WEBSTER, TX – According to local authorities, More than a dozen construction workers had to be hospitalized following an improper mix of pool chemicals at the newly opened Great Wolf Lodge Water Park in Webster, Texas. This incident occurred on Wednesday, the grand opening day of the indoor water park complex, located approximately 25 miles southeast of Houston.
Webster Fire Department crews were dispatched to address reported breathing problems caused by a chemical reaction within the pool house, which is detached from the central hotel and water park facilities. Fire Chief Dean Spencer elaborated that a contractor’s incorrect mixture of sodium hypochlorite and sulfuric acid led to this hazardous chemical event.
Footage from Houston’s ABC affiliate KTRK displayed numerous ambulances at the scene. Fire Chief Spencer confirmed that 16 individuals, comprising employees and contractors working in the immediate vicinity, had to be transported to a hospital, with some purely as a precautionary measure. Officials from the City of Webster added that five individuals successfully escaped the building.
Spencer assured that the chemical issue was swiftly resolved, and at no point were the hotel or water park threatened by this occurrence. Construction crews from the contractor Hawkins had been concluding their work on the property, which encompasses 532 guest suites, a 92,000-square-foot indoor water park, a 61,000-square-foot adventure park, and nearly 15 dining and retail outlets.
With the aid of an environmental company, Great Wolf Lodge and the contractor are collaboratively working to carry out the secure cleaning of the affected tanks. Webster city officials, in an official release, confirmed that the incident would not disrupt the lodge’s operations on Wednesday.