LAKEPORT — A spill at the Lakeport Transfer Center Wednesday afternoon drew looks of curiosity and worry from passerby on Bevins Street.
The Hazardous Materials Spill Report the county Environmental Health office received at 3 p.m. from the Office of Emergency Services (OES) identified the substance as an “unknown powder” that had been found in two separate sections. “An area 200 feet by 200 feet is affected,” stated the report.
“Whatever it is, it reacts with water,” said transfer center operator Mar Call, who found the powdered yellow substance among the trash bags in the hopper of a trash compactor. Call had pushed the bags into the trash compactor and was spraying them down according to standard procedure, and did not know the substance was present until he saw a billow of what he described as “yellow fire.”
Transfer station supervisor Darryl Prather said he contacted Environmental Health director Ray Ruminski when he became aware of the substance, which he said smelled like smoke.
Ruminski recommended a full Hazmat response, including breathing masks for the Kelseyville and Clearlake Hazmat personnel that arrived on the scene between approximately 3 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
“We just wanted to check it out,” Prather said. “We didn”t want to take the chance of someone breathing something they shouldn”t have been breathing.”
While the Hazmat teams were en route, the Lakeport Fire Department was on the scene at approximately 2:45 p.m, and the Lakeport Police Department arrived shortly thereafter to assist the fire department in securing the area, said Sergent Kevin Odom of the LPD.
Access to Bevins Street was cut off at 2:50 p.m. and reopened at 3:15 p.m. after the fire department had isolated the area in which the substance was located.
“It was probably dumped there by a customer,” said Prather. Odom said criminal activity was not suspected.
The incident command situation was terminated at approximately 5:25 p.m., after samples taken of the substance revealed that it was a non-hazardous agricultural material. It was “disposed of appropriately,” according to the county Health Services Department.
“It”s better to be safe than sorry when you”re dealing with an unknown substance like this,” Prather said.
Contact Tiffany Revelle at trevelle@record-bee.com
