More than 50 people evacuated from their homes in Prior-Velho during the early hours of the morning due to an ammonia spill

An ammonia spill at a food company facility forced 52 people to be evacuated from their homes in Prior Velho, Loures municipality, Civil Protection told Lusa.

The alert was given at 3:53 am, due to the “spill of a thousand liters of ammonia” , said a spokesperson for the Greater Lisbon Sub-regional Command of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC).

The same source indicated that “the vehicle from the Lisbon Firefighters Regiment, specialized in this type of occurrence, was activated” and that the escape “is now under control” .

The spokesperson said that a security perimeter extending 200 meters had been created , which led to 52 people being removed from their homes, “just as a precaution”.

At around 5:45 am, 26 operators and nine vehicles were still on site, according to the ANEPC website.