OXNARD : 3 Slightly Injured by Ammonia Fumes
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Three people were slightly injured when ammonia fumes from an Oxnard engineering company were accidentally released Sunday morning, authorities said.
Michelle Heckel, 47, of Malibu was treated and released Sunday from St. John’s Regional Medical Center, a nursing supervisor said. Her husband, Hubert Heckel, and Ervin Zirbel of Oxnard refused hospital treatment, authorities said.
About 9:05 a.m., the trio was across the street from Topanga Engineering Co. at 1021 Industrial Ave. They were preparing to go boating when a cloud of ammonia wafted in their direction from the nearby building, said Oxnard Fire Capt. Richard Elliott.
“One guy said he thought it was fog until he couldn’t breathe and then he got worried,” Elliott said.
A trailer-mounted ammonia compressor was malfunctioning and a pump was periodically releasing ammonia gas into the air, Elliott said. The storage capacity of the compressor is 300 gallons, and about 150 gallons remained in the compressor when firefighters arrived, Elliott said.
The company uses ammonia to cool a storage area for fruits and vegetables, Elliott said.
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