UVA reports hazardous materials situation on grounds at chemistry building

University of Virginia officials are asking everyone to avoid the area surrounding the UVA Chemistry Building on McCormick Road in Charlottesville.

The alert, shared on Facebook, X, and the university website, says it is a hazardous materials incident.

The building has been evacuated.

A statement from UVA Police says the evacuation was “a safety precaution while a team of professionals worked to extract an inadvertent, potentially hazardous mixture of chemicals from one of the facility’s labs.

“The lab was immediately isolated and the building was closed on Thursday afternoon. Once the hazardous materials team removes and relocated the material for proper disposal, evacuees will be permitted to safely reenter the building.”