Chemical Leak Forces Evacuation at Jennie-O Feed Mill

Emergency personnel temporarily shut down part of a local highway and issued a shelter in place order for some neighborhoods near the Jennie-O feed mill in Barron, WI after a chemical leak occurred at the facility Monday morning.

The company called Barron County 911 around 9:30 a.m. to report the leak, Barron County Sheriff’s Department said in a release. Workers evacuated the plant shortly after the leak was discovered.

“Upon arrival, emergency responders conducted an assessment and determined that two chemicals (Anatox and Lysine) had been inadvertently mixed together and were off=gassing a poisonous vapor into the atmosphere,” the sheriff’s department stated.

Some neighborhoods to the north and south of the plant were told to shelter-in-place during the response. First responders and Jennie-O representatives determined that the combination of chemicals did not pose a danger to public health, leading officials to reopen the highway and rescind the shelters-in-place at 11:30 a.m.

Two workers injured during the incident drove themselves to the hospital.

Owned by Hormel Foods, Jennie-O produces a wide range of turkey products, including ground turkey, turkey breast, sliced turkey, and turkey sausage.