Contact:        Doug Rogness, Communications Director
Phone:          218.299.5407
E-mail:          This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Chlorine release contained at Moorhead Water Plant

On Monday evening, September 8, 2008, members from Haz-Mat team, the Moorhead Fire Department, Moorhead Police Department, Minnesota Highway Patrol, and the Clay County Sheriff's Office responded to a possible chlorine leak at Moorhead Public Service's (MPS) Water Treatment Plant on Highway 75 North in Moorhead.

At approximately 5:00 p.m. on Monday evening, the MPS water plant operator on duty responded to an alarm from the chlorine storage room at the water plant.  When the operator arrived at the storage room, he saw no visible gas cloud, but did notice the smell of chlorine.  As called for in MPS' Chlorine Risk Management Plan, the operator shut down the water plant called 911 to report the incident.

When the Fire Department arrived at the water plant, it was determined that there was a small release of chlorine inside the plant's chlorine storage room.  Although the odor of chlorine was detected outside the room, the chlorine was contained to the storage room and no amount of harmful chemicals was released from the plant.  Fire crews remained on site until approximately 8:00 p.m. to ensure the entire water plant was safe for re-entry.

The MPS chlorine storage room is equipped with very sensitive sensors and alarms to detect the presence of chlorine before a large problem occurs.  In this case, a very small amount of chlorine was emitted.  "The amount of chlorine that was released would be equivalent to opening a bottle of bleach at your home," stated MPS Water Division Manager Cliff McLain.

MPS had two employees working at the water plant and dispatch center on Monday evening; both were evacuated safely.  "Our staff did a great job responding to this incident," said MPS General Manager Bill Schwandt. "Our employees train for incidents like this, and they responded quickly according to our safety procedures."  In June, MPS staff conducted a training simulation with the Moorhead Fire department and Haz-Mat teams on responded to a chlorine spill at the water plant, which proved to be instrumental in responding to this incident.

MPS is a community-owned utility serving the residents of Moorhead, Minnesota, with electricity, water, and broadband Internet access.

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If you would like more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview, please call MPS Communications Director Doug Rogness at 218-299-5407 or
General Manger Bill Schwandt at 218-299-5404.