The GKN Aerospace toxic chemical crisis that forced 50,000 to evacuate in Orange County is already behind schedule on its intended start due to a lack of necessary resources
To the dismay of community members, plans to clean up the damaged chemical plant that forced 50,000 people to evacuate their Garden Grove homes have been delayed. The Orange County Health Care Agency said the process did not begin on its intended Thursday start date “because some needed resources were unavailable.”
The cleanup intends to load methyl methacrylate (MMA) from the damaged tanks to trucks that will dispose of it safely. Notably, the MMA has already been neutralized, eliminating the once-looming threat of explosion that forced residents to leave their homes and has already led to a class action lawsuit against GKN Aerospace, the company that owns the plant.
Once cleanup does start, however, Garden Grove residents have been told to expect “fruity or plastic-like odors” while the operations are underway. The material has a “very low odor threshold,” according to a city press release, which means it might be pungent while still significantly under the levels of concentration that would make it dangerous.
The delay in cleanup and a more conclusive solution to the situation will prolong what already seemed like lengthy legal battles for GKN and Garden Grove. Aside from the class action suit, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said his office was keeping a watchful eye on the reasons behind the crisis and what let it happen in the first place.
In making amends with the affected community, GKN has donated $3 million to the United Way’s OC Community Resilience Fund, as well as $1 million each to the American Red Cross during the evacuation and county initiatives after the evacuation orders had been lifted. However, a lack of a system to address individual claims from households was the subject of criticism from Orange County Board Chairman Doug Chaffee.
“I feel they’re remiss in not doing that because now they’re facing the litigation, which is more expensive,” Chaffee said.
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