Gas Cloud at Lockheed Facility Sends 7 People to Hospitals
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A gas cloud spread through a Lockheed Corp. research facility in Rye Canyon near Santa Clarita Thursday night, hospitalizing seven people, including two guards who complained of skin and throat irritation, the Los Angeles County Fire Department reported.
About 30 others were evacuated from several other buildings nearby, Lockheed spokesman James W. Ragsdale said.
The injured guards and another employee were transported to Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital for observation, he said. Four other people were taken to Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills, complaining of minor throat irritation.
Their injuries were not believed to be serious, he said. The conditions of the other injured employees were not available Thursday night.
Hazardous materials specialists from the Fire Department and Lockheed entered the three-story building about 10:30 p.m. They had not determined what chemical, if any, was responsible for the problem.
The security officers called the Fire Department after entering the building about 9:15 p.m. and noticing a strange odor, Ragsdale said.
The facility, Building 229, is one of about two dozen structures on the 400-acre complex, Ragsdale said.
The complex is used for aerospace parts testing and research.
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