PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Firefighters in Portland have rescued a man found in his bathroom with severe chemical burns on more than 70 percent of his body.


Portland Fire and Rescue spokesman Paul Corah says the 59-year-old man arrived home Friday from a week-long, out of town job. He reportedly called his wife to say he was going to try to get some grease stains out of his coat.

His wife came home Friday evening to an overwhelming odor like paint thinner. She found her husband in a bathtub soaked with what seemed to be a solvent-based chemical.

Paramedics found the man semi-conscious. Corah says they held their breath until they could move him out to the fresh air in the front yard and provide first aid.

Portland firefighter and paramedic David Paul says he and other medics wore gas masks in the ambulance while riding with the patient to the Oregon Burn Center.

Hazmat firefighters are working to identify the chemical.


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Fire Department HazMat units spent several hours at the Balducci's supermarket on Old Dominion Drive Monday afternoon trying to contain a grease spill.

Capt. Keith Cross of the fire department explained that the underground grease holding tank at the supermarket clogged up causing it to overflow into the parking lot and more importantly into the storm drain.

That called for an environmental cleanup because the storm drain carried the grease out to McLean Drive and a small pond and creek there, Capt. Cross said.

Tulsa Police, Fire and HAZMAT are busy Monday morning cleaning up a large grease spill on Tulsa's north side.

According to Tulsa Fire, a truck loaded with cooking grease, headed for recycling,  spilled out are large amount of grease along Apache Street.

Two locations have been affected.  Apache at North Sheridan and on Apache at Erie.

At last check HAZMAT crew were able to clean up a good portion of the grease spill but are now having to wait on a steam cleaner to arrive to power clean the roadway.