Chemical spill in southern China injures 90
( 2001-05-27 16:32 ) (9 )

Rescue members in gas mask try to drag the injured from a house where a chemical spill at a closed dye factory in Zhanjiang city, Guangdong Province injured more than 90 people after they inhaled toxic fumes. A tank holding two tons of nearly pure sulphuric acid ruptured around midday on Saturday, mixing with rain and sending a poisonous white cloud into the air. [chinadaily.com.cn]

A chemical spill at a closed dye factory in China's southern province of Guangdong injured 90 people after they inhaled toxic fumes.

A tank holding two tons of nearly pure sulphuric acid ruptured around midday on Saturday, mixing with rain and sending a poisonous white cloud into the air over Zhanjiang city, it said.

Zhanjiang is located north of the island province of Hainan in the southwestern part of Guangdong.

The local government called in 30 members of a naval chemical warfare unit to clean up the spill, the report said. The soldiers dug a hole to contain the spill and neutralised the acid with caustic soda, it said.

The accident occurred at the Crown Chemical Works Co, a plant five km (3 miles) from the city centre, which was shut down in 1997, the report said.

The spill was now under control but some of the injured were still in serious condition, the report said.