News - Local
Chemical Depot tests emergency response
Posted: Sep 9, 2009 12:54 PM by David Ortiviz
Workers at the Pueblo Chemical Depot took part in a drill on Wednesday to test their response to an emergency situation.
The scenario involved a multi-vehicle crash at the depot, that caused two chemical munitions to leak and dozens other to catch on fire.
News First 5 got a rare look inside the depot's operations center, as workers responded to the fake disaster. External evaluators observed the exercise.
The depot conducts these training exercises about once a month, even though they are only required to run them four times a year. "Safety is the most important thing for us. Safety of the workforce. Safety of the community and protection of the environment. So we want those skills to be very sharp," said Robert Wittig, Commander of the Pueblo Chemical Depot.
The Pueblo Chemical Depot stores around 2,600 tons of chemical weapons in storage igloos. The stockpile must be destroyed by 2017.
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