ALLENTOWN, Pennsylvania, November 6, 2026 â Five Lehigh County Authority employees were taken to hospital as a precaution after a chemical delivery mix-up at an Allentown water treatment facility on Friday, according to an incident update citing WFMZ 69 News. A precautionary shelter-in-place order affected approximately 1,300 nearby residents, the update said, citing Mayor Matt Tuerk.
Emergency crews responded around 10 a.m. to the facility on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. The five employees were expected to be okay, according to the update.
Chemical Delivery Mix-Up Reportedly Created Toxic Vapor
The update, attributing its information to WFMZ, said sodium hypochlorite was placed into the wrong tank during a delivery and mixed with polyaluminum chloride, creating a toxic vapor inside the building.
It said officials reported that the leak had been controlled and the spill was contained to the facility. No evacuations outside the facility were reported. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Lehigh County Emergency Management and emergency medical crews were assisting at the scene.
The precautionary shelter area was described as extending approximately one mile south of the facility, between 8th Street and Jefferson Street, south to Lehigh Street. A boundary map bearing the City of Allentown seal and dated November 6 outlined the area around Patriots Park and Bicentennial Park.
An official notice lifting the shelter-in-place order had not been independently verified at the time of writing.
LCA Says Drinking Water Is Unaffected
In an alert on its official website, Lehigh County Authority confirmed that its Allentown Customer Care office on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive was closed because of an emergency at the facility.
âThere is no impact to drinking water.â
Lehigh County Authority
The update citing WFMZ also said the water system had not been compromised and the treatment plant continued operating. No additional conservation request had been issued because of the incident. Further instructions would be provided if treatment operations needed to stop.
Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and surrounding side streets were expected to remain closed for several hours, according to the update. It said customer service would remain closed for the rest of Friday and asked customers not to visit the facility to pay bills.
LCA directed customers needing assistance to call 610-437-7515 or email cityservice@lcawaterworks.org.
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