PORTLAND (WGME) -- For the second day in a row, mysterious purple vapor is once again billowing from the smoke stack at Ecomaine's waste management facility in Portland.
The purple vapor was spotted on Thursday and again on Friday.
Ecomaine and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection are investigating, but Ecomaine says they believe this was caused from burning trash that contained iodine.
The CDC says if it's inhaled or comes in contact with the eyes or skin, iodine vapor can be an irritant and may cause stomach pain. Long term exposure could lead to insomnia, inflammation of the eyes and nose, bronchitis, tremors, rapid heartbeat, diarrhea, and weight loss.
Ecomaine says employees first noticed the colorful vapor around 9:30 a.m. on Thursday. They soon stopped feeding trash into the burner and say within two and a half hours, they were back to normal operations.
Mysterious purple vapor was coming out of ecomaine's trash to energy waste facility Thursday, leaving many wondering what it was. (WGME)
Ecomaine said on Friday they believe it is still iodine and are taking steps to address it.
Ecomaine says they burn 170,000 tons of trash a year, and in a virtual tour video on their website, Ecomaine says with the exception of car batteries, large appliances, fluorescents or other items they can't or shouldn't burn, Ecomaine burns almost anything that comes into their facility
Ecomaine says this incident should serve as a reminder to make sure your trash is disposed of properly.
