Fire Department Responds to Chlorine Leak at Fergus Falls Water Treatment Plant

Hazmat technicians from the MN Regional Hazmat Response Team mitigate leak at FF Water Treatment Plant. (FFFD)

Fergus Falls, MN – A Chlorine leak at the Fergus Falls Water Treatment Plant was successfully mitigated this weekend.

At about 9 a.m. on Saturday, the Fergus Falls Fire and Police Departments responded to the Water Treatment Plant on Water Plant Road for a reported Chlorine leak from a 1-ton cylinder. Staff onsite reported the leak was small, and was isolated to the Chlorine room at the facility. The water plant operator secured the facility property and coordinated with the fire department to assess the situation. Due to the nature of the chemical and technical equipment needed to cap the leak, the MN State Duty Officer was contacted to initiate a response from the Regional Hazmat Team.

Air monitoring was conducted outside of the facility and confirmed there was no Chlorine gas impacting the surrounding area. Consequently, no evacuations or shelter-in-place orders were necessary, and there was no risk to the public. Hazmat technicians from the MN Regional Hazmat Response Team from Moorhead responded and entered the Chlorine room and successfully capped the leak on the cylinder.

Hazmat technicians from the MN Regional Hazmat Response Team mitigate leak at FF Water Treatment Plant. (FFFD)

Responders were on scene for approximately six hours, with the cylinder ultimately being removed from the site by the chemical transport company.

The leak was from one of the fusible plugs and will be assessed by Hawkins, the company supplying the cylinder.

At no time was City water quality impacted because of the leak, and it remains safe and unaffected by this event.

While not required in this incident, the Fire Department encourages residents to sign-up for Smart911 notifications, which will notify residents in the case an evacuation or shelter-in-place is necessary. Sign-up can be found on the Otter Tail County website or under the Fire Department section of the City of Fergus Falls website.