Fumes Sicken 2 at Site of Toxic Fire in April

Unidentified chemicals stored outside a Sun Valley building that was the scene of a spectacular toxic chemical fire last April began giving off fumes Tuesday, sending two people to a hospital.

The building at 9068 De Garmo Ave., which previously housed Research Organic & Inorganic Chemical Co., was evacuated and one block of neighboring Tuxford Street was cordoned off for five hours while firefighters and Los Angeles County hazardous-materials crews removed the chemicals.

Two electrical workers, who noticed fumes escaping from a glass bottle, were treated and released from Serra Memorial Hospital. County hazardous-waste control officials said the fumes appeared to come from a “highly corrosive chemical,” which they did not immediately identify.

The same building was gutted in April by a chemical fire that gave off toxic fumes, hospitalizing 52 firefighters. The federal Environmental Protection Agency assumed control of the cleanup.

The building is now empty while the owner prepares to lease it to a new tenant. The chemicals that gave off fumes were among five 55-gallon drums and about 12 one-gallon glass jugs that were left in an outdoor storage area.

The chemicals had been salvaged from the fire and appeared to be stored legally in a covered shed atop a cement floor, said Randy Ueshiro, a senior environmental health officer with the County Health Department.

He said he did not know what caused the vapors, but guessed that water from the rain this week had set off a chemical reaction. He said officials would remove all chemicals stored outside at the site.