Paper Plant Fumes Send 7 French Workers to Hospitals

Toxic fumes sickened seven workers cleaning a tank at a paper production plant Monday evening in Saint-Gaudens, France.

The incident occurred at the Fiber Excellence paper plant located in the Occitanie region of Southwest France. Fiber Excellence falls under the European Union’s Seveso Directive which applies to 12,000 industrial establishments where dangerous substances are used or stored in large quantities.

Six sub-contract workers and a factory employee were working in the tank when all were overcome by fumes. All seven were taken to area hospitals.

No fumes were detected outside the tank, a press release issued by the local government. An investigation will be conducted.