Hazmat Release at Starkist Foods in Riverside

An unloading accident caused an acid spill that prompted the evacuation of a Starkist Foods canning facility in Eastvale, Riverside County. 15 workers went to a hospital for hazardous chemical inhalation, said the Riverside County Fire Department.

A firefighter also went to the hospital with unspecified minor injuries not related to breathing difficulty, officials said.

Roughly 40 gallons of concentrated cleaning acid spilled about 2:45 p.m. Thursday, June 9, at the expansive facility at 12450 Philadelphia Avenue, just east of Milliken Avenue. The area is in the northeast corner of Eastvale, nearly a mile northwest of Interstate 15 and Highway 60.

"They were off-loading (the acid) with a forklift from a trailer at loading dock," said Capt. Lucas Spelman. "One of the forklift arms pierced the bottom of the blue, plastic container."

CBS2News is reporting that the release of a chemical at Starkist Foods in Riverside County, caused a plant closure. The plant is located on Philadelphia avenue in Riverside. Some sort of chemical spill was visible on the facilities front steps this afternoon, at 5 p.m. PST.