Ammonia leak in central Bangkok sickens hundreds
More than 1,000 people were evacuated and hundreds sent to hospital after an ammonia leak at a cold-storage warehouse in central Bangkok early yesterday morning.
The leak occurred at Yoo Yong Pattana warehouse in Bang Kho Laem district at about 1.20am. About 80 people fainted after breathing ammonia fumes and about 300 were sent to nearby hospitals. All have since been discharged. Bangkok Governor Apirak Kosayodhin said the warehouse - which provides cold storage for imported produce, such as Shitake mushrooms - would not be allowed to re-open until inspections showed it was safe. Officials said the leak came from a pipe connecting the storage facilities to an underground ammonia tank. The pipe was worn, they said. It took them three hours to find the right valve to turn off the flow of ammonia, they said. There was just one technician on duty at the warehouse at the time of the leak, police said. They are still investigating and will determine whether carelessness was responsible for the leak, said Major Wattanakorn Ounnak of Wat Phraya Krai Police Station. Bang Kho Laem district office deputy director Aree Wongnopparatlert said the company and warehouse were properly licensed. A senior official at the Pollution Control Department, Sumetha Wichienpetch, said the air quality around the warehouse would return to normal by last night as ammonia disperses quickly.
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