Fourteen people were hospitalized after an incident at Fairchild Air Force Base in Spokane, Washington, on Thursday.
The base confirmed that a HAZMAT team was called in after 24 people reported “feeling affected by an unknown irritant,” officials said in a statement posted on Facebook.
The building has been evacuated. The incident occurred at around 8:30 a.m. local time at the base’s Logistics Readiness Squadron in Building 2045, Air Force officials said.
“The building was evacuated and emergency responders are on scene. The incident is currently under investigation,” the statement read.
The 14 personnel who were most affected “have been treated by base personnel and transported to local hospitals for additional follow-up evaluation,” Fairchild AFB added in the statement.
It said that outgoing and incoming traffic at the gates hasn’t been affected by the incident.
Seven patients who were taken to Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center are in satisfactory condition, said Jennifer Semenza, a spokeswoman, told the Spokane Spokesman-Review.
The Airway Heights Fire Department sent units to the base at around 11 a.m., and the Spokane Fire Department also responded to the scene Thursday morning, the paper reported.
This story is developing; updates to come.
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