A fire broke out at around 5.15 p.m. on Thursday at the site of the Air Liquide France Industrie (ALFI) plant in Douai, classified as Seveso, but no injuries or toxicity were to be deplored, we learned from corroborating sources. Some 80 firefighters were dispatched to the site according to the fire and rescue service (SDIS) of the North, which reported "several explosions" on the site of this factory of the group of industrial and medical gases.
The fire is said to have started from an "explosion followed by fire due to a rupture of the hydrogen pipeline". “It's a tank truck (…) which unloaded its contents on the company's unloading docks. They were certainly in full handling when there was a rupture on a pipe connecting the truck and the tanks of the company ”, explained a spokesperson for the firefighters.
"More risk for local residents"
Two trucks parked nearby were "directly threatened by the fire" when the firefighters arrived, he said. On images broadcast around 6 p.m. on social networks, black smoke escaped from the premises of the factory, installed on the outskirts of the city of Douai, in a rural area. But at 7 p.m., no more smoke was visible according to an AFP photographer. Access to the site was blocked by the police.
"The fire is under control, it caused no casualties and there is no risk of toxicity," the prefecture told AFP. Asked by AFP, the mayor of the city Frédéric Chéreau reported "two fairly impressive explosions to the noise". "But at the present time, there is no more risk for the residents and we will therefore lift the containment and the alert," he confirmed.
“The incident will simply be managed on site with the firefighters. There is no longer any risk for the residents and it seems that the material damage is limited ”, he insisted. He had earlier broadcast a message on social networks, asking residents not to leave their homes until further notice.
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- Society
- Firefighters
- Douai
- Fire
- Seveso