Small chemical fire cleared PU building

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - A small chemical fire at Purdue's Mechanical Engineering building necessitated a 55-minute evacuation of the structure.

The fire was contained to a five-gallon container filled with a mixture of hydrogen peroxide, water, and sulfuric acid.

Fire Chief Kevin Ply said lab personnel first discovered that the container was leaking. They notified officials from Radiological and Environmental Management to evaluate the problem at approximately 9:00 a.m. Tuesday morning.

These officials shifted the chemicals into a drum and removed a fiberboard shelf beneath the original container which had been saturated with chemicals. At around 12:30 p.m. the debris within the drum began smoking, and they activated the fire alarm.

"Contents from the container leaked onto cardboard boxes and a fiberboard shelf, and when a highly oxidizing agent makes contact with an organic material, they begin to react." Ply said. "We had more smoke than anything, but we did have a small fire inside the container."

The container was removed from the building, and damage was limited to the shelf on which the container had been sitting and a section of flooring.

No injuries were reported.