Nexstar Station Hiding Behind the Fumes

Just over a week ago, FTVLive told you that viewers tuning into the start of Nexstar’s KTXL (Sacramento) a week and a half ago heard Anchor Nikki Laurenzo coughing and having difficulty reading her scripts.

A station employee told FTVLive that, “Many started smelling chemicals in the last half hour of our 6 pm show. It just kept getting stronger and stronger. By the 7 pm show the odor had reached the control room and studio and employees were coughing non stop, their eyes were watering and some said they were feeling light headed.”

Laurenzo was taken off the air as she was having difficulty with the fumes, shortly after that, the station scrubbed the newscast and put on an episode of Two and a Half Men.

Since then station employees have been asking what were the fumes that was making many sick?

Insiders tell FTVLive that the employees have had trouble getting answers from station management. Sources tell FTVLive that on Thursday, OSHA made a visit to the station. 

“The GM had a meeting with the staff to tell us what she learned and what the substance was, but wouldn’t say the name. People asked at the end of the meeting what it was, she wouldn’t say and told us she would be sending an email out after the meeting with a name and picture of the product. That didn’t happen and we did not get the promised email Friday either,” said one station insider.

The union was notified about the trouble getting information, and the union sent out this email to their members.

“Hello.

I’m on my day off, but wanted to share that I received a call from the calosha investigator, into last week’s exposure.

The exposure was to XYLENE, more commonly used as a paint solvent, from what little I know.

Considered non-toxic, unless you surpass the exposure limit, ranging anywhere from 15 mins. to 8 hrs., depending on how much is present.

Gleaned from my brief convo, so better to read up on Xylene.

This link was shared from CalOsha:

https://www.rustoleum.com/MSDS/ENGLISH/241758.pdf

By tomorrow afternoon, I will send additional details via members’ emails.

But wanted to share this info now.

Thanks,
Ro.”