Doctors in the southeastern Turkish city of Diyarbakir treated 135 patients for chlorine poisoning Thursday after a leak from a canister of the gas affected an entire neighborhood, local health officials said.
The outbreak occurred in the fire brigade headquarters of the city's Surici district when firefighters dropped a canister of chlorine -- to be used for water sterilization -- and cracked it, the district's mayor Cezayir Serin told reporters.
The gas quickly spread over an 500-meter radius area, affecting the fire fighters, residents and passers-by.
The victims were rushed to three hospitals in the city, complaining of irritation of the respiratory tract and suffering from severe coughing and nausea.
A number of patients received treatment and were sent home but three children remained in critical condition, hospital sources said.
Serin told reporters here that authorities had launched an investigation into the incident.
"At this point, we do not think there was any negligence; but we believe it was accident," the mayor said -- DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (AFP)
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