50,000 California residents are waiting to see if officials can keep this chemical tank from exploding

Governor Newsom declared a state of emergency following the evacuation of Garden Grove residents, in Southern California.

Water is sprayed on a damaged tank at GKN Aerospace in Garden Grove, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026, after the tank containing a chemical used to make plastic parts overheated Thursday. [Photo: Ethan Swope/AP Photo]

A damaged chemical tank in Southern California cracked over the weekend, which authorities were hopeful would relieve pressure and reduce the risk of an explosion.Some 50,000 residents in Garden Grove, a city of roughly 170,000 about 40 miles (60 kilometers) south of downtown Los Angeles, have been evacuated and are waiting for a resolution. The tank overheated Thursday and began venting vapors, leaving local and state officials scrambling to evade a worst possible scenario at the aerospace company site.No injuries have been reported.Fire officials planned to send in a team for “an all-night mission” to determine if the pressure has been relieved, which would reduce the worst-case scenario of an explosion, Orange County Fire Authority interim chief TJ McGovern said in a video posted late Sunday to the agency’s X account.“We are not there yet,” McGovern said, urging residents to stay out of the evacuation zone while crews continued operations overnight.In a follow-up update posted on X, the Orange County Fire Authority said there was one known crack on the tank, disputing reports........

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