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WESTLAKE, La. (KPLC) - For many residents in Southwest Louisiana, the alert from Tuesday morning does not come as a surprise. In just these past five years alone, there have been three incidents regarding the BioLab plant.

The plant, which sits directly south of Interstate 10, has caused road closures and shelter-in-place orders due to chlorine leaks, as the plant manufactures and supplies pool and spa chemicals.

The most infamous incident occurred in 2020 on the day Hurricane Laura made landfall. Strong winds and extreme weather ripped the roofs of one of the buildings exposing chemicals to rain.

The chemical in question is trichloroisocyanuric acid. While it is generally safe in large amounts of water, exposure to slow-moving water, such as rain, can cause a reaction. In the 2020 incident, a large amount of chlorine chemicals were exposed to rain leading to a fiery chemical reaction. This garnered the attention of national safety agencies, as the fire took 3 days to extinguish. It caused major damage and shut down the facility.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board investigated the 2020 fire and found several safety issues including the damaged roof not holding up to current wind design requirements, inadequate preparation for extreme weather, a nonfunctional fire protection system, and the absence of automatic extinguishing systems.

BioLab made renovations and reopened the Westlake plant in November 2022.

Four months later, Biolab experienced another leak that led to a shelter-in-place. This leak was a result of a transport line that was coming into the plant.

More information on Tuesday’s incident can be found HERE.