1 woman dead after 1,800 gallons of ammonia leak near chemical distribution facility in SC

Official: 1 woman dead after ammonia leak in SC

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina authorities say a woman was killed and a half-dozen people taken to a hospital after 1,800 gallons of ammonia leaked from a tanker truck.

Department of Health and Environmental Control spokesman Thom Berry says a truck was unloading ammonia at Tanner Industries in Lexington County in central South Carolina on Wednesday when a hose ruptured.

Berry says the ammonia quickly evaporated, creating a cloud that drifted across a nearby highway. Thirty-eight-year-old Jacqueline Ginyard of Wagener drove into the cloud and was overcome by the fumes.

Berry says officials don’t believe people living near the leak are in danger.

Tanner spokesman David Binder says the Pennsylvania-based company would send a team to investigate. The U.S. Chemical Safety Board is also sending a team.