Steam responsible for HAZMAT worries

December 16, 2003

NH Business Review Staff,

HUDSON – A buildup of steam at a metal plating company sparked concerns about hazardous materials Monday night and sent two firefighters to the hospital.

The firefighters, whose names the fire department is not releasing, were taken to Southern New Hampshire Medical Center for observation. They were released shortly after midnight.

Firefighters responded to JMD Plating, at 1 Park Ave., at 9:37 p.m. for a fire alarm. Two firefighters who entered the building noticed a slight haze and a noxious odor that they compared to the smell of rotting fish, Fire Chief Shawn Murray said.

Local hazardous materials teams, including one from Nashua, were called to the area. Those teams searched the building and did not find anything wrong. According to the fire department, a timer for an air-scrubbing machine in the building was not reset after a power disruption earlier Monday, which caused a buildup of steam in the building.

The accumulation of the non-hazardous steam activated the fire alarm. The business was operating as usual today.

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