Overheated chemical tank in southern California ‘will fail’, EPA chief says

Government officials in Orange county, California, have warned that an overheated chemical tank “will fail” and could result in a chemical explosion in the area, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator said on Sunday.

“We’re being told that the tank will fail, but there are different scenarios as to what that means,” Lee Zeldin, told CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday. Zeldin, a former Republican congressman with no prior experience in environmental policy, was chosen by Trump as the head of the EPA.

“The most catastrophic scenario” at the aerospace facility in the city of Garden Grove, just 5 miles from Disneyland, Zeldin said, would be “an explosion that results in other tanks to explode. That’s the reason why you see such a big evacuation that’s been done in the surrounding areas.”

Zeldin noted that officials have said the “most likely scenario” is one with a “low-volume release” of the chemicals in the tank. Officials have been working to keep the temperature of the chemical tank below 85F by dumping the storage tank with water. On Friday, officials added a neutralizing agent to a nearby tank to limit the risk of explosion.

About 50,000 people in the area have now been evacuated from their homes so far given concerns of a possible leak or explosion. Stephanie Klopfenstein, Garden Grove’s mayor, warned residents to take evacuation orders seriously. “This is a very dangerous situation,” she said on Saturday, the Los Angeles Times reported. Agencies in Los Angeles county have said that there is “no current threat to LA County communities”, in a post to X on Sunday.

The chemical incident began on Thursday afternoon after a leak was reported at GKN Aerospace, which makes parts for commercial and military aircraft. The tank contained 6,000-7,000 gallons of methyl methacrylate, local authorities said, a highly flammable chemical used to produce plastic and resin.

Firefighters have been spraying the tank with water to try to cool the chemicals inside and prevent an explosion.

In a later update on Instagram, Klopfenstein said “we had a somewhat positive briefing” from the Orange county fire authority team on the scene. The good news, according to county fire chief TJ McGovern, was that late Saturday night, firefighters discovered “a potential crack in the tank, which could potentially be relieving some of the pressure in there”, making an explosion less likely.

Although officials for now are focused on measuring pressure, a spokesperson for the Orange county fire authority told Reuters, the crack eventually could allow authorities to gradually drain the chemicals.

Andrew Whelton, an engineering professor at Purdue University, told the Associated Press why a crack in the tank could be considered positive. “Think of a soda can. If you leave it in a hot car it can explode,” he said. “But if you put a hole in the can, the product is released and the can itself doesn’t explode.”

Faisal Khan, the head of the chemical engineering department at Texas A&M University, told the news agency an explosion of lesser magnitude could still happen.

“Cooling is happening on the surface of the tank while runaway reaction may be occurring deep inside the tank,” he said. “Yes, reaction is slowed compared to what it started. However, we are not out of explosive release risk.”

Officials who have been monitoring the area’s air quality said they detected no pollutants. “We are happy to report that levels are completely normal in our measurements,” said Jason Low from the South Coast Air Quality Management District in an update posted to X.

At least two of Garden Grove have now filed a lawsuit against the GKN Aerospace over the chemical leak, the LA Times reported. The suit, issued by the X-Law Group and Presidio Law Firm, noted that residents have dealt with “evacuation orders, shelter-in-place directives, exposure concerns, noxious chemical odors, fear of contamination, interference with the use and enjoyment of their homes and properties, and other damages”.

Exposure to methyl methacrylate can cause serious respiratory problems and even render someone unconscious. It can also cause neurological problems and irritate the skin, eyes and throat, according to fact sheets about the chemical. But Orange county health officials said the chemical is easy to smell and residents may notice it over a large area without being harmed.

Garden Grove is next to Anaheim, home to two Disneyland theme parks, which were not under evacuation orders. Park officials said they were monitoring the incident and supporting employees affected by evacuations.