Firefighters brought a slow leak from a chemical tank under control Tuesday in La Habra, though officials said the substance involved and the source of the leak remained unidentified hours later.
Los Angeles County Fire Department spokesperson Kaitlyn Aldana said the leak was contained relatively quickly. Three people at the scene declined to be taken to a hospital, she said.
Photos shared on social media showed what appeared to be an orange haze or mist rising into the sky above the area, which sits about 10 miles north of Anaheim in a mix of residential streets and industrial warehouses.
La Habra Mayor Jose Medrano told residents to shelter in place as crews worked the scene, and some nearby streets were evacuated.
Luis Gomez, who manages a pickleball program in the area, said he saw an orange cloud rising and called police. He was told that anyone within a mile of the leak had to leave immediately.
“They said, ‘if you’re inside the one-mile (radius), you have to leave right now,'” Gomez said.
Gomez said he was closing his program for the rest of the day as a result.
Firetrucks blocked off roads near the site as hazmat crews worked, and emergency vehicles lined the cordoned-off street. No further details on the chemical or the cause of the leak had been released.
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