At least 44 people were hospitalised after an ammonia leak from a pipeline belonging to Coromandel International (CORF.NS) near its Ennore plant in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, hospital sources said on Wednesday.
“We noticed abnormality on December 26 at 11:30 p.m. local time (1800 GMT) in the ammonia unloading subsea pipeline near shoreside, outside the plant premises,” Coromandel said in an exchange filing earlier in the day.
Forty-four people were rushed to Akash Hospital in Chennai, two hospital officials told Reuters, on condition of anonymity, as they were not authorised to talk to the media.
Six others were admitted to Stanley Medical College and Hospital near Ennore, local media reported earlier, quoting Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma. Subramanian.
The Tamil Nadu government said in a statement that the leak took place when Coromandel’s fertiliser manufacturing unit was preparing to receive an ammonia shipment through its 2.5 kilometre-long (1.5 mile) undersea pipeline.