Up to 6,000 Gallons of Coolant Leak at xAI's Southaven Site, Some Reaching a Ditch

The volume is a preliminary estimate from the regulator. Propylene glycol is used in antifreeze, de-icers and heat-transfer fluids such as coolants, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and it is generally considered to be of low toxicity to people.

Crews built berms upstream and downstream of the affected stretch of ditch. A contractor began recovering the liquid with vacuum trucks at around 10 a.m. on Saturday, according to MDEQ. The cleanup contractor, Mid South Environmental Services, will keep recovering material and will dig up and dispose of contaminated soil along a silt fence. MDEQ emergency response staff are assisting.

The regulator said xAI, which is now part of SpaceX and is referred to in some local reports as SpaceXAI, will coordinate further cleanup and carry out periodic inspections to find and remove any remaining material. The reports did not say which of the company's Southaven sites was involved or what caused the tank to leak. Action News 5 said it had asked xAI for comment and had not received a reply when it published.

The spill adds to local scrutiny of xAI's operations in the Memphis area, where it runs large computing sites for training and serving its Grok models. Residents and environmental groups have already campaigned against the company's power generation in Southaven, including a petition calling for what organisers describe as an unpermitted power plant to be shut down.

MDEQ has not said whether it will take enforcement action over the release.