Crews respond
to Bankoh scareSix people are decontaminated
by Honolulu firefighters
Honolulu firefighters decontaminated six people after a chemical scare at Bank of Hawaii's main downtown branch that disrupted afternoon traffic for about two hours yesterday.
Bankoh officials said a teller received a loan application from a man wearing gloves who then left the building. Sometime after the teller handled the paperwork, she reported having an itching sensation on her hands.
State Department of Health tests on the paperwork were negative for any toxic substance, Fire Department spokesman Capt. Kenison Tejada said last night.
"The person who initially handled the papers transported herself to Kaiser (Medical Center on Pensacola Street)," said Tejada. "The papers were given to a security guard, and there were three other people who came in contact with the teller along with another woman who drove the teller to Kaiser.
"We had to decontaminate all those people."
The incident was reported to the Fire Department at 3:30 p.m., and Bankoh officials said they closed the bank early at 4 p.m.
Police and fire crews closed off Merchant Street, which runs behind the bank building, for about two hours to set up a decontamination area.
Four of the six people who were decontaminated were bank employees, while the other two were security guards. Two women were treated at Kaiser, while the other four people were taken to the Queen's Medical Center. All six people were treated and released.
"All of them reported some eye irritation and some hand irritation," said Emergency Medical Services District Chief Jason Kaneshiro. "But none of them had trouble breathing."
Fire Department officials said hazardous-materials crews handling the application did not notice any sort of powder or other substance on the paperwork.
State Department of Health officials took the application for additional testing at the University of Hawaii.
Bank officials said there was surveillance video of the man who handed over the paperwork.
