A possible crack in the Garden Grove chemical tank, reduces the risk of an explosion

With shelters reaching capacity as more than 40,000 people have been asked to leave their homes, officials working to contain a crippled chemical tank explosion in Garden Grove reported progress Sunday in ending the crisis.

TJ McGovern, interim chief of the Orange County Fire Authority, said firefighters found what appeared to be a crack that could have relieved the pressure caused by a chemical reaction inside.

If he’s right, it could make a catastrophic explosion or uncontrolled leak less likely.

“With this new information, it could change our trajectory and our strategy in this event,” McGovern said. “This was a step in the right direction, and there will be more to come soon.”

Lee Zeldin, director of the US Environmental Protection Agency, said the new development is promising.

“I’m told this morning that the most likely scenario is one of low-volume releases, where local authorities will be able to monitor, mitigate and contain the threat,” he said during a Sunday morning appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

McGovern did not say when the 40,000 people who were forced from their homes and shelters due to evacuation orders would be allowed to return.

“We know that you have left your homes, we want to bring you back,” he said. “But we will not do that until it is deemed safe.”

The positive note was a welcome development in a situation that has left much of Orange County on edge since Thursday.

The problem began when the Orange County Fire Authority responded to reports of a hazardous materials incident at GKN Aerospace on Western Avenue in Garden Grove. Officials found a 7,000-gallon tank of a toxic chemical called methyl methacrylate, or MMA, stored in water that was in danger of exploding due to the build-up of pressure from the escaping chemicals.

Methyl methacrylate is used to make plastics. While the polymer itself is non-toxic, its liquid MMA precursor is. If it enters the air, it can harm people in high positions and chronic or extended exposure.

The main solution would be to pump a neutralizing agent into the problem tank, extinguish it and stop it from exploding, but the necessary valve is closed leaving no way to enter the neutralizing agent into the tank.

Officials feared there were only two outcomes: a devastating explosion or a devastating leak.

A rupture in a tank containing a toxic chemical may not sound like reason for hope, but Elias Picazo, an assistant professor of chemistry at USC, said it could be a very good scenario.

“If a tank is going to fail, you want it to fail by cracking rather than by exploding,” he said. “With a controlled leak, you can remove liquid or gas from the tank, release the pressure and buy more time.”

He explained that as the material leaks from the tank, the pressure inside increases slowly, possibly reaching a safe level. The leak also reduces the source of the chemical reaction, which produces heat, which in turn accelerates the reaction through a process called “thermal runaway.”

Aerial water is sprayed from large storage tanks at the GKN Aerospace facility on Sunday in Garden Grove.

(Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times)

But the situation is still uncertain, he said. Depending on the size of the crack and the speed of the chemical reaction, it is possible that the pressure building up inside the tank will exceed what can be released through the crack, resulting in the tank bursting.

“It’s a good step, but it’s not over yet,” he said of the new development.

If a failing chemical tank in Orange County were to explode, the aerospace center that houses it and dozens of homes around it could suffer major damage, according to a map released by authorities on Saturday.

Areas less than 1,100 feet from the tank will be severely damaged; and beyond that, areas within about 0.3 miles, moderate damage; and beyond that, areas within about 0.4 miles, less damage, from the explosion.

The blast zone represents “areas where we can expect significant structural damage and significant casualties,” said Nick Freeman, chief of the Orange County Fire Authority. There are a number of homes in that area in the area around downtown Stanton, including Santa Rosalia Street, south of Laurelton Avenue and north of Lampson Avenue.

In the area of ​​a moderate explosion, “we can also expect structural damage and injuries to those in that area,” Freeman said.

The area with minimal damage includes Wakeham Elementary School and the Home Depot at the corner of Chapman Avenue and Beach Boulevard. “There, we could see structural damage, but it would be a little more limited,” Freeman said.

Officials also warned that in the event of an explosion, there may be a fire or flash fire in some areas, as well as areas where the chemical cloud can be dangerous to life and health, and a very large area where the chemical will be smelled, but at non-toxic levels.

The evacuation near the failing tank in Garden Grove is currently involving tens of thousands of residents in six Orange County cities: Garden Grove, Cypress, Stanton, Anaheim, Buena Park and Westminster. Four of the five shelters built by the county are full. As of Sunday afternoon, only Los Amigos High School in Fountain Valley still had space.

On Saturday, three days into the crisis, a South Pasadena law firm filed a lawsuit on behalf of two residents of the evacuation zone. IX-Law Group and the Presidio Law Firm are seeking class action status.

The lawsuit claims that residents were given “evacuation orders, shelter orders, concerns over exposure, noxious chemical odors, fear of contamination, interference with the use and enjoyment of their homes and buildings, and other damages.”

The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages, alleging that GKN Aerospace failed to protect the public from the crisis.

The lawsuit also calls for “accountability for residents facing evacuation orders, property disruptions, potential health risks, loss of use of their homes, related costs, and decreased property values.”

A man walks past the Freedom Hall shelter Sunday in Garden Grove.

(Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times)

“Clients are naturally very anxious,” said Carlos X. Colorado, an attorney at X-Law Group. “It’s a scary situation, especially for those who are close, and more than that. For a lot of people, it’s disturbing.”

GKN Aerospace did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In agreement with the seriousness of the situation, three lawmakers representing California urged the Trump administration to issue a disaster declaration over the incident.

US Rep. Derek Tran (D-Orange) signed the letter along with Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla are calling for the federal government to provide more resources in response to the event. Tran sent a copy of the letter to X.

“The severity of this disaster requires additional coordination and federal support. Therefore, we urge you to immediately approve California’s request for a Declaration of Emergency and provide emergency protective measures and direct government assistance under the Orange County Community Assistance Program,” the letter, dated May 24, said.

Gov. Gavin Newsom also made a similar request to the president. The White House did not respond to The Times’ request.

In the meantime, officials stressed that they are trying to keep the chemical inside the damaged tank at the aerospace center as cool as possible. They said they got help from national experts to come up with other plans. However, nothing specific has been said.

Continuing to pour cool water into the tank can allow the liquid chemical inside to cure more slowly – solidify at a slower rate – and reduce pressure build-up inside the tank, said Craig Covey, chief of the Orange County Fire Authority.

“Like an ice cube that’s cold on the outside – this thing heals, it heats and it heals on the outside,” he said. “While doing that process, that pressure builds.”

A tank has a certain capacity to hold a certain pressure. There is a gap between the MMA chemical surface and the roof of the tank.

“We’re hoping that space can absorb the healing rate slowly and not overpressurize and explode,” Covey said.