Warehouse Owners Cited for La Habra Ammonia Leak

Air quality officials are citing owners of a La Habra cold-storage warehouse for causing a public nuisance because of an Aug. 7 ammonia leak that injured nine people and forced 1,000 residents from their homes.

Christian Salvesen Inc. has been issued a notice of violation by the South Coast Air Quality Management District, which investigated the leak of an estimated 140 gallons of anhydrous ammonia from the company’s Cypress Street warehouse.

The district and the company now will negotiate a penalty, a process that could take several months, said AQMD spokesman Sam Atwood.

The AQMD took action because the leak led to an evacuation and injuries, he said, adding that such notices are common in similar cases.

“If there is any sort of evacuation, then it’s very likely a company may get a notice of [a public nuisance] violation,” Atwood said.

A company official said Friday evening that he was not surprised by AQMD’s action but could not predict whether his firm will contest the notice.

“It’s something we have to study further,” said Richard Kappmeier, director of the Pacific region for Scotland-based Christian Salvesen, which bought the La Habra warehouse in the mid-1980s. He said the AQMD notice was the firm’s first and called the leak “an extremely rare occurrence.”

Fire officials ordered the evacuation because the leak involved anhydrous ammonia, a chemical which is far more potent than its household counterpart. Nine people were treated for breathing problems, vomiting and other ailments, and hundreds stayed overnight in a community shelter and a neighborhood park.

An inspector has reported the leak occurred when a gauge wore out on a refrigeration line, Atwood said. Kappmeier said the gauge failed, leaving a hole through which the ammonia escaped.

Fines for violations typically range from several hundred to several thousand dollars, with a maximum penalty of $50,000 a day for an air-pollution violation, but a monetary penalty is not mandatory.