Twenty-four workers hospitalised after ammonia leak in Ekurhuleni
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on IOL
Twenty-four employees of the Festive Chicken plant in Olifantsfontein, Ekurhuleni, were hospitalised after an ammonia leak on 11 November 2026. A pressure relief valve reportedly suffered a technical failure in the late afternoon, after maintenance work in the morning, according to municipal emergency services cited by IOL.
Twenty-four employees of Festive Chicken, a poultry processing company in Olifantsfontein, were hospitalised after inhaling ammonia fumes during a leak on Wednesday 11 November in Ekurhuleni, South Africa, according to Eric Maloka, a spokesperson for the Ekurhuleni municipality’s disaster and emergency management services.
Initial findings indicate that a pressure relief valve reportedly suffered a technical failure at around 16:23, while maintenance work had been under way since 06:00. The maximum ammonia concentration measured at the site reached 222 parts per million, according to the plant’s engineering manager. The employees had been evacuated as a precaution and ammonia levels had returned to zero by around 19:45, allowing them to return to work, Maloka said.
