NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Officials said 26 people were taken to the hospital after a building was evacuated in Metro Center.
Workers at the Metro Exchange building on Vantage Way complained of headaches around 9:30 a.m. Thursday. The building houses CGS Administrators.
HazMat and other emergency crews responded to the scene, originally thinking it could be a carbon monoxide leak; however, officials said they have found no sign of a chemical inside the building.
Kim Lawson with the Nashville Fire Department said that some of the first patients at the hospital have now tested positive for carbon monoxide.
"There is not carbon monoxide in this building that we have detected at all. So, what ever happen was a temporary period of time. The issue becomes why that happened," said Lawson.
The building has since reopened and management is working to get carbon monoxide monitors inside the building. An employee spokesperson said they plan to continue to monitor the situation.
CGS Administrators released this statement as well:
"Based on the
recommendation of emergency officials, we evacuated portions of our corporate
headquarters in MetroCenter after a number of employees reported various
medical concerns. Air monitoring results do not indicate any threat to public
health inside the building. Employees have reentered the building and are
getting back to work. We'll continue to monitor the situation and work with
first responders to ensure the health and safety of our valued employees."
The building is not far from the site of a massive propane tank fire that was ablaze for approximately 2 and a half hours on Thursday morning. Fire officials, however, said they do not believe these illnesses are related to the fire.
