Without informing other responders, the San Benito County Integrated Waste Management Department coordinated a hazardous materials drill in which a portion of San Juan Hollister Road was closed off near the wastewater plant.

The Integrated Waste Management Department was responsible for coordinating the drill on the road entering Hollister that drew responders from Calfire, the Hollister Fire Department and the county sheriff's office, Hollister City Manager Clint Quilter said.

Dispatchers announced a hazardous materials emergency shortly after 1 p.m. Minutes later, dispatchers reported there was a man down near propane tanks at the boundary of the Hollister wastewater treatment plant property.

Dispatchers initially reported that the city manager called in a report of an issue with propane tanks around the area. He called multiple times, dispatchers said at the time.

At the scene, firefighters pulled a man into the middle of the road and proceeded to spray him with a fire hose. After stripping the man of his clothes, it appeared as though he slowly became conscious, and responders wheeled him off into an ambulance.

After sending the man to the ambulance, responding firefighters were sprayed down with water. It was about an hour after the first report when authorities acknowledged it was just a drill.

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