Newsom declares emergency as Garden Grove chemical tank threatens to explode

California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in Orange County on Saturday as crews tried to contain a leaking tank of methyl methacrylate at a GKN Aerospace facility in Garden Grove.

"The safety of Orange County residents is the top priority," Newsom said. "We are mobilizing every state resource available to support local responders and make sure the community has what they need to stay safe."

Orange County Fire Authority Division Chief Craig Covey said temperatures inside the tank were rising about one degree per hour. The tank held an estimated 7,000 gallons of the chemical and stood at 90 degrees on Friday night after starting the day at 77 degrees.

Crews had believed the tank was cooling. After entering the danger zone Friday night to check a second tank, they found the temperature climbing. Covey said the situation was the worst he had seen in 32 years.

"There are literally two options left remaining: One, the tank fails and spills a total of about 6,000 to 7,000 gallons of very bad chemicals into the parking lot and that area," Covey said. "Or two, the tank goes into a thermal runaway and blows up, affecting the tanks that are around it that have fuel or chemicals in them as well."

On Saturday he said officials were evaluating other options. "Letting this thing just fail and blow up is unacceptable to us," he said. "Our goal is to find something and not allow that to happen."

Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said his office had opened an investigation into the cause of the tank failure and set up a tip line for employees and residents. "If you want to come forward and you want to be interviewed and you want to tell us what you know, now is the time," Spitzer said.

Evacuation orders covered a one-mile radius that included parts of Garden Grove, Cypress, Stanton, Anaheim, Buena Park and Westminster. Officials said more than 50,000 residents had been told to leave. Evacuation centers were open in several cities, and all accepted pets.

Air monitoring showed no detectable release of the chemical, officials said. The Environmental Protection Agency had deployed 24 stationary monitors, and the South Coast Air Quality Management District reported normal readings.

GKN Aerospace said it was working with emergency crews and apologized for the disruption. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the city was unaffected and that the Los Angeles Fire Department had sent a hazardous-materials specialist to assist.

Health officials said methyl methacrylate is a respiratory irritant that can cause lung, skin and eye irritation, nausea and dizziness. The chemical is heavier than air and has a strong fruity odor. Orange County Health Officer Dr. Regina Chinsio-Kwong said people outside the evacuation zone should not experience health effects.

The Garden Grove Unified School District closed 15 campuses. Several other districts also closed schools. The Garden Grove Strawberry Festival parade and 5K were canceled, but the festival itself was scheduled to proceed. Disneyland and Knott's Berry Farm remained open.

Uber offered evacuees free rides of up to $40 through Monday using the code OCSAFE26. Several Anaheim hotels offered discounted rates, and a Del Taco location provided free meals to first responders.

The cause of the leak remained under investigation. No injuries have been reported.