5 checked after Pasco ammonia leak

PASCO, Wash. (AP) — A Pasco, Washington, Fire Department official says five people were treated at a hospital after a small anhydrous ammonia leak at the Pasco Processing Center.

The Tri-City Herald reports that fire Battalion Chief Dave Hare says about 200 employees were sent home and five were sent to a hospital as a precaution after the leak was discovered about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday at the center off U.S. Highway 395.

Hare says firefighters stopped the leak and the plant was turned back over to management.

He says the small, contained leak was mainly an inhalation hazard. Anhydrous ammonia has a pungent odor and can cause irritation to the eyes, nose and throat.

The cause of the leak wasn't immediately known.

The processing center, formerly called Simplot, is located within a 250-acre food processing park.