A small explosion in the basement of a South Campus building today forced roughly 200 to evacuate as a chemical spill was cleaned, authorities said.
The explosion ““ which did not result in any injuries or significant property damage ““ was the result of a burst pipe in the basement of the California NanoSystems Institute building. Foul play was not suspected, the institute’s managing director, Susan Rubin, said.
Some evacuees said they observed a loud bang and a small cloud of dust.
Chemical sensors around the building’s subterranean cooling system were triggered and the building was fully evacuated within minutes, Emergency Preparedness Manager David Burns said.
A hazardous materials team was sent in to clean up a pool of pink fluid, which was suspected to be a mix of water and liquid Freon, a common coolant used in air conditioners.
“We bring out the testing equipment and make sure what it is so no one gets hurt,” Burns said.
At 2 p.m. the hazmat team was in the process of isolating and identifying the pink fluid with chemical sniffers. To clean up spills, authorities typically use a vacuum and an absorbent ceramic clay-based substance, similar to kitty litter, Burns said.
They eventually determined there was no threat to building personnel, ending a three-hour evacuation and turning over cleanup to UCLA Facilities Management, according to a university statement.
The three-story facility was opened in 2007 and houses 180,000 square feet of conference rooms, offices and labs equipped with high-power microscopes, according to the institute’s Web site. Researchers there study renewable energy, photonics and biomaterials, among other nanosystems specializations.
Soon after the explosion, police blocked off surrounding areas, causing some holdup at Lot 9, which shares a basement with the nanosystems building.
By 2:30 p.m., barriers blocking vehicle traffic into Bruin Plaza were removed, according to a university statement.
Along with a number of local authorities, officials from the FBI and Los Angeles City Homeland Security were called out, Burns said.
Outside the South Campus research facility, students, staff and faculty gathered behind police tape in small groups, waiting to be let back in.
“What we’ve got here is a situation where equipment malfunctioned and it’s really inconvenienced a lot of people,” Burns said. “But safety first.”