Evacuation order lifted after Ohio chemical spill

Residents of a southwest Ohio suburb returned to their homes Wednesday night after air tests came back clean of a toxin released into the area on Tuesday. Authorities discovered a railcar valve spraying styrene, a toxic chemical used in making plastic and rubber, into the air. Testing by both the Central Railroad of Indiana and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency detected no styrene in the air around the incident site, according to the Hamilton County Emergency Management Agency.

What are the potential health risks from the chemical spill? Styrene exposure can cause headaches, nausea, and respiratory issues, while long-term exposure causes more serious health problems like organ damage, according to the Centers for Disease Control. No hospitalizations have been reported, according to local authorities. The Hamilton County Emergency Management Agency released a fact sheet noting that one can still smell styrene in the air even when well below harmful levels.

Styrene gas breaks up very quickly when released into the air and is unlikely to linger enough to contaminate soil or air inside buildings, according to the fact sheet. Residents should still open windows and doors to allow fresh air into homes and businesses and consider changing HVAC filters out of an abundance of caution, authorities said. Unsealed food or produce exposed to vapors should be discarded and residents should wash clothing and bedding items, the release added.

Dig deeper: Read Carolina Lumetta’s report on Ohio residents struggling with the aftermath of another mass chemical spill from a train derailment in 2023.