Ammonia vapor released at Henrico’s Water Treatment Facility during planned repairs

HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- Several emergency crews responded to Henrico County's Water Treatment Facility after a discharge of ammonia vapor occurred during planned repairs Wednesday afternoon.

At 4:19 p.m. on Wednesday, July 30, Henrico County issued a press release that stated a discharge of ammonia vapor at the county's Water Treatment Facility on Three Chopt Road had been contained.

Henrico Deputy Fire Chief Doug Clevert said that around 1:45 p.m., Hazmat team members entered the interior room of the facility and were able to identify and contain the ammonia vapor discharge within an hour.

Officials reported that the discharge was contained to the interior room of the facility and does not pose an environmental concern or health risk for residents or others located in the area.

"The discharge also will not impact water service, according to the Department of Public Utilities," the county said in the release.

The discharge of ammonia reportedly occurred during planned repairs at the facility by contractor employees. The county said three of 10 contractor employees at the facility may have been exposed to the ammonia vapor while replacing ammonia scrubber equipment as part of the scheduled project.

However, before Henrico Fire units arrived, the affected contractor employees had reportedly taken themselves to a medical facility for evaluation, where officials said they were determined to be in stable condition and have since been released.

All other employees were evacuated from the facility out of precaution, according to the county, with no other employees being exposed to the vapor or requiring medical treatment.

Officials said Public Utilities staff have been monitoring facility operations from other locations. The county said 15 county employees typically work daily at the Water Treatment Facility.

“We are currently working to safely ventilate the building before reopening it. We thank the staff for working so quickly to address this concern,” Clevert said.

Virginia's Emergency Operations Center, the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, Henrico Emergency Management and Workplace Safety and volunteers with the Metro Richmond Flying Squad were also involved in the response to the incident, according to the county.