
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, March 14, 1992                   TAG: 9203140317
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: A-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

SALEM YWCA CHEMICAL LEAK FORCES 35 OUT

A chemical leak Friday morning at the YWCA Salem Center forced an estimated 35 people to evacuate the building and sent five people to Lewis Gale Hospital for observation.

All five people were treated and released.

Authorities said a swimming pool pump malfunctioned, spilling about a gallon of muriatic acid, a common agent used in cleaning pools.

A housekeeper with Roanoke College, which owns and maintains the facility, discovered the spill shortly before 10 a.m. after YWCA personnel complained of odors in the building.

Housekeeper Calvin Tawney ran from the pump room and warned people to evacuate the building, according to Roanoke College spokeswoman Teresa Thomas.

Thomas said Salem rescue personnel treated 15 people for minor respiratory problems. Tawney and four women participating in an aerobics class in a gym next to the pool pump room were taken to hospitals as a precaution, she said.

Salem fire officials stopped the leak and deemed the building safe. Wendy O'Neil, YWCA executive director, said the Salem center would remain closed until Monday.

by CNB