BEAVERTON -- A chemical spill at a dry cleaning business in Washington County prompted the evacuation of a strip mall on Farmington Road, just west of Beaverton, Friday morning.

Around 11 a.m., a dry cleaning employee was sprayed in the face and chest with a dry cleaning chemical, said Storm Smith, spokesman for Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue.

The employee was taken to the hospital for treatment. As a precaution, employees and patrons of four other businesses in the store complex at 17600 SW Farmington Road were asked to leave while crews determined the best way to clean up the dry cleaning chemical known as Perc.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) describes perc as a "potential occupational carcinogen."