Byron, Illinois — Three workers were exposed to hydrazine Thursday morning at the Byron Clean Energy Center, two days after a separate chemical exposure sent multiple workers to hospitals.
The incident occurred at the nuclear facility located at 4450 North German Church Road, according to officials familiar with the situation.
Hydrazine, a chemical commonly used in power plant systems to control corrosion in boilers and steam systems, can be hazardous if inhaled or absorbed through the skin.
Details about the extent of the workers’ exposure and their medical conditions were not immediately released Thursday.
The report comes just two days after 18 workers were evaluated at hospitals Tuesday evening following exposure to another chemical inside the plant’s turbine building.
In that earlier incident, Constellation Generation said a small amount of a non-radiological chemical escaped from a holding tank shortly before 6 p.m., sending eight outage workers to hospitals as a precaution while ten others sought medical evaluation on their own.
Company officials said the Tuesday leak was quickly contained and did not pose a risk to the public.
Thursday’s hydrazine exposure raises renewed questions about chemical safety procedures during ongoing maintenance and outage operations at the facility.
The Byron Clean Energy Center is located in Ogle County, about 30 miles southwest of Rockford and roughly 100 miles west of Chicago.
Officials have not said whether the two incidents are related. Investigations into the exposures and workplace safety procedures are ongoing.
The plant remains operational, and no off-site impacts have been reported.
Workers and residents in surrounding communities continue to monitor developments following the back-to-back incidents at the facility.
