At least 15 people died when ammonia leaked from a refrigeration unit at a cold storage facility in Shanghai on Saturday.
The leak, which occurred at Weng’s Cold Storage Industrial Company in the city’s Baoshan district, is said to have left more than 20 others injured.
The cause of the incident is not yet know and investigations spearheaded by the city’s work safety bureau are under way.
Liquid ammonia is a colourless liquid commonly used in industrial sterilisation and refrigeration processes. Corrosive and volatile, the chemical can cause suffocation after heavy inhalation.
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