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An emergency response near the Bay State Medical Center in Springfield's North End Tuesday morning disrupted traffic through the busy noon rush hour. (George Graham./ The Republican)

Update: 1:20 p.m. Bay State Medical Center Spokesman Ben Craft reports that the substance turned out to be non-hazardous, and the scene was being cleared by first responders. An updated report will be coming on MassLive.com.

SPRINGFIELD — The discovery of an unidentified white substance prompted an emergency response near the Bay State Medical Center in Springfield's North End Tuesday morning, disrupting traffic through the busy noon rush hour.

Just after 11 a.m., an unspecified white substance found in a medical office adjacent to the hospital drew police and fire personnel to the area of Medical Center Drive, which runs between Springfield Street and Chapin Terrace near the hospital.

Traffic was diverted away from the scene and Dennis Leger, a spokesman for the Springfield Fire Department, said a person who may have been exposed to the substance was quarantined until the regional haz-mat team could arrive and investigate further.

Ben Craft, a spokesman for the hospital, said the emergency response and investigation was not impacting other aspects of the medical center's operations and that the substance was confined to a specific office space and not the public area.

Emergency personnel, at the request of the hospital's staff, moved the secure perimeter further back away form the affected area, just after noon.

On May 11, a white powder found in the Springfield police station prompted an emergency response there from a regional haz-mat team. Further investigation into that incident revealed the substance was actually a crushed up pill designated for one of the K-9 officers.

This is a developing situation and additional information will be published as it becomes available.