Many televison viewers were stunned to see the broadcast of an Emergency Broadcast System (EBS) message at 12:30 p.m. today telling them to EVACUATE Chester County.The brief message - lasting less than one minute - interupted regular programming and offered little information beyond the instructions to evacuate.
The EBS alert was the result of an explosion and fire at the Johnson Matthey Chemical Products facility on King Road in West Whiteland Township. Emergency crews responded at 10:30 a.m. to the explosion and fire of a hydrogen trailer. Originally, only the business was evacuated, but shortly after noon, the evacuation area was expanded to include homes on King Road, Ravine Road, Glen Loch Way and Lewis Lane.
It remains unclear how or why local TV stations escalated it to a county-wide evacuation order shortly after that.
Apparently, there were enough alarmed people in West Goshen Township that the township's automatic phone notification system (usually used during snow emergencies) was pressed into service by Township Manager Casey LaLonde to inform his township's residents that the emergency evacuations were limited to West Whiteland Township.
Check out the Daily Local News for the latest details about the hazmat incident.
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