Sulfur Dioxide Leak Injures 44 in Long Beach : Chemicals: Up to 2,000 other workers at Douglas Aircraft are evacuated until the Fire Department is able to cap the storage tank.

A leak in a sulfur dioxide storage tank at the sprawling Douglas Aircraft complex in Long Beach caused injuries to 44 workers Thursday and forced a three-hour evacuation of up to 2,000 others, company and fire officials said.

Fourteen of the injured--all complaining of respiratory and eye irritation or dizziness--were taken to hospitals in Long Beach and nearby communities where most were treated and released by late afternoon. The rest were treated at the company infirmary, Douglas spokesman Don Hanson said.

The incident began about 9:45 a.m. and was declared controlled shortly before 1 p.m., officials said.

Sulfur dioxide is used at the complex to treat the waste water from a metal finishing process before it is discharged into sewers. It vaporizes when it comes into contact with air. The vapors in high concentrations can cause burning inside the lungs.

The 8-foot-long, 150-gallon, 1-ton tank is outdoors between two structures in the southern section of the complex on Lakewood Boulevard at Carson Street.

Long Beach Fire Department spokesman Hank Zavaleta said it took more than two hours for Los Angeles County hazardous waste experts to cap the leak and determine that no more chemicals were escaping.

“It could have been worse had there been more wind,” Zavaleta said of the incident. “Fortunately the area was quickly evacuated.”

Investigators could find no signs of negligence or wrongdoing on the part of Douglas and left it to the company to determine how the leak occurred, Zavaleta said.

Robert Wilson, 46, a Douglas pipe fitter, said he and a co-worker discovered the leak. He said the problem appeared to be related to a worn thread on a valve.

Wilson was interviewed shortly after being released from Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, where he was treated for shortness of breath and an upset stomach.

The Lakewood resident said he and co-worker Larry Wickham smelled gas and confirmed the leak by putting ammonia on the tank. The ammonia turned to a white powder after coming into contact with the sulfur dioxide in the air, he said.

At that point, Wilson said, he turned off all the valves and washed the tank down with water.

Wilson said he and Wickham sounded the alarm to security personnel and ran around closing doors to nearby buildings to keep the gas from getting inside.

Times staff writer Bettina Boxall contributed to this story.