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Information Added: Thursday, September 21, 2000 - 2:04 PM
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St. Paul officials canceled classes and Humboldt senior and junior high schools as the cleanup continues following a swimming pool chemical foul-up yesterday (9/20/2000).

Three school staff members were hospitalized briefly and students were sent home after a contractor inadvertently mixed chemicals used to treat the schools' pool around noon. The result was a poisonous chlorine cloud that spread through the school building, said St. Paul Deputy Fire Chief Timothy Verros. Officials evacuated the nearly 1,500 students, as well as about a half-dozen nearby homes, before airing out the building. No students were injured.

When alarms started ringing, Lou Wiley, a Humboldt health instructor, thought it was just another fire drill. Then she noticed a strong chlorine odor in the air. The students and staff were quickly ordered out of the building, near the intersection of Baker Street and Humboldt Avenue on St. Paul's West Side.

"We were just trying to get the children out of danger,'' said Wiley, who was teaching a class a few yards away from the pool. Three staff members were taken to Regions Hospital after inhaling the fumes. They were treated in the emergency room and released by the end of the afternoon, hospital officials said.

Workplace safety officials say they are investigating the incident.

"We're going to talk with the contractor about his specific training and the circumstances leading up to what happened,'' said James Honerman, spokesman for the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Division.

The contractor worked for the Lynde Co. of St. Paul. Lynde owner John Timberg said Wednesday afternoon that the foul-up was an accident.

A Lynde employee was supposed to be refilling the pool's chlorine supply tank. But the 55-gallon refill-supply drum that he thought contained chlorine actually contained muriatic acid, another name for hydrochloric acid, Timberg said. The drum was apparently unmarked, he added. When the worker added the acid to the chlorine, the chemicals reacted and began emitting fumes. He told school officials to evacuate immediately.

Timberg would not name the employee. Verros said he did not know the worker's name.

Most pools are treated with the same chemicals involved in the Humboldt situation and accidents do happen, Timberg said.

Chlorine often is added to pool water to kill bacteria and algae. Muriatic acid is added to neutralize the water. But they should always be mixed into the water separately, cautioned Ian Greaves, a physician at the School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota.

Combining the chemicals causes a reaction in which chlorine gas is liberated, he said. Inhaling the mixture can cause coughing and wheezing and irritate the eyes, he said.Long exposure can cause lung damage, Greaves said.

Fire officials opened the school doors about 2 p.m. to let the chemical dissipate into the air. The decision to evacuate homes was a precaution, said Amy Barrett, school district spokeswoman. Most nearby residents were not home.

The weather, a discomfort to those evacuated, actually helped dissipate the chemical cloud. Wind gusts reached up to 36 mph nearby in downtown, according to the National Weather Service.

The district opted to cancel today's classes as officials assessed the chemical risks. They are expected to announce later today whether classes will be canceled Friday as well.

Students should not consider the day off as a break from schoolwork. Patricia Harvey, St. Paul Public Schools superintendent, is encouraging Humboldt students to use the time to concentrate on fulfilling their 25-book reading requirement.