Chemical fumes leaked from CPI (Communications and Power Industries) plant at 611 Hansen Way in Palo Alto about 1 p.m. Thursday.

The leak of nitric acid fumes from a company plant near Palo Alto’s Barron Park neighborhood last Thursday afternoon will be the subject of a "full-fledged haz-mat (hazardous materials) investigation," Palo Alto Fire Chief Nick Marinaro said late Monday.

A man installing rooftop solar panels in a neighborhood where a chemical leak was reported last week said the fumes nearly caused him to faint, despite assurances that the emission presented no health hazard.

"I was literally crawling off the roof, gasping for air."
Solar-panel installer Mark Thompson, who inhaled fumes in the Barron Park neighborhood last week due to an industrial chemical leak.

Palo Alto may sue or press criminal charges relating to a Feb. 2 chemical release at Communications & Power Industries, Inc. (CPI) that sent nitric acid fumes into the Barron Park neighborhood.

Proposed Palo Alto zoning regulations don't adequately protect nearby residents from firms that use extremely hazardous materials, a group of Barron Park residents is alleging.

A $20,000 civil-penalties and reimbursement settlement has been reached for a hazardous nitric-acid release over Barron Park last February.

On the heels of a $20,000 settlement signed last Friday between the City of Palo Alto and Communications & Power Industries, Inc., (CPI) the City Council tightened zoning regulations for hazardous materials Monday night.

A hazardous-materials company that accidentally released a cloud of chemicals over the Barron Park neighborhood last year is continuing to undergo scrutiny, both from residents and from the County of Santa Clara.

Within months, Communications and Power Industries (CPI) plans to install a hazardous-gas monitoring system and replace or relocate some of its noisiest equipment, spokeswoman Amanda Mogin said.

A plume of nitric acid spread over Barron Park in Palo Alto on Feb. 2, 2006, because of an accident at the nearby CPI company. The accident triggered concerns of neighborhood residents, the city and Santa Clara County. Now, a risk-management plan by the company to reduce the chances of future industrial accidents has been found inadequate by the Santa Clara County Department of Environmental Health, with agreement from the Palo Alto Fire Department, the first responders to such accidents.

As much as 100 gallons of hydrochloric acid spilled at Communications and Power Industries (CPI) Wednesday morning, Palo Alto Emegency Manager Barbara Cimino said late Thursday, tripling the originally estimated size of the spill.

CPI (Communication & Power Industries) leaked 40 to 50 gallons of water containing chemicals in the Palo Alto storm drain Monday morning and then into nearby Matadero Creek, according to Palo Alto Fire Marshal Dan Firth.