2 hospitalized in Carter Lake blast
Alan Gathright and Betsy Lehndorff, Rocky Mountain News
Published July 20, 2007 at midnight
Two workers were hospitalized for chemical inhalation this morning after a chloride explosion at a water filtration plant in Larimer County, authorities said.
The powerful explosion damaged the plant interior, blowing out doors and windows, said Eloise Campanella, spokeswoman for the Larimer County Sheriff's Office.
Two other workers and three firefighters were decontaminated for exposure to poly-aluminum chloride a hazardous liquid chlorine compound, said Scott Pringle, a Loveland deputy fire marshal. The two hospitalized workers suffered minor inhalation exposure, he added.
The explosion occurred about 7:15 a.m. as a delivery truck was off-loading the liquid chloride into tanks at the Carter Lake Filter Plant, Pringle said.
He said static electricity might have triggered the blast as the liquid was transferred.
The explosion created a small gas cloud surrounding the building, Campanella said. But air-quality monitoring showed no hazard.
County Road 8E and Schofield were closed as well as County Road 27E near the lake's South Shore Campground.
Boats can only launch Carter Lake on the north end only. Access is temporarily closed to Carter Knolls, Saddle Bay.
The plant at 7200 County Road 8E serves about 7,400 water customers in Larimer, Weld and Boulder counties, said Judy Dahl, business manager for the Little Thompson Water District, which operates the plant.
The explosion damaged the months-old filtration plant.
Investigators don't believe an early morning planned blast for excavation work on Carter Lake's Dam No. 1 set off the truck explosion.
But to be safe, Pringle said, fire investigators stayed out of the filtration plant until after a second controlled excavation blast at 11:22 a.m. near the dam.
Now, hazard-materials investigators are exploring the damaged tanker truck and inside the filter plant for the cause of the explosion, Pringle said.
The county bomb squad arrived to oversee the second planned blast, Campanella said.
Fire agencies responded from Longmont, Loveland and Fort Collins and Berthoud.
"We do have another treatment plant that will continue water operations, so there will be no effect on water quality and no water outages," Dahl said.
gathrighta@RockyMountainNews.com
or 303-954-5486
Featured
-
DNC in Denver
Complete coverage of the 2008 Democratic National Convention.
-
The Crevasse
A five-part series that examines one tragic day on Mount Rainier.
-
Deadly denial
Sick nuclear workers applied for government compensation but most haven't seen a dime.
-
Final Salute
The Rocky followed Maj. Steve Beck as he took on the most difficult duty of his career.
-
'Colorado's burning'
Coverage of the state's worst wildfires.
-
Columbine shootings
Coverage of the April 20, 1999, shootings at Littleton's Columbine High School.
-
The Crossing
Colorado's deadliest traffic accident killed 20 children on Dec. 14, 1961.
-
Osveli's journey
Osveli Sales left Guatemala for a better life. Two months later, he came home in a box.
-
Wake for an Indian warrior
Oglala Sioux bestow a tribute to the first tribal fatality in Iraq.
