by John Herrick vtdigger.org Six members of the Vermont Air National Guard were hospitalized Friday after toxic fuel spilled at the South Burlington base Friday morning, the Guard said in a statement. Guard spokesman Major Chris Gookin said the Guard members were given First Aid treatment and later transported to Fletcher Allen Health Care in an ambulance after experiencing a bad taste in their mouths. He said it was a precautionary measure. Gookin wrote in a follow-up statement, “The Hangar is secured while the maintenance and the Hydrazine Response Team survey the area, there is no danger to the public.”
The colorless chemical hydrazine is used in the Guard’s F-16 fighter jets’ Emergency Power Units. The spill occurred at 9:35 am Friday during normal maintenance operations at the base, the Guard said. The guard notified the media at about 10:15 am.
The Environmental Protection Agency classifies hydrazine as a probable carcinogen. Short-term exposure can cause “irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, dizziness, headache, nausea, pulmonary edema, seizures, and coma in humans,” the EPA states on its website.
The Guard shares space at the Burlington International Airport. Director of Aviation Gene Richards said there is no threat to the airport because the spill occurred at the Guard site. He said the Guard notified him of the spill at 10:55 am.
As of 11:30 am, Gookin said the Guard members were sent to the hospital for observation and no further update is available. The Guard held a news conference at the base at 2:30 pm.
Photo of the Vermont Air Guard hangar as seen from the BTV terminal by Vermont Business Magazine.