topic Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis in Community Chat

Orange County Chemical Crisis

willowbark — Sat, 23 May 2026 15:09:55 GMT

Per the Los Angeles Times the evacuation is still ongoing and people are saying they got headaches. This must be serious for this is the first time the Los Angeles Times is allowing me to read without a pay wall.

This is happening in the area of Knotts Berry Farm and Disneyland.

Room rates are too high right now for most from Memorial Day holiday rates.

Anyone impacted, chime in please or if you know of anyone.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

D Kay — Sat, 23 May 2026 15:49:38 GMT

What is the situation? Was their a leak? A fire?

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

Boehm Collector — Sat, 23 May 2026 15:53:43 GMT

California: 40,000 people ordered to evacuate over chemical leak fears.
Authorities in Orange county say tank holding methyl methacrylate ‘actively in crisis’ and urge residents to leave.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

willowbark — Sat, 23 May 2026 15:57:51 GMT

Orange County Fire said there were two options

One, the tank spills 6-7,000 very bad chemicals onto the parking lot or

two, the tank goes into a thermal runaway and blows up.

The storage tanks are holding methyl methacrylate which was off gassing and highly flammable. It's used to fabricate resins and plastics.

source: The Guardian

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

MorningLover — Sat, 23 May 2026 16:03:48 GMT

Thousands of Orange County residents are still under evacuation orders after a huge 34,000-gallon tank of highly flammable methyl methacrylate started leaking and overheating at an aerospace facility.

The leak was reported at the GKN Aerospace facility at 12122 Western Ave. around 3:30 p.m. on Thursday. Orange County Fire Authority crews responded and determined the tank was leaking methyl methacrylate, a volatile and flammable liquid used to make acrylic plastics.

As of early Saturday morning, the chemical leak at the GKN Aerospace facility in Garden Grove has not been fully stopped. While the temperature has been stabilized somewhat, officials continue to warn that the tank could either fail and spill or go into thermal runaway and explode. Evacuation orders remain in effect for around 40,000 residents.

Here’s what’s happening now:

• Fire crews were able to neutralize one of the tanks using a chemical stabilizing agent.

• However, the main tank (the one holding the remaining 6,000–7,000 gallons of methyl methacrylate) is still in crisis and cannot be fully secured.

• The biggest problem is a faulty pressure-release valve that is “gummed up,” preventing crews from safely accessing or neutralizing the chemical inside.

• Crews are actively cooling the tank with water and have managed to stabilize its temperature somewhat. This has bought them more time, but the situation remains dangerous.

• Officials are still warning of two possible outcomes: the tank could fail and spill the chemical, or go into thermal runaway and explode.

Bottom line: The leak is not fully stopped. The main tank is being cooled and monitored around the clock, but it has not been completely secured yet.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

willowbark — Sat, 23 May 2026 16:35:07 GMT

The chemical leak that triggered evacuations from across a swath of Orange County on Friday is located at GKN Aerospace, a manufacturing company based in the United Kingdom.

A leading aerospace firm

The company manufactures landing gear, jet engines and other materials for commercial and military aircraft.

GKN Aerospace’s Garden Grove facility, which sits on 15.5 acres on Western Avenue, designs, analyzes, tests and certifies military canopies, cockpit windows and passenger widows, according to its website.

The company has been at the site since 2004, according to city documents.

“GKN Aerospace manufactures the world-leading F-35 canopy from its Garden Grove facility, as well as transparencies for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and 737, the Airbus A350, HondaJet and Bombardier C-Series,” the company’s website states.

What company is saying

A spokesperson for GKN Aerospace told The Times on Friday that they are responding to the situation and working with fire crews and specialized hazardous materials teams.

The problem

There are three large tanks with a highly toxic chemical called methyl methacrylate, or MMA, used to make plastic, at the site in the 12000 block of Western Avenue in Garden Grove.

One tank that officials have said is “in crisis” has about 7,000 gallons of the chemical left in it. It started experiencing a rise in temperatures on Thursday, which triggered temporary evacuations. But fire crews were called out to the site again on Friday.

Craig Covey, a division chief with the Orange County Fire Authority and the incident commander, described two possible scenarios for the tank during a news conference on Friday afternoon.

“

One, it fails and cracks, and all the product leaks out onto the ground,” Covey said, and efforts are underway to try to prevent the liquid from “getting into the storm drains and the river channels and into our oceans.”

Or, it will explode, he said.

Officials have been working to come up with what Covey said were “out of the box” ideas to prevent as much damage as possible.

“Our group is going to do everything they can to come up with a third, a fourth, a fifth option,” he said.

OSHA inspections

The company’s Garden Grove facility has undergone four inspections by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration since 2018, which resulted in 10 violations, public records show.

More information about those violations was not immediately available.

In 2019, the California Department of Industrial Relations filed a request in Orange County Superior Court that a judge order the company to pay $2,898 in unpaid civil penalties.

The citation, outlined in court records, alleged the company in April 2018 “failed to ensure that all machinery and equipment in service were inspected or maintained as recommended by the manufacturer.”

The company also received a violation for allegedly failing to “implement and effective written injury and illness prevention program” in accordance with state law.

