Hong Kong fire service launches probe after toxic and flammable gas leak affects New Territories’ residential area
- Government warns nearby residents to close windows and doors and to stay calm after leak in early hours of Sunday
- Firefighters say the gas – from styrene, used in plastics manufacture – at a very low concentration and well below danger levels
Hong Kong firefighters have launched an investigation into the cause of a leak of toxic and highly flammable gas in a suburban area of Yuen Long in the early hours of Sunday.
Nearby residents were advised to close their windows after the gas, believed to be from a liquid used in the manufacture of plastic, leaked from a storage tank on an industrial estate.
A government announcement at about 2.50am said anyone affected by the vapour and an unusual smell should “close their doors and windows and stay calm”.
Assistant Divisional Officer Lam Kwok-hung, of the department’s hazardous materials team, said the leak involved styrene monomer, a benzene-based liquid, and the cause was being investigated.
“Styrene monomer is mainly used to make plastics,” he said. “It can irritate the skin and eyes on contact. The danger is that it is highly flammable.”
But Lam highlighted that the concentration of the chemical at the scene was 1 parts per million (ppm), well below the 50 ppm level regarded as dangerous.
