Overview

• The reaction in a galvanic facility’s roughly 6,000-liter nitric acid bath produced an orange-yellow plume that moved toward northern Aschaffenburg.
• Officials identified the release as nitrose gases and initially told residents to shelter indoors, close windows and switch off ventilation via KatWarn and NINA.
• About 250 responders in protective gear cooled the tank and used water and generated mist to suppress the vapors, and the plume later turned white.
• Police reported four people lightly injured, and air measurements up to five kilometers from the site found no hazardous concentrations.
• Authorities said a metal piece fell into the acid bath and triggered the reaction, and citywide warnings were lifted overnight after readings were deemed harmless.