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Dairy giant Fonterra is investigating its second serious factory accident within 48 hours after an explosion at its Southland factory this morning.
The latest incident at the Edendale dairy processing plant at 10am which resulted in six workers requiring medical treatment, follows the death of employee Theodorus Rangihu Blake, 52, of New Plymouth, crushed to death at the company's Hawera, Taranaki, plant on Saturday night.
St John Ambulance spokeswoman Alena Lynch said five patients had been transported with minor injuries to Invercargill Hospital.
Two people were hospitalised after this morning's incident, described by some as an explosion but by a company spokesman as a "chemical reaction".
Edendale deputy chief fire officer Charlie Nicholson said hydrochloric acid was inadvertently mixed with a different chemical which resulted in a chemical reaction.
"There wasn't so much an explosion," he told NZPA.
"It was a chemical reaction when chemicals were unloaded at the Edendale site, which resulted in the release of some chlorine gas."
Six staff were treated by ambulance staff at the site, with two then being taken to Invercargill Hospital. They were not expected to be detained.
"So these are not serious injuries ...," the spokesman said.
He did not have the specifics of their injuries, other than that they were "related to gas inhalation".
The affected area of the plant was evacuated and State Highway 1, from which the site is accessed, was closed.
However, site operations had resumed and the road reopened by early afternoon.
St John spokeswoman Alena Lynch said the injured had been exposed to reflux s800, a chlorinated sanitiser.
A further 30 people were treated with a decontamination shower.
Fonterra and the Department of Labour are investigating both this morning's incident and the Hawera one.
The Hawera incident occurred about 6.50pm on Saturday, when Mr Blake was operating a hydraulic press-type machine used to load pellets.
He suffered head and torso injuries and was initially taken to Hawera Hospital before being transferred to New Plymouth Hospital, where he died at 11.05pm.
A post-mortem was carried out today.
Both plants employ hundreds of people and the company spokesman said staff safety was all-important.
"The two incidents are completely unrelated but, obviously, any incident that involves risk of health and safety to our staff, and particularly something serious, is something of great concern," the company spokesman said.
"Health and safety is the absolute number one priority for Fonterra."
Fonterra is the world's biggest dairy exporter, with annual revenue of $17 billion.
It trades in 140 countries and has enjoyed a boom in recent years. However, its image was tarnished last year with revelations Chinese company Sanlu Group, then 43 per cent-owned by Fonterra, added melamine to its milk formula.
Six babies died and about 296,000 others were affected.
Sanlu is now in receivership, and Fonterra has written off its investment in the company for a loss of $210 million.
Last month the company warned farmers it was increasingly likely the forecast dairy payout of $6/kg milksolids would probably be cut. It had already revised the payout down from $7/kg milksolids.
Chairman Henry van der Heyden said last month the continuing decline in international commodity prices, along with the worsening effects of the global financial crisis, including fluctuations in the New Zealand dollar, meant an increasing likelihood of a reduction in the forecast payout.
Last season, farmers received a record $7.90/kg milksolids.
In the latest blow, the European Union last week announced it was returning to subsidising its dairy farmers with export refunds for butter, cheese, and milkpowders, payments which were suspended two years ago.
- NZPA
