On Tuesday, the port sent out an internal information bulletin to staff after a meter indicated the presence of hydrogen cyanide.
During the evening, night and Wednesday morning, control measurements were taken for the potentially deadly, colorless gas. However, no traces of the gas were found with calibrated tools.
There have been no indications of anything, so we assume it is some type of false alarm, CEO Anders Dahl told TT at lunchtime on Wednesday in connection with the port restarting operations.
On a broad front
The port is located on Svartön, where steel giant SSAB is building a nearby steel production facility. The port is also undergoing construction, in this case a railway. A subcontractor brought an uncalibrated tool that gave a reading in a place where it was not supposed to be used.
That made the uncertainty even greater. So we had to gather our strength and bring in all the meters we have and start measurements on a broad front, Dahl said.
“Be on your toes”
On April 3, SSAB stopped work on the construction site itself after around 20 people fell ill, seven of whom have been treated. Work is still suspended. According to SSAB, it is still unclear what the root cause of the illnesses is.
Anders Dahl does not want to draw any parallels to that incident.
There are strict environmental permits required, and those permits include rigorous monitoring and control programs. They take great care to scout and look for these types of things. So I would say we would have been on our toes regardless.
