McIntosh, AL – A toxic gas that leaked from a chemical plant in Washington County left a worker injured and resulted in the closure of two schools.
The industrial accident occurred early Monday shortly after 6 a.m. at the Ciba Corporation plant in McIntosh.
According to Washington County Emergency Management Director Stewart Jackson, a liquid phosphorous tricholride leaked and turned into a gas cloud. The two substances are an acid that are corrosive and toxic.
Jackson said the gas cloud traveled less than a mile and dissipated. As a precaution, officials closed McIntosh Elementary and McIntosh High School and alerted residents who live within a three-mile radius of the plant.
A company spokeswoman said the injured worker was taken to a Mobile hospital for observation and was listed in stable condition. The company is investigating the cause of the leak.
The Ciba plant employs more than 500 workers and makes products for the plastics and paper industries.
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