Sixteen people are lucky they only ended up in the hospital instead of a coffin after being exposed to a cloud of deadly chlorine gas at Texas’ newest water amusement park, the Great Wolf Lodge Water Park near Houston.
The incident happened on the park’s first day during its grand opening. Apparently a construction worker dumped some chlorine bleach into a vat that contained sulfuric acid. The chemical reaction produced billowing clouds of caustic chlorine gas, sickening more than a dozen park-goers.
Crews from Webster Fire company donned Hazmat suits to battle the problem, helping to get the 16 injured people onto waiting ambulances.
It was supposed to be a day of fun for all, and it certainly looked like it would be from watching a Good Morning America report giving a preview of the $200 million attraction. ABC reporter Lori Bergamotto took her family to the park and road the rides, which she said was enormous fun. Bergamotto described the park as “overflowing with adventure.”
The park opened to the public earlier than its anticipated launch on Labor Day in September, and some construction was still ongoing.
According to Webster Fire Chief Dean Spencer, attendees reported people were having trouble breathing in the pool house next to one of the rides. The building was emptied of people, and they were hosed off before being bundled off to the hospital.
The list of symptoms that can be induced by chlorine gas exposure is nearly endless, from coughing and nasal irritation to eye and skin burns and much more. High doses of the gas will kill people exposed to it.
The City of Webster released a statement explaining that a worker had mixed chemicals that should never have touched each other, but that the incident was confined to one area of the park. The investigation is ongoing.
The new Great Wolf Lodge is one of 22 similar parks built in the U.S. and Canada by the same company, which describes the destination as a “stress-free” getaway for families.
Twenty-nine people were injured in another chlorine gas leak at the 2022 Olympic Games in London.
