Toxic chemical spill; 1,700 workers evacuated

Thousands of gallons of a highly toxic and flammable chemical, acrylo-nitrile , leaked from a broken pipe at a goodyear Tire & Rubber Company plant into the Little Cuyahoga River. Some 1,700 rubber workers were evacuated from nearby factories and at least six people were injured.

An estimated 8,000 to 12,000 gallons of the chemical, used in tiremaking, drained into ditches and finally into the river, which empties into Lake Erie, Akron fire officials said. Goodyear officials say they do not know when the leak occurred or what caused it.