‘White haze’ at Glendale grocery store leads to evacuation
The release of a refrigerant material used to cool items at a Ralphs grocery store in Glendale caused evacuation of the store on Tuesday afternoon, and an estimated $50,000 in damage, authorities said.
A call came in at 2:35 p.m. after a white haze had spread through the Central Avenue store, said Glendale Fire Department spokeswoman Brandy Villanueva.
The store was then evacuated as authorities came to the scene.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health arrived for an inspection, along with two hazardous materials team, four engine companies, one truck company, as well as two basic life support ambulances, one air utility and one battalion command on site.
Nine people were assessed at the scene by the fire department, and one was transported to a local hospital for further medical evaluation, Villanueva said.
Crews were on scene for about five hours, according to Villanueva.
The store remained closed Tuesday evening but had plans to reopen Wednesday morning, according to the store manager.
-- Sameea Kamal, sameea.kamal@latimes.com
Follow on Twitter: @SameeaKamal.
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