Acid leak at Coca Cola factory as hundreds of workers evacuated

Firefighters take airborne chemical readings through the night at premises in Sidcup

London firefighters dealt with a chemical incident at a factory in Sidcup (UkNewsinPictures)

Hundreds of workers at a Coca-Cola factory have been evacuated following an acid leak at a plant in Greater London.

Firefighters rushed to the factory in Sidcup, Bexley, just after 8.30pm on Wednesday, following a leak of hydrochloric acid.

Around 200 people had already been evacuated from the premises on the A224 Cray Road before the emergency services arrived, the London Fire Brigade said.

The leak took three hours to contain, firefighters said (Google Maps)

While the leak was isolated some three hours later, firefighters remained at the scene through the night taking chemical readings in the area of the plant, which sits opposite houses, a Chinese takeaway and the office of a car rental company.

No injuries were reported and responsibility was handed back to onsite managers at 5:30am.

Those living nearby faced disruption, as the road outside the factory was closed in both directions, between Crittals Corner and Sidcup Hill – but they were not evacuated from their homes.

Hydrochloric acid can cause inflammation and erythema when coming into contact with skin in low concentrations, while high concentrations can cause severe chemical burns.

The acid is used as part of the plant’s sanitation processes, Coca-Cola confirmed.

The fire service said: “We used chemical equipment to test the levels of chemicals in the area and worked on-site to disperse it.”

“There was no evacuation of residents, and no one was treated by emergency services. We are not aware of any advice to close windows and doors.”

The paper published images taken by a drone showing fire engines in attendance at the site, with a cloudy substance appearing to rise from one of the buildings.

A spokesperson for Coca-Cola said: “Our production site at Sidcup was temporarily evacuated last night as a precautionary measure.

“There was no risk to any of our colleagues and the issue has now been resolved. Our site is now back operating as normal.

“We would like to thank the emergency services for their swift response and support, and would like to apologise to local residents for any disruption caused overnight.”