Overview
- Police are examining whether toxic gas inhalation through malfunctioning protective suits led to the deaths inside the refinery’s laboratory.
- The victims were identified as chemical engineers Nitzan Goichman, 39, and Irina Radchuk, 52, both residents of Ashdod.
- Magen David Adom teams found the women unconscious without a pulse and pronounced them dead after prolonged resuscitation efforts at the scene.
- Fire and Rescue officials reported no hazardous-material leak or danger to the wider public, with checks limited to the facility.
- The refinery reported the incident to police, Fire and Rescue, and the environmental ministry and opened an internal investigation, with the tragedy drawing comparisons to a fatal 2013 hydrogen sulfide case at the same plant.