HOUSTON – A formaldehyde spill near a downtown Houston hospital's emergency room led to breathing problems for a couple of workers Monday.
Firefighters and a hazmat team were sent St. Joseph's Hospital in the 1800 block of La Branch at St. Joseph Parkway shortly after 8 a.m.
Fire officials said an employee spilled a half-gallon of formaldehyde in a lower-level bio-hazard room near the E.R.
"One of our employees discovered a small little puddle in our stock room. We immediately called hazmat," said Fritz Gutherie with St. Joseph's Medical Center.
Officials said people near the formaldehyde spill were moved to a safer distance, which included part of St. Joseph's emergency room.
"They have to be at least 150 feet away from where the spill is, so we moved them right away and then put ourself on drive-by (status)," Gutherie said.
A couple of employees complained of sore throats and runny eyes. They were treated on the scene.
Hazmat crews tested the ventilation system inside the hospital to make sure the air quality was safe.
"They came and put an absorption material on it and got it taken care of," Gutherie said.
The hospital was back to normal operations by 11 a.m.
No patients were injured.
Streets in the area were blocked off for two hours, until the spill was cleaned up.
Formaldehyde is a colorless, strong-smelling gas often found in water-based solutions. Commonly used as a preservative in medical laboratories and mortuaries, formaldehyde is also found in many products such as chemicals, particle board, household products, glues, permanent press fabrics, paper product coatings, fiberboard, and plywood. It is also widely used as an industrial fungicide, germicide and disinfectant, according to OSHA.