A 27-year-old Baltimore man is recovering from injuries caused by a chemical spill Monday at Tobacco Technology Inc., 600 Liberty Road, Eldersburg.

At about 2:05 p.m., the Maryland State Police’s Westminster barrack responded to a call at the plant, which produces flavorings for tobacco products, for an explosion, according to Greg Shipley, state police spokesman.

Police and rescue squads set up a command post outside the former Freedom Golf Center.

“It appears they were boiling a chemical called methylene chloride as they normally do as part of their process,” he said.

The employee, whose name has not been released because family has not been notified, went to check as part of his everyday work, and pressure from the tank caused a lid to blow off, Shipley said, releasing fluid and vapors.

The man was about 30 to 40 feet away from the tank, turned and ran, he said. The man slipped and fell, injuring his face, and was pulled out by the plant manager and another employee.

He was flown to R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, Shipley said. “There doesn’t appear to be any life-threatening injuries."

Two other employees were decontaminated as a precaution, he said.

“Everybody’s going to be OK,” Shipley said.

At about 4 p.m., a man standing outside of TTI said everyone had left for the day. A woman who picked up the phone at the home of George Cassels-Smith, chief executive officer of TTI, said he was not home.

Carroll County Hazardous Materials Team and the Sykesville-Freedom Dist. Fire Department responded to the scene, Shipley said.

The Maryland Department of the Environment is investigating; the Office of the State Fire Marshal is also investigating and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration were also notified and are responding, he said.

“Not knowing immediately what the chemical was and all of that, precautions were taken,” he said.

Fifty-five children from the All About Kids Learning Center, across the street at 601 Old Liberty Road, were evacuated as a precaution.

Carroll County Public Schools sent a bus to transport some children to Century High School, 355 Ronsdale Road, Eldersburg and Piney Ridge Elementary School, 6315 Freedom Avenue, said Bridget Roberts, owner of the center.

The evacuation lasted about 45 minutes, she said.

“I was concerned, but the people across the street had come over to this side, and seeing how they were outside, I thought, ‘Well it’s OK,’” Roberts said. “About a half-hour later the (Sheriff’s Office) said we were going to evacuate just as a precautionary measure.”

Athens Health Club, 6000 Emerald Lane, also evacuated for about an hour, said Steve Freedman, manager.
“We were running business as usual and then we were told we need to go and evacuate,” he said.

Additionally, Maryland State Police and the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office closed Liberty Road from White Rock Road to Johnsville Road.

The road reopened at about 3:55 p.m.

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user comments (1)

user yankeecub says...

Methylene Chloride (dichloromethane) [CH2Cl2] Clear liquid Mainly used as a paint stripper and a degreaser. In the food industry, it is used to decaffeinate coffee and to prepare extracts of hops and other flavorings. Its volatility has led to its use as an aerosol spray propellant and as a blowing agent for polyurethane foams. It is also used as a fumigant pesticide for stored strawberries and grains. It’s used as a paint remover that does not harm wood in the removal process and can be used to reduce the flammability of other substances, decreasing the chance of in-plant fire or explosion. It’s also often necessary for the removal of grease, oil, or similar substances used as lubricants or temporary protective coatings during metal fabrication.

Posted 10:55 PM, 04.06.09

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