By Hugh Cameron and Anna Skinner
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Disneyland officials told Newsweek that the Anaheim resort in Orange County, California, remains fully operational and unaffected by an ongoing hazardous materials crisis just miles away. In an email on Sunday, officials stated that the parks remain open to guests, even as emergency crews scramble to contain a volatile chemical tank.
The resort is also actively supporting cast members who have been impacted by the surrounding evacuation orders.
“We are actively monitoring the situation and taking guidance from local authorities,” Disneyland said in a statement published on its website. “The Disneyland Resort is approximately five miles from the incident and is not in the identified evacuation zone.”
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According to the Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA), a pressurized storage tank at a GKN Aerospace facility in Garden Grove is currently at risk of either leaking or exploding. Emergency officials have warned that both potential outcomes present a “highly toxic” threat to surrounding communities.
The industrial facility sits just a few miles from some of Southern California's premier tourist attractions, including Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm. OCFA Division Chief Nick Freeman emphasized the severity of the threat, noting that an explosion could result in “severe structural damage and significant harm” for any areas caught within the blast radius.
Despite the proximity, updated evacuation maps released by Orange County officials confirm the theme park remains safely outside the active evacuation and blast zones.
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What Is Happening in Orange County?
California Governor Gavin Newsom has declared a state of emergency in response to the incident, mobilizing “every state resource available” to assist Orange County officials as they pursue a resolution to the crisis, which began Thursday afternoon. On Sunday, he wrote on X that his office has "requested that President Trump issue an emergency declaration to support response operations" in the county.
According to officials, the emergency was triggered when a 34,000-gallon tank of methyl methacrylate—a highly flammable chemical utilized in plastics manufacturing—overheated and began leaking, prompting a massive, multi-agency response.
While the leak has since been contained and crews attempted to cool the tank on Friday, officials warned they may be running out of options to prevent a catastrophic failure.
"This thing is going to fail, and we don't know when,” OCFA Division Chief Craig Covey said during a press conference on Friday. “We're doing our best to figure out when or how we can prevent it," he said, explaining the current outcomes were narrowed down to letting the tank fail and spill thousands of gallons of toxic chemicals into the area, or waiting for a potential explosion.
However, during a Saturday briefing, Covey indicated that emergency agencies are evaluating alternative mitigation strategies, including external cooling methods to lower the tank's internal pressure, noting he was now “optimistic.”
"Letting this thing just fail and blow up is unacceptable to us," he said. "Our goal is to find something and not allow that to happen."
Meanwhile, mandatory evacuation orders remain in place for approximately 50,000 residents. Multiple emergency shelters have been established outside the impact zone to accommodate those displaced by the ongoing crisis.
Which Areas Are at Risk?
Residents and commuters are being strongly urged to avoid the designated evacuation zone, which spans from Ball Road to Trask Avenue and from Dale Street to Valley View Street. Authorities continue to advise the public to closely monitor updates from state and local emergency agencies. In a recent briefing, the OCFA noted that continuous air quality monitoring has not yet detected hazardous levels of contaminants in the surrounding atmosphere.
The hazardous materials incident is located approximately six miles from Disneyland and four miles from Knott’s Berry Farm. While blast zone maps released by officials indicate that several residential neighborhoods remain at risk, emergency personnel have confirmed that the region's major entertainment venues are secure.
OCFA Captain Steve Concialdi assured KTLA 5 News that neither attraction nor Angel Stadium is in jeopardy should the tank suffer a catastrophic failure.
“No threat to Disneyland, Angel Stadium or Knott’s Berry Farm,” Concialdi said.
A spokesperson for Knott's Berry Farm told CBS Los Angeles that the amusement park will remain open, noting a dedicated safety team has been mobilized to assist guests should an unexpected emergency arise.
GKN Aerospace Faces Class-Action Lawsuit and District Attorney Investigation
GKN Aerospace, the company which owns the facility where the leak occurred, is now facing a class action lawsuit over the matter, as well as an investigation from Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer.
On Saturday, Spitzer told CBS News the probe would look into “whether or not this particular company has been derelict in its duties to protect the public,” and said that his office was inviting GKN employees to come forward to share any information they have.
"When we launch an investigation and we get to the bottom of what happened and why the system failed, if you haven't come forward, you're not gonna be treated the same as if you come forward early and you tell us what you know," he said.
A spokesperson for GKN Aerospace told the Los Angeles Times in a statement on Friday that “there are no reports of injuries at this time, and our priority remains the safety of our employees, responders, and the surrounding community,” adding that the "situation at our Garden Grove site remains ongoing, and we are fully focused on working with emergency services and the relevant authorities to ensure the safety of our employees and the local community.”
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