Representative Derek Tran Announces Entire Evacuation Order Lifted in Garden Grove Hazardous Materials “Western Incident”

Garden Grove, CA - U.S. Representative Derek Tran (CA-45) has been briefed by the Orange County Fire Authority that the threat to public health and safety at the GKN Aerospace plant, known as the "Western Incident," has been lifted. The remaining 16,000 residents who have been evacuated may return to their homes effective 7:30 PM PST. There remains an exclusion zone around the facility to allow hazmat teams to continue monitoring the tanks out of an abundance of caution.

Click HEREto follow updated information about the incident.

"I am grateful for the tireless work of the OC Fire Authority, local police, and emergency response professionals to mitigate this crisis and keep our community safe. I am also grateful for Governor Gavin Newsom's leadership during this crisis," said Representative Derek Tran. "While the immediate danger to public health and safety has been lifted, residents are still left to pick up the pieces of the chaos and disruption caused by the hazmat incident in Garden Grove. Our community is rightfully angry, and I will continue working around the clock to demand accountability from all responsible actors."

On Thursday, May 21, Orange County Fire Authority crews received reports of a chemical leak from a storage tank at GKN Aerospace in Garden Grove. A leak of methyl methacrylate, a volatile and flammable chemical, from a 34,000-gallon storage tank was confirmed, prompting evacuations in the surrounding area.

At Representative Tran's urging, President Trump signed a Federal Emergency Declaration on Sunday, May 24. A Federal Emergency Declaration activates additional federal resources to support life-saving activities. These resources include coordination of federal agencies to supplement state and local efforts to ensure public health and environmental safety, and covering 75% of the cost of any federal resources used. Services provided by federal agencies may include air monitoring, plume modeling, environmental assessment, hazardous materials containment, and other public health measures as requested.

Representative Tran has called on GKN Aerospace to take full accountability for the chaos and disruption residents have experienced due to the Garden Grove hazmat crisis, known as the "Western Incident." He has spoken to GKN leadership and invited the leadership to answer directly to residents at a community meeting. Representative Tran is monitoring all possible accountability measures to ensure that an incident like this never happens again.

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