# Breaking: toxic gas leak in Orange County imminent: 40,000 ordered to evacuate: Breaking news, 2026-05-23

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-toxic-gas-leak-in-orange-county-imminent-40-000-ordered-to-evacuate-breaking-news-2026-05-23/1030327>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Tags:** breaking-news\
**Created:** [May 23, 2026, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-toxic-gas-leak-in-orange-county-imminent-40-000-ordered-to-evacuate-breaking-news-2026-05-23/1030327 "2026-05-23T04:52:06Z")\
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**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2026, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-toxic-gas-leak-in-orange-county-imminent-40-000-ordered-to-evacuate-breaking-news-2026-05-23/1030327/28 "2026-05-23T14:07:53Z")

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Nobody is saying it but, the major concern is that Orange County (probably) has the highest number of lawyers per square mile than any residential area in the world. As soon as they get a whiff of that chemical in their own backyards, the resulting flood of lawsuits will make the Great Molasses Flood look like a leaky bathtub.

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