Hazardous substance prompts evacuation of Hong Kong restaurant in West Warwick
by KATIE BENOIT, NBC 10 NEWS
WEST WARWICK, R.I. (WJAR) — A Chinese restaurant in West Warwick had to be evacuated on Wednesday night.
West Warwick firefighters responded the Hong Kong restaurant for a smoke alarm.
Some of them had to be taken to the hospital after they got sick.
Everyone was OK, but Cranston firefighters were also called in to help.
Firefighters said there was some type of fumigation going on inside the restaurant.
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As part of the protocol, the Cranston fire hazmat team was called in.
Firefighters were dressed in suits and masks while they tested samples from inside Hong Kong using special machines.
Coventry fire was also called in case anything went wrong.
Cranston Battalion Chief Jeffrey Rinfrette said there were some language barriers during the response.
He told NBC 10 News that the foreign substance found was not harmful, but more testing will be done on Thursday.
“They are taking it back to DEM. They are going to do sampling in the morning to truly evaluate it. There are a lot of Chinese products that come in that we don’t necessarily have in the United States. They have a much better tool to analyze it and get more specific on the ingredients,” Rinfrette said.
It’s unclear if the restaurant will be open Thursday or if police will get involved with the investigation.
All firefighters were released from the hospital.