Colorado Cleaning Crew Accidentally Creates Dangerous Vapor Cloud

If you look under your sink, you probably have several different cleaning and disinfecting products. My wife and I have quite a bad habit of collecting numerous cleaners, as one is better than the other for various things.

If you didn't know, some of those strong chemicals could be dangerous if they are mixed. This week, a cleaning crew in Colorado Springs was cleaning a nursing and rehab facility when two of these cleaning chemicals were mixed by accident, the building had to be evacuated, and a hazmat team had to respond.

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The Colorado Springs Fire Department received a call of an unfamiliar odor from the Gardens Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation center on the west side of Colorado Springs on Tuesday at around 9 a.m.

Mixing Household Chemicals Can Be Hazardous

The fire department also dispatched a hazmat team to the scene, where they learned that two cleaning products were mixed, causing a reaction that created an orange vapor cloud. Once the vapor cloud formed, it was pulled into the HVAC system and distributed throughout the facility.

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The cleaning crew at the Garden Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center accidentally mixed Drano and bleach together in an attempt to unclog a drain. Mixing these two chemicals together creates chlorine gas.

Three people in the facility had respiratory issues, two had to be hospitalized with minor injuries. More than half of the residents were evacuated by authorities within an hour. Thankfully, none of the residents were affected by the chlorine gas vapor cloud.

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While household cleaning chemicals are safe to use to clean and sanitize your home, you should be aware that mixing any of these cleaning products could create an adverse reaction.