It doesn’t appear that any of the violations were related to the tanks at the center of Friday’s incident.

The documents do not say how the company responded to the inspection reports.

“Safety at our facilities is paramount,” a GKN spokesperson said in response to questions from The Times. “We follow all standard safety protocols and processes and are regularly audited by numerous state and federal agencies.”

“Our focus and priority today is on working with emergency services and the relevant authorities to address the issue at hand and protect the local community,” the spokesperson added.

This year the company sought permission from the Garden Grove planning commission to construct a new employee break room on the site. The plans included the construction of a new 1,504 square-foot building, a roof deck and an open-air patio, according to city documents.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

willowbark — Sat, 23 May 2026 16:39:44 GMT

What are the health risks of an explosion?

MMA is very toxic. Short-term exposure involving inhaling the chemical’s vapors “can cause significant irritation in the lungs, the nasal passages, and it can also cause nausea and it can also cause dizziness,” said Dr. Regina Chinsio-Kwong, Orange County’s health officer.

At very high levels of exposure, “it can really cause severe respiratory distress and hospitalization,” Chinsio-Kwong said.

The evacuation is large in part due to the potential of a plume of toxic vapors.

Officials said the chemical is heavier than air, so it would settle and sink into the lower areas around that facility if there’s an explosion. Officials are planning for the risk of the chemical blowing into other areas.

Methyl methacrylate can easily evaporate and linger near the ground as a dangerous vapor, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. If inhaled at high levels, these fumes can aggravate a person’s lungs, causing coughing, wheezing and chest tightness. It can also cause nausea, dizziness and skin irritation.

Although the EPA has classified the chemical as “not likely” carcinogenic to humans, long-term exposure has been linked to serious organ damage.

source: aol news

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

willowbark — Sat, 23 May 2026 16:41:51 GMT

Hard to believe zoning would allow that plant to be built so close to homes.

As kids my mother took us to a dentist in Westminster. The Westminster Courthouse was told to evcauate as it is nearby.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

Wsmom — Sat, 23 May 2026 16:51:07 GMT

I have family in OC. Not close enough to evacuate but a concern if it blows and what and where the wind blows. Horrifying.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

willowbark — Sat, 23 May 2026 17:02:34 GMT

Officials in Huntington Beach Ca are monitoring this as they are 15 miles away and fear that the toxic fumes will blow toward them and cause health problems.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

Wsmom — Sat, 23 May 2026 17:12:53 GMT

@willowbark , HB is on it with the monitoring for sure. All those areas around there are at risk depending on where the wind blows. Thank goodness it doesn't look like any Santa Ana winds appear to be on the forecast.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

willowbark — Sat, 23 May 2026 17:27:39 GMT

@Wsmom wrote:
@willowbark , HB is on it with the monitoring for sure. All those areas around there are at risk depending on where the wind blows. Thank goodness it doesn't look like any Santa Ana winds appear to be on the forecast.

@Wsmom That's good as I was wondering about that.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

FancyPhillyshopper — Sat, 23 May 2026 17:31:58 GMT

Yes, I am following this story although it does not affect the East coast at all.

However, it is a very serious and horrible issue, and I certainly feel for all the families.

When they evacuate, where on earth do they go?

And what to do about pets, possessions, etc.?

I can see many, many lawsuits on the horizon.

I hope they can get that tank under control.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

willowbark — Sat, 23 May 2026 17:38:09 GMT

@FancyPhillyshopper many good questions with no good answers.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

MorningLover — Sat, 23 May 2026 17:42:28 GMT

KTLA news:

Evacuation centers

Freedom Hall at Mile Square Regional Park: 16801 Euclid Street, Fountain Valley

John F. Kennedy High School: 8281 Walker Street, La Palma (now full)

Savanna High School: 301 North Gilbert Street, Anaheim

Oceanview High School: 17071 Gothard Street, Huntington Beach (just opened)

All locations accept pets*

In addition, all Planet Fitness locations in Orange County are open to evacuees and first responders, no membership needed. Those affected can have free access to locker rooms, showers and a place to rest with access to electrical outlets and Wi-Fi.

Certain hotels in Anaheim are also offering special rates to people displaced by the Garden Grove chemical incident.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

Bookplate — Sat, 23 May 2026 17:54:21 GMT

10 OSHA inspection violations? Well, obviously no money changed hands anywhere along the line.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

willowbark — Sat, 23 May 2026 18:03:11 GMT

Getting food for themselves and their pets will be challenging since employees who were working at grocery stores and fast food restaurants also had to evacuate shutting businesses temporarily down.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

Wsmom — Sat, 23 May 2026 18:43:20 GMT

@MorningLover , so great to hear that about Planet Fitness!

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

Wsmom — Sat, 23 May 2026 18:46:30 GMT

On local FB pages people are offering up their extra rooms, etc., for people.

There have been blasts for people to foster pets who can't go to whatever location their people end up.

Just an absolute mess.

Re: Orange County Chemical Crisis

Kachina624 — Sat, 23 May 2026 18:59:57 GMT

I hope GKN Aerospace has good liability insurance. They're going to need it. Seems like an inappropriate place for their storage facility in a densely populated area.