Victims in a chlorine leak accident are treated at a hospital in Shanghai, March 12, 2007. The leakage affected 59 workers as they were tearing down an abandoned chemical plant at a dock along the Huangpu River. All the workers are now in stable condition.

Emergency staff guard at the chemical plant after a chlorine leakage in Shanghai, March 12. The leakage affected 59 workers as they were tearing down an abandoned chemical plant at a dock along the Huangpu River. All the workers are now in stable condition.

A group of 59 workers were poisoned by a chlorine leak from a Shanghai chemical plant early on Monday, the local government said.

The workers were dismantling a solvent plant on Nanmatou Road of Pudong District when they were sickened by a spill of remnant chlorine from some old equipment.

Fire fighters and workplace safety personnel capped the leak shortly after the accident was reported at 7:00 AM, and all the workers were hospitalized.

Eight workers were seriously poisoned and are under intensive care, said a source with Shanghai Punan Hospital.

The local work safety watchdog has started to investigate the accident.

Chlorine is a liquid under pressure but turns into a gas when released. The toxic fumes can cause respiratory problems if inhaled.

(Xinhua News Agency March 13, 2007)