Officers at the scene in California (Credit: NBC Bay Area)
A hazardous materials team investigated the spill after an employee was taken to hospital.
NBC Bay Area reported on the false alarm on Friday 17 October, which came after an office worker at a small business in Union City, California “was taken to Washington Hospital […] as a precautionary measure” after getting “bright yellow powder” on their face from opening a package.
The package delivered to the business at Dowe Business Park contained broken toner cartridges, and “after opening the package and complaining of burning eyes and a runny nose”, the employee went to hospital, with investigators and a hazardous materials team from Alameda County “respond[ing] to the scene to investigate the chemical makeup of the substance”.
The police “cleared the scene” and left within a couple of hours, having investigated the “suspicious substance” before finding it was toner powder, with officers noting that they had been called to what they referred to as a “possible hazardous materials spill”.