Two firefighters were treated for respiratory issues and an apartment building was evacuated as first responders and a bomb squad responded to a hazardous materials situation in Hudson, Massachusetts, on Thursday.
Hudson police said the call came in just before 11 a.m. for a hazmat situation at 307 Central St.
"They came to my door with their masks on, the fire department started knocking," Janice Howard said.
"The fire alarms went off and we waited a few minutes to see if it was real or not and then we saw everybody going out so we followed them and evacuated," Karen Sullivan said. "You just roll with the punches."
The two firefighters were getting off the elevator on the third floor to respond to a general alarm box call when they succumbed to an unknown odor. They were taken to a local hospital for evaluation, but are expected to be OK.
"The investigation has just begun on this," Hudson Fire Chief John Blood said. "We don't expect to be hit with chemicals when we walk off an elevator, so this caught them off guard, so they did inhale which gave them some respiratory problems."
After the firefighters were hospitalized, the entire 5-story apartment building was evacuated. It's unclear how many people were affected, and officials are still determining where to take them as they assess the situation.
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Hazmat crews are still determining what made the firefighters ill.
"We are continuing to investigate who was in the area, and what activities may have been taking place," State Fire Marshal Peter Ostroskey said.
Aerial footage from Sky Ranger showed what appeared to be a residential complex, with numerous emergency vehicles outside.
