Weatherford, Oklahoma — Hundreds of residents were evacuated Wednesday night after a tanker truck leaking anhydrous ammonia spewed a large plume of toxic gas across part of Weatherford, sending dozens of people to local hospitals and prompting widespread shelter-in-place orders. Officials said the leak began shortly before 10 p.m. in a hotel parking lot, with people in the immediate area experiencing respiratory distress within minutes.
City officials said at least 36 people were hospitalized, with 11 transferred to other facilities for further treatment. By Thursday morning, between 500 and 600 people were relocated to emergency shelters as several nursing homes were evacuated and schools across the area announced closures. Businesses within a designated triangle-shaped hazard zone were advised to remain closed.
Evacuated resident Krystal Blackwell told local media that emergency crews in gas masks knocked on doors to warn people. “It was a little crazy to wake up to,” she said.
Authorities said air-quality monitoring is underway and that the tanker truck is no longer actively leaking, though calm weather slowed the dissipation of the gas. Hazmat teams and an Oklahoma National Guard emergency-support unit responded, and the Interstate 40 exit into Weatherford was temporarily shut down.
Anhydrous ammonia, commonly used as a fertilizer, can cause severe burns in gas or liquid form. A similar ammonia incident last week in Yazoo City, Mississippi, also triggered evacuations.
Weatherford, home to about 12,000 residents, is located roughly 70 miles west of Oklahoma City.
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