"Liquid nitrogen" kills and infects more than 15 people in America

At least 5 people were killed and 10 others were injured, today, Thursday, at a food processing plant (poultry) in the US state of Georgia, following the leak of liquid nitrogen.

 Washington - Sputnik.

"We currently have five deaths that have been confirmed at the scene," said Zach Brackett, the official in charge of fire services in Hull County, during a press conference, noting that emergency personnel responded to the leak at the Prime Pack Foods plant immediately after 10 am.

In the same context, the police told reporters: "There are currently 5 confirmed deaths at the scene from the leakage of liquid nitrogen, the cause of which is unknown, and 10 people have been taken to hospital, 3 of them in intensive care."

The Associated Press quoted a spokeswoman for the Northeast Georgia Health System, Beth Downs, as saying that the five people died in the factory before they were taken to hospital and that another person died in the emergency room.

On his part, Brackett told reporters in a televised news briefing: "Once the units arrived, they found a large group of employees and were evacuated, along with many victims who were among that crowd and suffered medical emergencies around the facility."

He explained that firefighters, the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the state fire chief are investigating what happened.

Poultry plants rely on cooling systems that can contain liquid nitrogen.

Brackett added, "There has been a leak for an unknown reason in the system here. We still have a lot of information that we are trying to collect from the scene of the accident," explaining that 130 workers were taken to a nearby church where they were examined for injuries.

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