An incident at Alcoa's production facility in Galveston, Texas, on Sept. 9 left five employees with chemical-related injuries, the Victoria Advocate reported.
The company stated that the incident was isolated and resulted in no serious consequences, such as fire or an explosion. Two of the workers were taken to a city hospital with chemical burns, while a third employee was treated at a local medical center. Two other staff members were slightly injured but received treatment at the site, according to Laurel Cahill, Alcoa communications and community affairs supervisor.
Cahill said that the incident occurred at about 5:00 p.m. on Monday at the digestion area of the facility and happened while workers were cleaning a piece of equipment. The incident has been reported to the Mine Safety and Health Administration.
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No further information regarding the injured Alcoa employees was revealed and Cahill stated that she was not aware if any law enforcement agencies had arrived at the scene after the incident. The Texas-based Victoria Advocate website, which first reported on the incident, said that neither the local police force nor the county fire department had responded to an incident at Alcoa's plant.
In an e-mail sent to the Victoria Advocate, Cahill explained that the company was fully focused on the employees' well-being and recovery and it would respect their privacy.
The plant at Calhoun County has about 600 employees and processes some 2.3 million metric tons of alumina per year, Alcoa's website says.
