Three students were hospitalized Thursday evening after a chemical spill at the College of Computing at 801 Ferst Drive. The spill was in the basement of the building near the Chemistry teaching labs. The students were preparing chemicals for undergraduate experiments when potassium thiocyanate and nitric acid were inadvertently mixed.
“Fortunately, the students followed appropriate procedures in accordance with their lab safety training and isolated the container in a fume hood, evacuated the area and pulled the alarm to evacuate the building,” said Mark Demyanek, assistant vice president, Georgia Tech Environmental Health and Safety (EHS).
The spill was reported at 7:10 p.m., and members of the Atlanta fire department, Georgia Tech police department and the Institute Environmental Health and safety units responded to the scene. The Atlanta fire department personnel tested the lab the evening of the spill, and the building remained closed until 7 a.m. Friday morning. The mixed chemicals were removed by Tech EHS officers Friday morning.
“The building was evacuated as a precaution. Three students were transported to Grady Hospital for observation. The incident is under investigation,” said Matt Nagel, Tech’s Media Communications specialist.
“The students are fine… the Georgia Tech response team worked very well together to promptly address the situation. I believe this can be attributed to good training, communication and the Georgia Tech administration’s commitment to environmental health and safety,” Demyanek said.
This page will be updated as more information is obtained.