OXNARD : Fumes Send 2 Trash Haulers to Hospital

Two Oxnard trash collectors were hospitalized Monday after breathing fumes from a powdery substance left in the dumpster of an Oxnard company, fire officials said.

County and city hazardous material teams later determined that less than 50 pounds of calcium sulfate had been accidentally dumped at Classic Products, a pet supply wholesale company on Vanguard Drive. The chalky powder is a highly reactive base material similar to plaster used in dry packing materials.

City employees David Jurado and Paul Brown were unloading the dumpster when Jurado began having difficulty breathing, became dizzy and felt a burning sensation in his throat, Oxnard Fire Capt. Richard Elliott said.

Instead of taking the load to the county’s landfill for disposal, the men returned to the city’s equipment yard at 1060 Pacific Ave. to seek medical attention, Elliott said. Jurado and Brown were taken to St. John’s Regional Medical Center for treatment. Brown, the driver, was released, but Jurado was kept overnight for observation.

Members of the Oxnard and county hazardous material teams, wearing protective suits, tested the residue in the dumpster and discovered that it was an extremely strong base.

Elliott said the high readings “made us a little nervous” until further tests showed the powder to be calcium sulfate, a relatively benign material that can be easily neutralized by adding water.

“It’s not too dangerous unless you do exactly what the refuse operators did--inhale it,” Elliott said.

An investigation determined that a trucking company had inadvertently dumped the substance, he said.