Nerve agent spills at Indiana facility

VX liquid can kill healthy adult with single pinpoint droplet
About 30 gallons of a liquid containing a deadly Cold War-era nerve agent spilled at an Indiana chemical weapons depot, but it was safely contained in a sealed area and no one was injured, the Army said Saturday.

The spill occurred Friday night at the Newport Chemical Agent Destruction Facility, where more than 250,000 gallons of the agent VX are stored. VX is a liquid with the consistency of mineral oil that can kill a healthy adult with a single pinpoint droplet.

The spill happened during a process to destroy the nerve agent by converting it into a caustic chemical called hydrolysate. The facility has destroyed nearly 2,900 gallons of VX since the process started a month ago, the Army said. The neutralization process is expected to take more than two years.

Workers would try to determine what caused the valve to leak Friday night and how to fix it, said Army spokeswoman Terry Arthur.

"No agent was released outside the containment area and there was no danger to workers or to the community," the Army said.

Employees in protective gear were working Saturday to clean up any surface that the liquid touched.

The Army wants to transport the hydrolysate -- which has been compared to liquid drain cleaner -- to a DuPont plant in New Jersey for treatment and disposal in the Delaware River. The plan has sparked opposition in New Jersey and Delaware.