On Saturday, around 30 women workers at a private fish processing plant in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, suffered from ammonia gas exposure, causing them to faint. The incident, believed to have been triggered by an electrical malfunction the previous night, resulted in the rupture of an ammonia cylinder within the plant situated in Pudur Pandiyapuram, Tuticorin.
The affected workers, including 16 guest workers from Odisha, experienced symptoms such as eye irritation, suffocation, and dizziness after inhaling the leaked gas. Promptly, they were evacuated to a nearby hospital for urgent medical attention.
Local authorities, including the Thalamuthu Nagar police, have initiated an investigation to ascertain the precise cause of the gas leak and to determine any negligence that may have contributed to the incident.
This unfortunate event recalls a similar incident in December of the previous year when an ammonia gas leak from the Ennore facility of Coromandel International Ltd led to the hospitalization of over 10 individuals. In response, the state government temporarily halted operations at the plant to address safety concerns.
Residents in neighboring villages, such as Periyakuppam and Chinnakuppam, also reported respiratory distress following the ammonia leak. A committee formed to investigate the incident estimated that approximately 67.638 tonnes of gas had escaped from an undersea pipeline owned by Coromandel International Limited.
