6 treated after Freon leak at Salt Lake Costco

A Salt Lake Costco warehouse store was partially evacuated and paramedics treated six employees at the scene who had inhaled leaking Freon gas Monday evening.

A couple of employees who experienced respiratory distress were given oxygen through masks but injuries were not serious and no one was transported to the hospital.

A Costco employee called 911 at 6:30 p.m. and reported a potentially dangerous gas leak from one of the store's refrigeration compressors, said Salt Lake Fire spokesman and hazardous waste specialist Mark Bednarik.

A pipe had burst and jettisoned vapor and Freon, an odorless gas that can cause suffocation, into the back rooms.

Freon is rarely dangerous, however, according to Polf Larsen, Water Quality and Hazardous Waste supervisor at the scene.

"It's nontoxic, it's just dangerous when it displaces oxygen," he said.

Costco activated a silver curtain, a thick curtain between the warehouse and the sales floor, to prevent any of the Freon from reaching customers. Firefighters in hazmat suits shut off the pipe's valve, Bednarik said.

Along with Salt Lake Fire's nine responding vehicles, Salt Lake Police showed up at the store, at 1818 S. 300 W., to secure the scene and keep more customers from entering the store.

Firefighters didn't detect any of the harmful gas in any other part of the building and no customers complained about respiratory distress, he said.

By 7:18 p.m., the Freon had dissipated.

Contributing: Jacob Hancock

E-MAIL: mmcfall@desnews.com