Doctors take air samples after workers fall sick

QUAÛNG NINH — The Health Department of northern Quanû g Ninh Province has invited doctors from Haø Noiä ’s Bacï h Mai Hospital to take air samples for tests to find out why nearly 100 workers lost consciousness during work hours last month.

On June 6, nearly 100 people suddenly suffered shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting and dizziness while working for Yazaki Group in Ñonâ g Mai Industrial Zone in Quanû g Yenâ Town.

As many as 70 workers were hospitalised after they fainted. The rest had to be immediately evacuated from the workplace.

Test results from the Vietä NamSweden Hospital showed that the health indices of these workers were in normal. Some were discharged from the hospital.

By June 10, there were 57 workers under treatment at the hospital.

Nguyenã Tiená Höng, deputy director of the department said that the cause of the incident was under investigation and whether gas poisoning was the possible cause remained unknown.

Ninh Ñöcù Chu,û director of the provincial Centre for Disease Control, said that the environmental monitoring of gas at Yazaki Group on July 6 showed that in the warehouse, the amount of formaldehyde gas was between 4-5 mg per cubic metre of air, four to five times higher than the permitted standard.

The company has been urged to close the warehouse until the results showed the air is safe. — VNS