CALGARY — A northeast Calgary hotel had to be evacuated when a maintenance worker was overcome while mixing chemicals for the facility's pool.
The evacuation on Tuesday afternoon affected about 50 guests and 16 staff at a Coast Plaza Hotel.
District Chief Paul LeBlanc with the Calgary Fire Department says a maintenance worker was mixing a batch of chlorine for the pool in the hotel's basement when there was an unexpected chemical reaction.
The worker was assessed by paramedics and found to be in respiratory distress and was transported to the Foothills Medical Centre in unknown condition.
A second individual was assessed by paramedics for precautionary reasons but he was unharmed and released on scene.
Late Tuesday evening, Calgary EMS announced it had assessed a third person, an adult male, but paramedics released him after determining he was not injured.
“Our crews have gone in to do an assessment,” says LeBlanc. “They’ve identified it’s chlorine and they’re neutralizing it at this point.”
Crews remained on scene late into the night to ensure the hotel was properly ventilated.