Updated 8pm, Wednesday January 31: Around 1.4 tonnes of the highly toxic chemical sodium hydrosulfite, which was leaking at a waste management facility in Tasmania’s north, has been transported to the state’s west coast.
Emergency services say the leak, uncovered in a drum at the Veolia Waste Management plant in Spreyton on Tuesday night, was unable to be contained.
“To be safe to everybody we’ve shut the area … off and the greater proximity of 600 meters around the area,” Tasmania Fire Service District Officer Mark Brownrigg said on Wednesday afternoon.
“The danger is inhalation … [the chemical is] quite stable in itself but at the moment it’s reacting to moisture and causing a gas to come off … The gas is toxic to humans and the environment.”
The container holding the chemical was loaded onto a low-loader truck and transported under the supervision of the Tasmanian Fire Service and Tasmania Police back to the Savage River Mine where it originated from.
Brownrigg said the Environmental Protection Authority will oversee the burial of the drums once the material arrives back on the coast.
The 600-metre exclusion zone around the waste management facility, which affected a dozen houses and an industrial area in the town, was lifted on Wednesday afternoon.
Nearby residents were earlier advised to close all doors, windows and vents and to turn off air conditioners until the threat had passed.
Updated 11:30am, Wednesday January 31: An exclusion zone around a northern Tasmanian waste transfer station has now been increased to 600 metres.
The Tasmania Fire Service say exposure to the hazardous material they are dealing with may present a danger to people, but say there remains “no risk to the general public at this time”.
“If you are in the immediate area, stay indoors, close all doors, windows, and vents and turn air conditioners to recirculate or off,” the TFS reiterated.
“Non-residents should stay away from the affected areas.”
Updated 8:50am, Wednesday January 31: A 60-metre exclusion zone has been put in place around a Spreyton business following the discovery of what police are describing as a gas leak overnight.
Emergency services were called to the Veolia Environmental Services Recycling Centre around 7:30pm on Tuesday and issued a hazardous material warning shortly after.
Roads surrounding the business, starting from the corner of Loone Lane and Kimpton Street, are currently blocked and police are evacuating all businesses along Loone Lane “as a precaution”.
“Motorists are asked to find an alternate route this morning. Members of the public are thanked for their patience and understanding at this time,” police said.
7:45pm, Tuesday January 30: A warning has been issued to residents of a northern Tasmanian town following a reported “hazardous material incident” in the area.
The Tasmania Fire Service has dispatched crews to an address on Loone Road in Spreyton, which is home to a Veolia Environmental Services Recycling Centre.
They have said that the incident involves materials that “may present a danger” to individuals who come into contact with them.
“There is no risk of exposure to the general public at this time,” a warning reads.
“If you are in the immediate area, stay indoors, close all doors, windows and vents and turn air conditioners to recirculate or off.”
“Non-residents should stay away from the affected areas.”
The source of the warning is understood to be several chemical drums, however their contents remains unknown at this time.
