"Ammonia leak downs 35 in South Cotabato", 24 Semptember 2018

At least 35 residents of a village in Polomolok town in South Cotabato were hospitalized...due to an ammonia leak from a production plant of fruit processing giant Dole Philippines Inc. (Dolefil).

Rodelen Atimonan, head of the Polomolok Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO), said the victims fell ill after inhaling ammonia that reportedly leaked from a storage facility of Dolefil.... 

"The victims had difficulty breathing and vomited, while some collapsed after inhaling the leaked ammonia," he said in a radio interview.

...In a statement, Dolefl said the incident was caused by "a temporary accidental ammonia release" from one of its facilities....

It said the company's response team immediately contained the ammonia release.

"The factory was on a regularly scheduled shutdown at the time. We are currently investigating the cause of the release," Dolefil said.

The company said the affected residents of Purok Sta. Cruz were immediately brought to the Howard Hubbard Memorial Hospital, which is owned by Dolefil.

...Dolefil said barangay officials were immediately informed of the incident and were involved in the management of the victims.

..."Dolefil takes the safety of its employees, its operations, and the community as its top priority. We will continue to monitor those affected to ensure their safety and well-being," the company said.