Ammonia contamination prompts evacuations after Oregon seafood plant fire, officials say

By Eduardo Cuevas, Jillian Sykes, CNN

(CNN) — Ammonia contamination after a seafood plant fire prompted recommended evacuations in a coastal Oregon city, local officials said Sunday morning.

The incident occurred at Pacific Seafood in Newport, Oregon, officials said. Thick plumes of smoke billowed over the quiet fishing town Sunday morning, which is located 90 miles southwest of Portland and has just over 10,000 residents.

“We recommend staying inside if you are in Newport today. If you must go outside, you should wear a mask. Updates will continue to be made on this post,” a statement from city officials said.

Officials identified low traces of ammonia in the smoke from the ongoing fire, John Fuller, a city spokesperson, said. There is still a risk with ammonia tanks inside the facility, he added, but did not detail how much material remains.

Hazmat crews were on site to test for air quality levels, he said.

A spokesperson for Pacific Seafood said in a statement the company was not aware of injuries and all employees have been accounted for.

“However, the situation is still ongoing and we are focused on supporting emergency responders to help ensure everyone is safe,” the statement said.

Fuller estimated hundreds of people were in the evacuation area surrounding the processing plant. Officials said the evacuations were strongly recommended but not mandatory.

The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said in an afternoon update parts of the recommended evacuation areas in a one-mile radius of the plant were being scaled from evacuation orders to recommendations that residents should be ready to leave if conditions worsen. US 20 from Harney Street West to US 101 is closed, the sheriff’s office said.

An initial half-mile evacuation zone was in the city’s Bayfront area, which is mostly commercial and has some popular tourism areas with fewer homes, Fuller told CNN. The wider evacuation area includes residential areas. It is currently the off season for tourists, he said, though the city still sees some visitors on weekends.

Footage of the scene posted by the city on social media showed firefighters spraying the building down.

City officials had established a shelter for evacuees at a nearby elementary school but changed the location to a Lutheran church further north from the evacuation area out of caution, a city update said Saturday afternoon.

The Oregon State Fire Marshal is responding to the incident with a hazmat team because of chemicals at the facility, the state agency announced in a social media post.

Fire crews were still working on putting out the fire, Fuller said Sunday afternoon. The cause of the fire and ammonia contamination are still under investigation. There are no reported injuries at this time, Fuller confirmed.

Oregon resident Coby Bertalotto shared videos with CNN showing a cloud of smoke over Newport.

“Driving through that thick smoke … It was thick enough that I couldn’t see the side of the road,” Bertalotto said. “I was very cautious.”

He described the smell outside as “rubbery,” affecting an area with several tourist attractions such as candy stores, bars and Ripley’s Believe It or Not.

“There are probably about three or four blocks that are just getting smoked out,” Bertalotto said.

Exposure to high levels of ammonia in the air may cause irritation to the skin, eyes, throat, and lungs and cause coughing and burns, according to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. Some people with asthma may be more sensitive, the agency said.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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CNN’s Nic F. Anderson and Maria Aguilar Prieto contributed to this report.