CLEVES, Ohio — A dangerous chemical leak from a railcar has spurred an evacuation order in an Ohio town.
Hamilton County Emergency Management issued the order Tuesday for Grandview. It advised anyone within a half-mile of the area near U.S. Route 50 and the Great Miami River in Grandview, west of Cincinnati, to leave immediately.
Three nearby school buildings also were being evacuated, according to Lisa Whiteley, a spokesperson for the Three Rivers Local School District.
Tom Ciuba, a spokesman for the Central Railroad of Indiana, said it was notified around 1 p.m. about a railcar in the area of Cleves that was venting styrene, which is used to make plastic and rubber. He said firefighters were at the site and environmental response agencies were mobilized.
Aerial video showed firefighters spraying down a railcar sitting upright on tracks between the highway and an asphalt plant.
The emergency agency urged people to turn to local media for more details about the leak and the evacuation. It initially had told residents to go indoors and keep their windows shut.
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