Crime & Safety

Fire Department: Hazmat at Keurig Building Last Night

There was a vapor cloud of liquid nitrogen filling the air around the building for the incoming Keurig Headquarters last night.

Burlington Fire Department personnel responded to a hazardous material situation at the building for the new Keurig headquarters at 63 South Avenue last night.

Chief Steve Yetman said the call came in around 9:30 p.m. of a vapor cloud forming in the rear of the building.

Emergency crews, led by Captain Scott Carpenter, assessed the situation and determined that the cloud was liquid nitrogen, which Yetman said is a cryogenic liquid with a temperature of -375 degrees.

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Yetman said the vapor cloud made approximately a 50-foot circle around the tank. He added that tanks that hold gases such as liquid nitrogen have a safety release if the pressure builds up too much. He said fire fighters believe that was the case here.

"That's what the tanks are designed to do, but at this time we think the valve froze open."

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Yetman said that during the release of liquid nitrogen the public was not in danger.

"It didn't affect Route 3," he said. "There was no hazard to the public. It's an inert gas and will displace oxygen. So there was that and the frostbite hazard."

He added that there were fire fighters stationed on both sides of the building to monitor the cloud to ensure winds didn't push it to populated areas.

"We waited it out for a while," he said. "Keurig officials were on scene and they notified their gas supplier. They brought in a technician and we were able to go in and shut the system down. The last units cleared around midnight."

 

 

 

 


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