Eastman officials: some asbestos included in debris from line failure
Published 11:17 pm Monday, January 31, 2022
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Photo Contributed Eastman Chemical in Kingsport announced there was a steam line failure at 7:30 a.m. Monday morning. Five people suffered minor injuries and were either treated by Eastman medical staff or at Holston Valley Hospital.
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FROM STAFF REPORTS
KINGSPORT – The high-pressure steam incident at Kingsport’s Manufacturing site on Monday, January 31, damaged a variety of construction materials in the area.
Initial testing of debris found within the Kingsport site shows that at least some of the material damaged in the event contained asbestos.
As safety remains Eastman’s first priority, Eastman is treating any debris as containing asbestos unless it is confirmed to not contain asbestos.
These are current updates:
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Out of an abundance of caution, Eastman is deploying a response team in the community Monday evening to evaluate debris impact. Eastman is advising neighbors near the plant who experienced any debris on their cars, houses or property to call the Eastman Community Care Line: 423-229-CARE. Callers are asked to please report their name, address, phone number and a description of the impact to their property. Eastman will contact residents to arrange for clean-up.
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Eastman is establishing a boundary within the impacted area of the plant where response teams will be cleaning up the material. The area is located in the northeast side of the site near Lincoln Street between John B. Dennis Highway and the Eastman Road overpass.
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Just like the area within the plant, response teams will follow the same protocol for cleaning up debris from our neighbors’ property. For this reason, Eastman is asking that neighbors leave the debris to the Eastman response team to collect.
Asbestos, a naturally occurring mineral, can be hazardous to human health following exposures of a significant amount and duration – exposures of a type not anticipated from this event.
Eastman will continue to work closely with regulatory officials to ensure that all necessary steps are taken to ensure debris is removed according to all established safety protocols.
The incident led to power outages in some parts of operations, and Eastman personnel are working to fully restore that power.
Per Eastman safety processes, manufacturing operations were safely shut down. Eastman is working to resume normal operations as soon as possible.
