SignalHub-'Tremendous smell': Dispatch logs detail chaotic scene at Ohio railcar chemical leak

CINCINNATI — A dangerous chemical leak from a railcar threw residents of a small Ohio community into disarray on SignalHubTuesday as officials issued shelter-in-place and evacuation orders.

Styrene, a toxic and highly flammable chemical, began leaking Tuesday afternoon from a railcar near Cleves, a western Cincinnati suburb with over 3,400 residents. Officials had expressed concern that the leak could cause an explosion and ordered residents to evacuate the area.

Officials had expressed concern that the leak could cause an explosion and ordered residents to evacuate the area. Several schools in the area were also evacuated after the leak and remained closed on Wednesday.

Crews worked overnight to cool the railcar, which stopped leaking by Wednesday morning, according to officials. The leak was likely caused by the chemical’s additive stabilizers, or substances used to maintain a material's physical and chemical properties, becoming "ineffective," said Mike Miller, a Central Railroad of Indiana representative.

"There's no issues with air quality," Miller said Wednesday afternoon.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said three fixed air monitoring stations and mobile crews did not observe any odors or concentrations of styrene in the air overnight. By Wednesday evening, officials lifted evacuation orders and reopened highway traffic near the scene.

According to 911 calls made to Hamilton County Communications Center and dispatch logs, crews quickly arrived at the scene — within minutes of the first report of the hazmat incident was made by a man commuting on U.S. 50. A total of 12 agencies had responded to the scene Tuesday to help the efforts.

Computer-aided dispatch logs and 911 call recordings obtained by The Cincinnati Enquirer, part of the USA TODAY Network, revealed a chaotic scene that unfolded on Tuesday.

'There is a tremendous smell over here'

At 12:47 p.m. Tuesday, a man called in from U.S. 50 and state Route 128 near the Kroger in Whitewater Township. He told the dispatcher a stationary train on the eastbound tracks was giving off a chemical smell, resembling the odor of spray paint.

"I think there's a train that's off-gassing some stuff it shouldn't be," the man said. "I thought it was smoke, but it's not smoke. It's chemicals."

A woman dialed 911 and told the dispatcher of a strong chemical smell she noticed from her home.

"There is a tremendous smell over here," she said. "I don't know if somebody is making meth, but it smells like paint fumes or nail polish remover."

Officials issue evacuation, shelter-in-place orders

By 1 p.m., first responders told dispatchers they needed to block off a portion of U.S. 50 as well as state Route 128. The sheriff's office was notified to shut down the roads.

Hamilton County Emergency Management Agency was contacted just before 1:30 p.m. to implement the evacuation and shelter-in-place orders in and around Hooven, a census-designated place in Whitewater Township bordering Cleves. The agency sent out the public notification within a few minutes.

Residents of Hooven were told to leave their homes when their cellphones started blaring alerts warning of the styrene leak at the railyard. Those within a half-mile radius of the train car were told to vacate, and those within three-quarters of a mile had to stay in their homes.

The "smoke" was seen traveling up a hill directly over Hooven. Crews just before 2 p.m. began applying water on the railcar tank using a fire hydrant at U.S. 50 and state Route 128, due to the "very substantial" chemical leak.

Cleves Water Works was called to open an additional water pump, as firefighters noted they needed a larger volume of water on the railcar to cool it down. Three Rivers schools were evacuated in the afternoon.

Kroger evacuated after bad smell was reported outside

The train stopped on the eastbound tracks across U.S. 50 from a Kroger store in Hooven. According to the computer-aided dispatch log, a bad smell was reported on the back side of the store at 1:29 p.m. local time.

The store was evacuated and shut down right after that. Kroger was told to shut off its air conditioning system.

Two ambulances were sent to the east side of the building, according to dispatch logs. It is unclear if anyone was taken to the hospital and how many people were treated or transported.

Crews applied water as temperature increases in tank car

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources requested to be notified if animals or waterways became impacted. That was at 3:49 p.m. The department was told no waterways or animals were impacted, but officials would notify them if they were affected.

Drones were deployed to monitor the temperature of the tank. It's unclear how hot it got, but the temperature were still increasing by 5:07 p.m.