Calgary fire crews respond to hazardous materials call at north west hotel

At approximately 9:30 Thursday morning February 21, Calgary fire crews responded to a four-story hotel at the 2300 block of Banff Trail North West for reports of a chemical spill. The spill was discovered in the pool mechanical room by a maintenance worker who promptly closed the door to the room and called 9-1-1.

The CFD (Calgary Fire Department) hazardous materials team was dispatched to the scene to identify and safely deal with the spill. The team isolated the area and fire crews prepared for a possible evacuation of the approximately 120 hotel guests and staff.

The hazardous materials team donned their protective suits and entered the pool area. The approximately seven litres of spilled chemical was isolated to the pool mechanical room. The product was found to be an industrial bleach that gave off a strong chlorine odour and on its own, posed little risk to anybody outside of the immediate area. The Hazardous Materials team was able to safely put most of the product back into its original undamaged container.

During the incident, the hazardous materials team performed air quality tests outside of the mechanical room and continued to monitor air quality while they ventilated the area.

The product spilled is a chlorine compound commonly used as a disinfectant when mixed with water.

No injuries were reported as a result of this incident.

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