2023-06-28 06:40:25
After the escape of ammonia on a company site near Ortenburg in the district of Passau, the emergency services can mostly give the all-clear. This was reported by the Passau district office on Wednesday morning.
More measurements will follow
According to the police headquarters in Lower Bavaria, the fire brigade rendered the ammonia harmless with extinguishing water. A specialist company had to seal a pipe. This made it possible to stop the leak at a feed manufacturer in the Sammarei district. All warnings to keep windows and doors closed and not to be outdoors have therefore been lifted, authorities said.
During the day, the emergency services will take measurements in the area. According to the current status, there is no longer any danger to the population. However, should citizens in the Sammarei area and the surrounding area experience anything unusual, they should call the emergency number for the fire brigade and rescue service or the police.
Ammonia leak: cause still unclear – several people injured
Emergency services evacuated around 50 employees on Tuesday. So far, eight people have been hospitalized, said a police spokesman. Five of them might have left the hospital following initial care. 30 people were not allowed to spend the night in their apartments.
How the ammonia might escape is still unclear. According to a spokesman for the Vilshofen police, there is a reasonable suspicion that an employee of an external company cut a pipe during installation work. However, that cannot be said with certainty, since not all of the company’s locations are safe for the investigators to enter. A defect in a line cannot be ruled out either.
Far-reaching danger zone
According to the police, the danger area extended to Pocking and to the Austrian border to Schärding. On Tuesday around 5 p.m., the first measurements were taken in the Ortenburg area to determine whether the all-clear might be given. In the meantime, up to 190 emergency services were involved.
According to the Federal Environment Agency, ammonia is a gaseous nitrogen compound. It spreads in the air, reacts with other air pollutants and forms fine dust. Ammonia itself and the fine dust particles formed in the air therefore endanger human health and damage plants and ecosystems.
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