What to Know
- One person was taken to a hospital with serious injuries after a chemical spill on the Upper East Side Tuesday morning, authorities say
- 25 gallons of sodium hydroxide, a highly caustic compound also known as lye, spilled on East 61st Street near Madison Avenue
- A cause of the accident is under investigation
One person was taken to a hospital with serious injuries after a chemical spill on the Upper East Side Tuesday morning, authorities say.
Firefighters swarmed the scene on 61st Street, near Madison Avenue, after getting a call about the accident shortly before 7 a.m. Officials say the truck somehow spilled 25 gallons of sodium hydroxide, a highly caustic compound also known as lye that can cause severe chemical burns.
The roadway was shut down in the area for at least two hours. Chopper 4 showed more than a dozen responders and two or three ambulances at the scene.
A cause of the accident is under investigation.
