Chennai: Another worker died on Tuesday, taking the toll from Sunday’s ammonia gas leak at a seafood processing unit in Tiruvallur district to nine — all of them women. The identity of one of the deceased is yet to be confirmed.By 7am, one more person from Assam, Anjila Soren, had died, and the number under active treatment had fallen to 69, the health department bulletin said. Of the dead, seven were from Odisha and two from Assam. At least 29 people from Odisha, 19 from Assam and eight from Jharkhand remain hospitalised. The state of origin of four more patients is yet to be confirmed.The leak was reported at 7 am on June 21 at St. Peter and Paul Seafood Exports Pvt Ltd in Kannigaipair village, Tiruvallur district, during routine operations. Workers presented with breathlessness, eye irritation, coughing and chest discomfort — all consistent with ammonia intoxication.Women were the most affected because their dormitories were inside the premises, unlike men, who were a few yards away from the unit. “This is why all dead and most of those who are seriously ill are women,” a doctor at the Vels Medical College and Hospital said.“Ammonia does not just choke — it burns the airways from the inside, from the throat all the way down to the deepest air sacs,” said a pulmonologist at RGGGH. Most patients have fluid in the lungs and develop acute respiratory distress syndrome. “There is no drug that reverses this. The ventilator is the only thing keeping these patients alive,” he said.To come off a ventilator, a patient must be able to breathe deeply enough on their own to keep oxygen levels stable. “With ammonia-burned lungs, many simply cannot do that for weeks. Even after being weaned off the ventilator, patients may need oxygen support for some time,” he said. An infectious diseases team is working with intensivists to ensure patients do not develop complications from secondary infections.The health department has called for continuous surveillance of exposed workers for delayed respiratory complications. Occupational health and safety audits of similar industrial facilities across Tiruvallur district and a review of emergency response protocols have also been recommended.
