Photo by JEFFREY HASTINGS Merrimack Fire Chief Michael Currier sets up a command post as Merrimack firefighters and ambulance personnel arrive at the scene of a hazmat incident Tuesday evening at 243 Daniel Webster Highway.

MERRIMACK – Roughly a dozen employees of Spraying Systems Co., a large business at 243 Daniel Webster Highway that specializes in the manufacture of specialty spray nozzles and accessories, were hospitalized early Tuesday evening after evacuating the plant due to a chemical reaction.

More than 50 other employees were treated at the scene by medical personnel, who came from several area towns to assist.

Nashua Fire Rescue’s new Special Hazards vehicle, a Pierce Heavy Duty Rescue that went into service just two months ago, was among the first fire apparatus called to the scene.

Merrimack Fire Chief Michael Currier said firefighters were initially called to check conditions at the plant, and upon arrival were told the firm had received a package from one of their vendors that wasn’t labeled correctly.

“It was not acting the way they wanted it to act,” Currier said of the material, which he described as a powder. “They weren’t sure what the material was,” he said, adding that the “unknown” prompted the evacuation of the building.

Currier said firefighters obtained data sheets “to be on the safe side,” and forwarded the information to the hospitals where the employees were taken.

He said by about 7 p.m., crews had isolated the area where employees were affected, and were in the process of checking the rest of the building for any traces of the offending material.

Founded in 1937, Spraying Systems opened in New Hampshire about 30 years ago. The firm operated in Hudson until it moved to larger quarters in Merrimack in 2018.

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