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SALT LAKE CITY -- Two men have been released from the hospital after an accidental chemical reaction at Kennecott Utah Copper Friday morning.
Unified fire Capt. Clint Smith says the incident occurred around 10 a.m. at the power plant at 9150 W. 2600 South.
According to Kennecott spokeswoman Jana Kettering, a contracted delivery driver hauling a load of sodium hypochlorite, or bleach, was unloading the chemical into a vat he thought was empty. The vat actually contained hydrochloric acid residue. It mixed with 25 gallons of the sodium hypochlorite.
"A chemical reaction took place," Kettering said. "There were fumes that overcame two of our employees. They started coughing and having burning sensations in their chests."
Both workers were airlifted to hospitals, which is county protocol whenever there's been a chemical exposure. One was taken to University Medical Center in Salt Lake City and the other to Intermountain Medical Center in Murray. Both men were talking when crews arrived and got into the helicopters on their own power. Both are OK and were released from the hospitals Friday afternoon.
"We're investigating why this took place the way it did," Kettering said. "We have a standard procedure to avoid these types of things. We're looking at how the procedure may or may not have been followed."
The chemicals are each used for cleaning and maintenance at Kennecott.
The spill temporarily forced an evacuation at Kennecott, but operations were never suspended, Kettering said. She added that the reaction did not cause any environmental damage.
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Story written with contributions from Andrew Adams and Jed Boal.
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