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| California officials warn massive chemical tank will likely spill thousands of gallons or 'blow up' | ||
| 2026-05-23 | ||
| [FoxNews] Officials say the 34,000-gallon tank of methyl methacrylate at GKN Aerospace cannot be secured or mitigated Fire officials issued urgent evacuation orders Friday for a Southern California community as emergency crews scrambled to manage an enormous chemical tank that is "actively in crisis" and threatening to spill or explode.
On Thursday night, authorities determined methyl methacrylate (MMA), a volatile and flammable plastic epoxy used to create parts for the aerospace industry, was leaking from the 34,000-gallon storage tank and firefighters put critical cooling measures in place, according to a report from affiliate FOX 11 Los Angeles. While officials initially believed the situation was under control, allowing residents to return home, the crisis severely escalated by Friday morning. "We have determined that the tank that is in the biggest crisis is in fact unable to be secured and mitigated," said Incident Commander and Orange County Fire Division Chief Craig Covey. Officials are now bracing for one of two catastrophic outcomes: The tank could fail, spilling between 6,000 and 7,000 gallons of "very bad chemicals" into the surrounding parking lot and area, or the tank could go into "thermal runaway" and explode, triggering a chain reaction with neighboring tanks containing fuel and other hazardous chemicals, according to Covey. "We are setting up these evacuations in preparation for these two options: It fails, or it blows up," Covey said. He noted that while there is currently no active gas leak or toxic plume, residents must heed the warnings immediately out of an abundance of caution. Expected timelines for the potential leak or explosion were not provided. Garden Grove Police Chief Amir El-Farra said an expanded evacuation zone has been implemented to protect the public from the imminent threat. "Community safety is our highest priority, and we want to see this come to a successful resolution, but we need your help," El-Farra said. Two emergency evacuation centers have been set up for displaced families in Garden Grove and Cypress. Local law enforcement and mutual aid partners remain at the scene to monitor the situation. No injuries or fatalities have been confirmed, as of 1 p.m. local time.
In a follow-up video, Covey said the efforts to keep the tank cool were continuing to work, and that crews were working through the night to figure out how to resolve the situation. "It is not OK with me just to sit back and watch this thing blow up or fail," Covey said. "That is not acceptable to me." He said another update would be provided Saturday morning. Officials have said it is unclear when residents will be able to return to their homes. "This is highly volatile, it's highly toxic, it's highly flammable," Covey said during an earlier press briefing, while urging people to evacuate. "This is not precautionary. This is gonna happen unless some brilliant guy behind me here figures out how we can mitigate this incident. This thing is gonna fail -- we don't know when." | ||
| Posted by:Skidmark |
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| Posted by: Frank G 2026-05-23 07:24 |
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| Posted by: Bobby 2026-05-23 02:08 |
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| Posted by: Skidmark 2026-05-23 01:59 |