Albury paper mill gas leak kills two Norske Skog workers, third in hospital
Updated
Two people are dead and a third is fighting for life after a toxic gas leak at a paper mill near Albury, on the NSW-Victoria border.
Ambulance NSW was called to the Norske Skog paper mill at Ettamogah yesterday, after workers were affected by a toxic gas.
A 28-year-old who was found unconscious at the site died at Albury Base Hospital yesterday, and a 36-year-old died in hospital overnight.
Two others remain in hospital, including a 22-year-old who is in a critical condition.
In total, 18 people were taken to hospital and 14 have been discharged.
The mill, which employs 184 people, has been shut down.
Albury Mayor Kevin Mack said Norske Skog was a major employer in Albury-Wodonga, and the whole community had been affected.
"Someone's lost a father, parent or son. And it's really tragic," he said.
"Certainly a lot of people in the region work at the site. They're a big employer.
"Our hearts go out to the people involved and certainly to the family of these workers."
The Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union described the deaths as a tragedy.
"We will be working with our union delegates and Safe Work to determine the cause of the incident and will make more comment once the circumstances of this tragedy become clearer," the union said in a statement.
Topics: emergency-incidents, disasters-and-accidents, accidents, workplace, table-top-2640, albury-2640, nsw
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