UPDATE: 12 employees taken to local hospitals after incident at Fall River Amazon facility

Nearly a dozen people were taken to the hospital after an incident on Friday afternoon.

According to Lieutenant Moses Pereira, at approximately 1:00 p.m., Fall River Police, Fire, and EMS units were dispatched to the Amazon Fulfillment Center on Innovation Way, regarding a report of an unknown chemical reaction potentially caused by a battery within the facility.

Fire Chief Jeffrey Bacon stated that the initial report was of a lithium-ion battery in a large battery bank in thermal runaway along with a vapor cloud in the room. Because of the severe threat that lithium-ion batteries pose in this condition, it was necessary to evacuate the building. Once on scene, the incident commander sent two crews in full gear to assess the amount of damage to the battery bank. 

Initial crews determined that the situation had stabilized but they were still getting readings of dangerous chemicals in and around the battery room. A decontamination area was set up and state hazmat team was called. In the meantime, it was determined that due to the unknown nature of the airborne chemicals, anyone who had spent time in the area around the battery banks should be decontaminated. 

A medical rescue was called to the scene along with the EMS Lieutenant to assess several of the workers who had been exposed to the unknown chemical.

The fire department initiated a Tier 1 Hazmat response with the State Hazmat Team. 

In total 12 patients were decontaminated and transported to local hospitals. The state HazMat Team entered with more sophisticated monitoring devices and upon closer inspection, determined that the batteries were lead acid (not lithium-ion).  While the chemical released by the lead acid battery is toxic, it does not present the same amount of fire or explosive danger that a lithium-ion battery would.

The entire building was monitored for levels of any chemicals or hazardous materials. A large-scale ventilation fan was brought in by the Middleborough fire department to help clear the air in the million square-foot facility. After several hours, it was determined that the building was safe for employees to reenter.