Freon Leak At Littleton Sam's Club Brings Out The Big Fans

LITTLETON, CO -- A refrigerant leak at the Sam's Club in Littleton led to the store being evacuated Wednesday afternoon while emergency crews ventilated the building. South Metro Fire Department and Littleton Fire Rescue responded around 4:45 p.m. to the store at Quebec Boulevard and C-470.

First responders used a powerful fan to ventilate the store to blow away vapors from the freon leak.

"'Fan 3' forces 750,000 CFM (cubic feet per minute) of air, compared to a normal residential ceiling fan that moves only 4,000 to 6,000 CFM," tweeted SMFD's public information officer.

Both agencies had the store ventilated by evening.

The two agencies will soon be melding into one when Littleton Fire Rescue is dissolved and becomes part of the South Metro district in 2019. Dispatchers have already merged, starting Jan. 1 of this year.

The boundaries of South Metro surround Littleton on three sides: Wadsworth on the west, Chatfield Avenue on the south and Holly Street on the east, approximately 30 square miles. It owns stations 13, 14, 15 and one-third of station 16.

Image via South Metro Fire District Twitter