Coca Cola Sidcup factory evacuated after chemical leak

A chemical leak at a Coca Cola factory led to 200 workers being evacuated from the building.

They left the site, in Sidcup, before London Fire Brigade (LFB) arrived to the incident on Wednesday night.

The evacuation was in response to a leak of hydrochloric acid at the canning facility on Cray Road, which the fire service said it had dispersed.

Police and fire crews remained at the scene overnight but the incident was now over, an LFB spokesperson said.

Coca Cola has been contacted for comment.

"We were called to a leak of hydrochloric acid at 20:39 on Wednesday evening. Two hundred people were evacuated from the factory before we arrived," an LFB statement said.

"We used chemical equipment to test the levels of chemicals in the area and worked on site to disperse it.

"The leak was isolated at approximately 23:30 and we remained on scene throughout the night doing checks before we left. The incident is now over.

"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."

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