Airport Firemen Burnt in Chemical Explosion

By NEVILLE, Sophie

TWO firemen have been admitted to hospital after an explosion at Wellington airport.

The airport fire officers suffered minor burns after they discovered a chemical substance on the western side of the airport yesterday morning.

They were not badly hurt and had been discharged from hospital in the afternoon, airport general manager Graeme Ware said.

He was not sure what the chemical was or where it had come from, but it was possible it had reacted with water, causing the explosion. A second amount of the solid, white chemical had been found later in the day.

Emergency services spent most of the day investigating the substance and Cochrane St was closed off as a precaution. The chemicals were being tested overnight, he said.

A fire service spokesman said pumping apparatus, specialist breathing gear and a command unit were called in after the chemicals were found. The incident was treated seriously because it was unknown what the chemical was capable of.

The chemicals were found in an area far from normal airport operations, Mr Ware said. No flights were delayed and passengers were never at risk, he said.

Police would continue investigating today where the substance came from.