Fire Department

Ladder Company 1 and Medic 2 responded to an apartment complex on the 400 block of W. Johnson Street when multiple people reported experiencing similar symptoms: Sneezing, watery eyes, and an irritated throat.

Firefighters met with three women who said they came home about two hours earlier and noticed something “peppery” in the air.

Ladder Company 1 investigated and found the irritant to be strongest in the hallway and the basement area. Upon further investigation, they located a bottle of grizzly bear repellent in a storage locker in the basement.

After ventilating the hallways and removing the bottle of bear repellant, firefighters located the owner of the bear repellant. He reported having just returned from a camping trip out west. When he got home, he accidentally dropped the bear repellent, and it shot off a small amount. Although he contacted the property company to let them know, neighbors encountered the aftermath before building management could address the concern.

Nobody was taken to the hospital.