in other containers for removal and transportation. Hendry said the process could take several more hours.

Hendry told KTVU that they had evacuated the businesses south of the Walmart on Osgood Rd. and closed the south entrance to the Walmart. The Walmart remained open, but to get in, customers had to access the north entrance.

Hendry had earlier said the compound was stable and didn't pose an immediate threat to the property or people in the area. There were no reports of exposure.

As of 3:45 p.m., crews in protective gear were still at the scene. It was classified as a Level A hazardous materials incident.

Once crews finish assessing the material, the container may be shipped to a different location, Hendry said.