A number of people have died and several others have suffered serious injuries after a chemical leak at a plant in the northwestern US state of Washington, officials said on Tuesday, AFP reported.
A tank containing a substance known as white liquor burst at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company in Longview, around an hour north of Portland on the Washington–Oregon border, according to a joint statement from the company and Longview Fire Department.
Preliminary information showed that the rupture caused multiple critical injuries, the statement said. Officials also confirmed deaths linked to the incident.
The statement did not disclose the exact number of dead or injured. It also said there was no threat to the public.
The Seattle Times, citing firefighting officials, reported that 10 people were injured. They included nine company employees and one firefighter. The injuries ranged from minor to critical.
White liquor is a highly alkaline solution containing sodium hydroxide and sodium sulphide. It is used in paper manufacturing to break down wood chips during the early stages of pulp production.
Nippon Dynawave Packaging is a subsidiary of Japan’s Nippon Paper Group. The company states on its website that it produces eight billion single-serve containers each year and supplies customers across North America, Asia and other regions.
The incident in Washington came as around 16,000 people remained evacuated in Orange County in California after a separate chemical emergency.
Firefighters there have worked since Friday to cool a 7,000-gallon tank of methyl methacrylate. The chemical had threatened to explode and release toxic fumes over a heavily populated area near Disneyland.
Authorities said on Sunday that the risk of a large explosion had been removed. However, efforts continued to stabilise the tank owned by Britain-based GKN Aerospace.
