A report looking into the accidental release of BLE25 and acetone from a chemical plant around 3:00 p.m. on Sept. 27, 2010 has found equipment and alarm issues were to blame.

According to Chemtura, an estimated 4,200 kilograms of BLE and 112 kilograms of acetone were released from an emergency relief vent after a buildup of pressure in a storage vessel at the Elmira facility.

While alerts were activated, none were seen or heard due to the type of alert and the fact that no one was around to react to them.

Most of the material was originally believed to have landed on the plant's site, but some was found to have been carried off site, which is when the Ministry of the Environment and Waterloo Region were notified.

The compound has since been cleaned from nearly 500 homes, day care centre, schools and vehicles.

Chemtura says nearby neighbourhoods were canvassed after the release to inform local residents and businesses about the incident.

The chemical has the potential to cause skin, eye and respiratory irritation.

However, an air quality assessment report prepared for the company found no health risks were anticipated. A third party review of the report is pending, and a public meeting is expected to be held once it is complete.

Chemtura plant manager Jozef Olejarz says "I would like to first apologize to the public again for all the inconvenience we caused and would like to assure all public that we will make sure everything to make sure they feel satisfied and they feel safe."

There had been significant concerns among residents that the township and the Elmira Fire Department were not notified until nearly 8:00 p.m. that day.

Pat McLean is an Elmira resident, she says "I think there is a loss of trust with the company again for some period of time because of this release."

Olejarz says "Fire department was not notified on time as we wish or as the public wish to have."

The company now says that in future emergency responders will be notified at the same time as other authorities.

Woolwich Mayor Todd Cowan says "The township needs to ensure that the community is safe, feels safe and if something were to happen we would be able to react in the best interests of them."

An additional series of actions are being implemented at the plant, where the BLE process will remain shut down until early in 2011.