Garden Grove chemical leak

Common card · No. 285837

On May 21, 2026, a chemical leak occurred at a GKN Aerospace manufacturing facility in Garden Grove in Orange County, California, about 35 miles (56 km) southeast of Los Angeles. First responders with the Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) determined that a chemical tank had begun to overheat and off-gas excess pressure. The tank contained approximately 7,000 US gallons (26 kL) of methyl methacrylate (MMA), a flammable and volatile liquid chemical used in plastics manufacturing. Unable to chemically neutralize or drain its contents due to a faulty valve, authorities stated that the tank would either fail and spill liquid MMA into the surrounding area or experience a boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion (BLEVE), releasing toxic vapor over a wide area. Due to the possibility of an explosion, mandatory evacuation orders were issued, affecting over 50,000 people in a nine-square-mile area (23 km2) which included parts of Garden Grove as well as the bordering Orange County cities of Anaheim...

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