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DEC says chemical leak in Selkirk is stabilized

Sep 02, 2020 6:00 am
WNYT-TV is reporting New York State Department of Environmental Conservation officials believe the period of danger is over at the SABIC Innovative Chemical Plant in Selkirk in southern Albany County. No further evacuation is planned after the Sept. 1 accident, but Route 32 was expected to stay closed overnight as a precaution. DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said he does not expect any out-of-the-ordinary readings, but he is urging nearby residents to be prepared for the possibility of an evacuation, just in case. The hazardous material released was styrene gas, which is used in making plastic. Styrene is a known carcinogen, which led to a great deal of concern. DEC has set up nine air monitoring stations all around the SABIC plant. The leak started in a rail car early in the day September 1, resulting in a half-mile wide radius evacuation being ordered. The evacuation affected three large companies, including SABIC, the plastics manufacturer on whose property the leak began. Seggos declared the situation stable, but not necessarily over. Emergency responders began pouring water on the tanker car to cool it down, a process that continued into the evening. SABIC is a Saudi multinational chemical manufacturing company and a subsidiary of Saudi Aramco. Saudi Aramco is the second largest public company in the Middle East and Saudi Arabia. Read more at wnyt [dot] com.
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