FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 6, 2026

Chemical Incident at Royal Chemical Safely Resolved

MACEDONIA, Ohio — On Thursday, August 6, 2026, at 7:21 a.m., the Macedonia Fire Department was dispatched to Royal Chemical, located at 8735 Freeway Drive in Macedonia, for a reported chemical reaction producing white smoke.

The Macedonia Fire Department command vehicle arrived on scene at 7:24 a.m., followed shortly by a ladder truck, fire engine, and ambulance. A fire engine from Northfield Village responded as part of the initial alarm assignment. Upon arrival, first responders observed a white vapor cloud emanating from building doors and roof vent stacks; no fire or evidence of explosion was present. Company representatives advised that they believed all employees had safely evacuated and were accounted for. Firefighters conducted an interior search to verify that the building had been completely evacuated.

The Summit County Hazardous Materials (HAZMAT) Team was immediately requested, with the first HAZMAT unit arriving at 7:42 a.m.

Hudson EMS responded to provide an ambulance for medical standby, and the Macedonia Fire Department Drone Team assisted with aerial reconnaissance of the incident. The Macedonia Police Department and Service Department closed surrounding roadways to traffic. City Service Department personnel also constructed a temporary dam in a nearby drainage ditch to help contain any potentially hazardous runoff. Representatives from local utility companies and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) also responded to the scene.

Emergency responders worked in close coordination with Royal Chemical personnel to safely mitigate an accidental chemical mixture that caused the reaction.
As a precaution, a shelter-in-place advisory was issued for nearby residents early in the incident. The advisory was lifted after air monitoring and incident assessment confirmed there was no immediate threat to the surrounding community.

Emergency operations concluded shortly after 11:00 a.m. There were no injuries to emergency responders. One employee was evaluated by EMS at the scene and did not require transport.

The Macedonia Fire Department would like to thank the Summit County HAZMAT Team, Hudson EMS, Northfield Village Fire Department, the Macedonia Police Department, the Macedonia Service Department, the Ohio EPA, local utility partners, and Royal Chemical personnel for their cooperation and professionalism throughout the incident.

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