Swimming Pool Chemical Plant Fire - (Springfield, Massachusetts - June 17, 1988) » Key Issues

Issues	Comments
Cause of Fires	First fire - Rain leaking in mixed with chlorine chemical compounds, releasing heat. Second fire - Lack of complete protection of the premises from weather after first fire allowed rainwater in, which started the second fire.
Evacuations	Gaseous chlorine generated by mixing chemicals with water and from products of combustion required several levels of evacuation as incident progressed. Approximately 6,000 people were evacuated.
Firefighter Protective Equipment	City found itself short of self-contained breathing apparatus for an incident of this magnitude, for both firefighters and police. Consideration is being given to providing cartridge-type masks for police and other emergency personnel.
Sprinkler System	Building was sprinklered, but part of the system had been disconnected because of the presence of water-reactive chemicals. The part of the sprinkler system remaining in service did operate, but was shut down by FD in attempt to reduce production of chlorine gas.
Incident Command	Dual problem: HazMat incident and fire with HazMat properties. Size of incident was large relative to forces available. In the second incident, mixed scientific advice was received on whether to flood the building or not apply water at all, causing delay in action. In retrospect, permitting the sprinkler system to continue operating supplemented with copious quantities of water is most likely the best option for such an incident.
Duration of Incident	Lasted 4 days; FD remained on scene for cleanup operations for 27 days. Eleven of the city's 13 companies was involved.
Firefighting Agents	6 million gallons of water. 65 tons of neutralizing agents were required to treat the chemicals before removal. Soda ash used successfully in first fire. In second fire, due to presence of water, soda ash used but ineffective.
Cost of Incident	$2 million loss to building and contents; $500,000 cost to fire department includes overtime and actual and anticipated damage to equipment from chlorine exposure; $700,000 other costs to city.

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