Chemical incident sparks evacuations in north Adelaide

A chemical incident has caused chaos in north Adelaide, evacuating three businesses and sending home dozens of staff. 

Fire crews were called to Cavan Road at Dry Creek about 1:30 today after an alarm was activated at Redox supply company. 

After noticing a strong smell coming from a chemical storage area, subsequent testing confirmed a crate containing 850kg of Xanthate was overheating.

"This is quite a nasty chemical ...The toxic gasses that were released would have been fatal," Metropolitan Fire Service Commander Stuart Dawes said. 

The temperature of the crate continued to rise as firefighters in hazmat suits rushed to remove it from the warehouse before it burst into flames. 

"Obviously it could have been quite catastrophic had the palette caught fire inside the factory," Mr. Dawes said. 

The company is working with authorities to determine what caused the chemical to overheat.

"The material is in good condition, the site is in excellent order. At this stage, we have no idea what has caused the problem," SA branch manager Tony Cooper said.

Cavan Road is expected to remain closed for most of the day.