An ammonia leak in Oklahoma sent dozens of people to hospitals and forced an estimated 500 people to evacuate their homes and hotels early Thursday morning.
The toxic gas began leaking from a tanker truck parked behind a Holiday Inn in Weatherford around 10 p.m. Wednesday night, officials said.
“Right now, the best that we can determine is that it was either a mechanical failure with a valve or it was a faulty seal,” Weatherford Police Chief Angelo Orefice said Thursday at a press conference.
Guests at the Holiday Inn and others in the area noticed the foul smell and began coughing. Buildings in the area were swiftly evacuated, and a shelter-in-place was ordered for a large portion of the town. That order was lifted around 8 a.m. Thursday.
Four people in critical condition were flown to hospitals in Oklahoma City, about 60 miles east of Weatherford, Orefice said. Eleven people were treated for “less than critical injuries” at a local hospital in Weatherford, and 36 people had minor injuries, according to the chief.
Around 500 people in the city of 20,000 were evacuated from the area with the ammonia leak, authorities said. Public schools and a local university, Southwestern Oklahoma State, canceled classes for the day.
Ammonia is commonly used in fertilizers, but its liquid and gaseous forms can be deadly if not handled properly. Last week, another ammonia leak prompted by an explosion at a facility in Yazoo City, Miss., also forced numerous evacuations.
With News Wire Services
