The Shanghai local government set up a team yesterday to further investigate a leak accident at a pesticide factory in Pudong New Area and will give legal penalties to those responsible for the accident.

At least two people were rushed to hospital after they inhaled pungent fumes from the pesticide factory on Monday night, authorities said yesterday.

Hundreds of people called police in panic and some even fled their homes after smelling the fumes, which were detected about 9:30pm in Yangpu District.

The mystery smell - which residents described variously as "gas," "rotten eggs" or "green leeks" - spread through Hongkou, Changning, Xuhui, Huangpu, Jing'an and Pudong districts. It didn't fade away until about 1am yesterday.

Two women living in Yangpu District were rushed to Changhai Hospital after inhaling the fumes. Both were discharged about 3am yesterday after receiving medication.

The environment bureau said about 300 kilograms of liquid herbicide and raw materials leaked at the Shanghai Pesticide Factory through a valve.

Officials said human error was to blame for the release of the fumes, which were spread by the wind from the northeast to southwest.

The herbicide was believed to be Anilofos, which has low toxicity to animals and humans, though it can cause irritation to the eyes, skin and upper respiratory tract, authorities said yesterday.

Chen Wei, vice director of the Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau's emergency department, said the release would not lead to significant adverse health consequences, "since it was periodic and didn't last for a long time in one place."

The bureau started investigating soon after receiving reports of a smell in Yangpu District about 9:40pm on Monday night.

When the agency's inspection vehicle arrived at the spot 20 minutes later, the fumes had dispersed to the point where they could not be identified, officials said.

"Our monitoring teams checked almost all enterprises and storage spots for chemicals that could result in pollution in Yangpu and Pudong and continued the examination this morning," Wu Qizhou, the bureau's vice director, said yesterday. "The air quality is now excellent."

The bureau is now deciding what penalties might be appropriate.

One of the victims was a 25-year-old surnamed Liu. She was surfing the Internet in her apartment on Zhongyuan Road when she felt uncomfortable and asked her parents to check for a gas leak.

Her parents found Liu passed out when they went into her room after checking the gas. She was sent to the hospital about 10:20pm. She vomited and passed out twice before she recovered after receiving intravenous drips.

The other victim was a 21-year-old woman surnamed Wang. She experienced difficulty breathing after inhaling the fumes.

Wang was sent to the hospital about 11:20pm and recovered after oxygen inhalation treatment.

The Yangpu and Hongkou districts were the most affected areas.

The hotline at the Wenhui-Xinmin United Press Group, Shanghai Daily's parent company, received nearly 40 calls complaining about the smell on Monday night.

(Shanghai Daily September 17, 2008)