Eagle Staff Report
Published Friday, July 31, 2009 6:05 AM
Blaze prompts mass evacuation in Bryan
Officials scaled back a massive mandatory evacuation in Bryan to just 500 homes Thursday evening, allowing most residents to return after a chemical fire at a plant forced them out hours earlier.
At least 35 people were treated and released at area hospitals for respiratory problems after the blaze at El Dorado Chemical Co. on Texas 21 shot a plume of brown-orange smoke that hung high over the area through much of the day. A thin, low-lying cloud could be seen late Thursday.
No life-threatening injuries were reported; however, one patient was kept overnight, officials said.
Dispatchers said that the chemical that caught fire -- possibly as an employee performed welding work -- was ammonium nitrate, which the company produces to be sold as a fertilizer.
Bryan Fire Chief Mike Donoho said a small crew of about eight officials from the Bryan and College Station fire departments, along with a hazardous materials team, would remain at the command center at Smetana Exxon on Texas 21 overnight to monitor the blaze.
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