New Zealand: chemical incident near Parliament

A chemical incident occurred near New Zealand’s Parliament on Tuesday, April 22, forcing emergency services to close part of Wellington’s city centre and deploy multiple fire trucks. The incident happened in Bowen Street, where smoke was observed from a building around 1.25 pm. According to Fire and Emergency New Zealand, the smoke was caused by a reaction between two hazardous chemical substances. After the alarm was raised, authorities immediately closed half of Bowen Street and deployed fire engines and specialist units to the scene, including a Hazardous Materials (Hazmat) control unit. Police assisted by diverting traffic at key intersections in the area. The reaction stopped after emergency responders reached the site, but the affected building was evacuated and ventilated. No injuries were reported during or after the incident. Authorities continue to monitor the situation and are looking into the causes of the incident. They will provide updates as more information becomes available.