On June 14 a fire at Chemtool Inc., Rockton, Illinois, led to a mandatory evacuation for all residents and businesses in a one-mile radius of the plant. The plant is owned by The Lubrizol Corporation.
Lubrizol released this statement:
"At approximately 7 a.m. today, local emergency personnel responded to a fire at the Lubrizol Corporation's Chemtool Facility in Rockton, Ill. We have confirmed all on site are safe and accounted for. Our concern right now is for the safety of all our employees and the surrounding community," the statement said.
"As a precaution, authorities have evacuated residents in a one-mile radius of the site. We do not yet know what caused this incident, but we will be working with local authorities and with our own risk management team to determine what happened and identify any corrective actions."
According to an article from CNN, Rockton Fire Chief Kirk Wilson said the city hopes to avoid "an environmental nightmare" that could occur if any of Chemtool's oil-based lubricants ran off into the nearby Rock River, about 330 yards west of the facility. The burn-off at the plant is expected to take several days.
