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On Thursday, emergency responders were called to a shopping center parking lot in Chattanooga, Tennessee after a tractor-trailer carrying organic peroxide and sodium hydroxide caught fire.
The flames spread liquid chemicals around the area, causing vapors that can cause skin and respiratory problems.
All homes and businesses within a half-mile radius were evacuated as a result.
The truck was punctured by a piercing nozzle from the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport in order to put out the fire.
In addition, 80 tons of dirt was brought in from the Tennessee Department of Transportation to stop any chemical runoff.
By 5am Friday morning, I-24 had been reopened for local residents who had been evacuated due to the incident.
The Environmental Protection Agency was called to the scene of the accident shortly after it occurred on Thursday night along with an environmental cleanup company named Hepaco.
An investigation into what caused the incident found that a leak from containers inside the truck resulted in an uncontrolled chemical reaction which eventually led to an uncontrollable flame spreading throughout the parking lot area.
Since then, cleanup efforts have been ongoing all weekend long with no indication as yet as when they will be complete or how much damage has already been done by this unfortunate incident both economically and environmentally speaking.
We can only hope that further incidents such as these are avoided so that local residents within Chattanooga can continue their lives undisturbed without fear of their safety being compromised.
