Related News
Ammonia leak damages nearby crops
By Tao Yingcen |
July 18, 2011, Monday
|
Online Edition
Online Edition
A massive leak of a pungent gas was reported in a food processing plant in Hubei Province yesterday afternoon, causing no injuries but having serious impact on farmland crops nearby.
About 300 kilograms of liquid ammonia, which turned to vapor when it became exposed to the air, was estimated to have escaped from a refrigeration workshop of the Yuanxiang Food Company in Wuhan, capital of Hubei, the Wuhan Evening News reported yesterday.
Hundreds of residents living near to the company said that they were suddenly engulfed in a pungent smell which made them shed tears, at about 11am yesterday. Seeing the factory clouded by white smog, residents fled in the opposite direction. It was not until they were one kilometer away that the strength of the smell eased, the newspaper said.
Emergency rescuers cut off the ammonia supply and cordoned off a 500-meter area around the factory. The leak was put under control at about 4pm after firefighters sprayed water to offset the chemical's contamination of the environment, according to the local authority.
But hours of exposure to the ammonia has left masses of dead insects scattered along road sides. Crops in a 100-meter range were reported to suffer from losing leaves and even withering.
Initial checks found that the chemical leak came from aging pipelines, part of which had corroded. But work safety officials are still investigating the cause.
.
About 300 kilograms of liquid ammonia, which turned to vapor when it became exposed to the air, was estimated to have escaped from a refrigeration workshop of the Yuanxiang Food Company in Wuhan, capital of Hubei, the Wuhan Evening News reported yesterday.
Hundreds of residents living near to the company said that they were suddenly engulfed in a pungent smell which made them shed tears, at about 11am yesterday. Seeing the factory clouded by white smog, residents fled in the opposite direction. It was not until they were one kilometer away that the strength of the smell eased, the newspaper said.
Emergency rescuers cut off the ammonia supply and cordoned off a 500-meter area around the factory. The leak was put under control at about 4pm after firefighters sprayed water to offset the chemical's contamination of the environment, according to the local authority.
But hours of exposure to the ammonia has left masses of dead insects scattered along road sides. Crops in a 100-meter range were reported to suffer from losing leaves and even withering.
Initial checks found that the chemical leak came from aging pipelines, part of which had corroded. But work safety officials are still investigating the cause.
.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
