An ammonia leak occurred this Tuesday morning at the Tínima Beer Factory, in the Cuban province of Camaguey, was controlled without significant damage, according to official media reports.
The incident occurred when a safety valve tripped below its maximum working parameters, which caused a slight escape of toxic gas, according to a note published by the local newspaper Ahead.
Juan Carlos Quintana, director of the entity, told the media that “the foot valve was manipulated and closed on time” and added that taking into account the characteristics and conditions of the piece “between 30 or 40 kilograms of ammonia must have been lost. ”, a volume that he considered as “of little magnitude”.
“As always, the warning plan that is established was carried out, in case major damage occurred. We alerted the closest places such as the Máximo Gómez Joint Center and the extension of the Amalia Simoni hospital, and fortunately there were no health consequences,” Quintana added.
As a precautionary measure, 12 students from the first of these centers —formerly known as the Vocational School of Camagüey— received medical attention and were placed under observation for being allergic, although they were in good health, the provincial government disclosed in its profile. from Twitter. It was also reported that classes continued normally at that educational institution.
In perfect health, the 12 students of the @IPVCECamaguey who were transferred to @HppPina after slight ammonia leak at Fábrica de Cervezas Tínima. They received medical attention for mild symptoms and by protocol they are under observation. #CubaForPeace pic.twitter.com/MGAeSjaoG9
— Government of Camagüey (@GobCamaguey) July 12, 2022
Quintana explained that after reporting the incident, firefighters arrived immediately at the scene, as well as other personnel from the Ministry of the Interior and the Armed Forces of the territory, to provide the necessary help and analyze what happened.
According to the official report, authorities and experts investigated the causes of the event, while the industry awaited the arrival of two new certified valves, which will be reviewed by qualified personnel, for subsequent installation with a view to normalizing production later.
The information of Ahead He adds that “about a year and a half ago, the factory carried out several maintenance actions on the installation, valves were acquired and all those of the stations and chambers were purchased, as well as the evaporative condensers, in addition to rationalizing the defective pumps” .
It is not the first time that an event of this type occurs in that industry in Camagüey. Previously, other incidents have occurred that have forced students to temporarily evacuate from the nearby school and carry out control actions.
