Overview

• Authorities lifted public warnings around 22:35 local time after air monitoring found no hazardous concentrations, and schools and daycare centers reopened Wednesday.
• Officials report that a large metal piece fell into a 6,000–6,500 liter nitric acid bath at a galvanic plant, generating nitrous gases that produced the orange cloud.
• Four company employees were treated for minor injuries, with no additional cases reported outside the facility.
• Roughly 250 to 400 responders in chemical-protective suits cooled the tank, pumped acid to another vessel, and used water mist to suppress the plume.
• Alerts via NINA and Katwarn urged residents to shelter indoors as nearby roads and a section of the River Main were briefly closed, and police and technical experts have opened an investigation.