From:-
http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24346798-5006301,00.htmlSpill forces evacuation
Daniel Wills, AAP
September 15, 2008 01:20pm
FEARS a Salisbury North wool processing plant could explode from a toxic mix of chemicals and methane gas have eased.
SA Police have closed the area near GH Michel and Sons earlier today, saying there was a ''real and immediate danger to life''.
They told a media conference a short time ago that they now believed the situation was under control but would require local business owners to stay away from the area until 12.30pm tomorrow.
Police earlier enforced an air exclusion zone, with no aircraft permitted within 1km, forcing pilots to find alternative landing sites than Parafield Airport, which is adjacent to the GH Michel plant.
Thousands of litres of hydrogen peroxide, sulphuric acid and possibly other chemicals had spilled within the plant, the Metropolitan Fire Service (MFS) said. Methane gas also had been detected,
Michell Pty Ltd said its Salisbury premises - one of the largest wool processing factories in the southern hemisphere - were broken into over the weekend.
"Vandals broke into the factory premises, opening and smashing valves on a number of chemical tanks," the company said in a statement.
"At this stage it appears that the damage is contained on a site at the factory."
About 60 staff returning to work after a seasonal break were evacuated this morning after the damage was discovered at 6am.
Michell Pty Ltd managing director Peter Michell described the incident as wilful damage.
"This is a very stupid act by a very stupid person,'' he said.
"A jemmy bar can do a lot of damage.''
George Henry Michell founded the business in 1870, setting up a wool scouring operation in the small South Australian township of Undalya.
The business grew rapidly and in 1896 was moved to Hindmarsh in Adelaide. The company relocated to the current Salisbury location, about 20km north of Adelaide, in the late 1960s.
The company branched into industries beyond wool processing and exporting, including banking, farming, commodity trading and property development.
In June 2004, Peter Michell and his brother David took control of the wool division and began trading as an independent venture under the name Michell Pty Ltd.
