One person was hospitalized this week after firefighters
responded to a fire in a storage area on Terminal Island where goods are imported
through the Port of Los Angeles.
At 11:43 a.m. on Tues., Feb. 5, Los Angeles firefighters
responded to the facility near the intersection of Cannery Street and Terminal
Way to investigate a fire in an outside storage area where imported goods are
fumigated.
Upon their arrival, they found white smoke coming from a 55-gallon
drum used to neutralize pesticide products. LA Fire Dept. hazardous material
experts then assembled an entry team, performed an assessment and managed to
control the fire using a dry chemical fire extinguisher.
The product within the drum was eventually identified by the
LAFD hazardous material team as aluminum phosphide, which is used as a
rodenticide, insecticide and fumigant for stored cereal grains.
One Los Angeles Port Police officer who was exposed to the
smoke was transported to an area hospital for further evaluation, according to
LA Fire.
The Health Hazardous Materials Division of the Los Angeles
County Fire Dept. is investigating the incident. The fire was not believed to
have had any impact on Port of Los Angeles operations and shipping continued as
normal, according to the LAFD.
