SIMI VALLEY : Ammonia Leak at Plant Forces Evacuation

County fire officials evacuated about 50 employees from a Simi Valley industrial park and closed a road for four hours Tuesday when eight gallons of ammonia leaked out of a barrel at an ice manufacturing plant.

There were no injuries, but the immediate area on Easy Street was permeated by a distinct ammonia smell.

Two hazardous materials crews from the Ventura County Fire Department and the Point Mugu Navy base arrived on the scene at 8:30 a.m. and contained the leak to the one barrel of ammonia. Easy Street was reopened and workers were allowed to return to their businesses just after noon.

The ammonia leaked from a pin-size hole in a valve, officials said. The ammonia was being used by the Doyle Shaw Ice Co. to freeze water.

Ammonia is a mild irritant in small doses, but it can be fatal if inhaled in large quantities. It is commonly used for house cleaning and, in the form of smelling salts, to reawaken unconscious people.