Serbia: A state of emergency declared in Pirot, 51 people hospitalized after a tank overturned and ammonia leaked

On the section of the railway from Pirot to the village of Staničenja near the place of Sopotski han, a carriage on a freight train carrying ammonia slipped tonight, causing a gas leak and a high concentration of ammonia in the air.

As reported by RTS, 51 people were hospitalized, and seven people were transferred to the Niš University Clinical Center.

The people of Pirot are in fear, nobody leaves the house, said journalist Nenad Paunović, owner of the Pirot Plus Online portal, reports N1.

Around 19.30:XNUMX p.m., the entire second shift at the Tigar tires factory was evacuated and all workers were sent home.

Paunović said that in the 30-kilometer stretch from Bela Palanka to Pirot, a strong smell of ammonia can be felt, and that the visibility is so poor that some cars ran off the road.

"It's like you're in a tunnel without lights," describes Paunović.

Due to low visibility, as he points out, road routes are also closed, so that you cannot leave Pirot, nor can you enter the city. The only alternative direction, he says, is through the village of Ponor.

"The people of Piroć are in fear, no one is leaving the house," Paunović points out and adds that around 19.30:XNUMX p.m. the entire second shift at the Tigar tires factory was also evacuated and all workers were sent home.

Paunović, referring to information from the reception department of the General Hospital in Pirot, said that four ambulance teams are on the ground, that people complaining of ammonia poisoning are constantly being brought in, and that all available personnel have been engaged.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Serbia previously announced that around 17.30:XNUMX p.m., on the section of the railway from Pirot to the village of Stanicenje, near the place Sopotski han, a wagon on a freight train carrying ammonia gas slipped, and on that occasion a gas leak occurred. and large concentrations of gas into the atmosphere.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Serbia appealed to citizens living nearby not to leave their homes and not to go outside.

Also, the traffic between Pirot and Bela Palanka on the highway and main road is interrupted due to low visibility, and the alternative route is through the village of Ponor.