Sanitation worker injured by chemical

A hazardous materials incident sent one sanitation worker to the hospital Friday morning.

A Groot Industries employee had a corrosive chemical splash in his eyes while disposing of the substance shortly after 10 a.m. outside a residence on the 1400 block of Fulton Avenue in southeast Winthrop Harbor, Assistant Fire Chief Joe Beetschen said. The man was treated and released from Vista Medical Center in Waukegan.

Hazardous materials crews from Lake and Kenosha counties evacuated six homes and closed the block until 4 p.m., Beetschen said. They found more potentially unstable chemicals in the detached garage, but nothing was illegal.

Beetschen said the garage was sealed and that the homeowner will work with the Environmental Protection Agency to properly dispose of the chemicals.