Africa News
"Dangerous" chemical spill in South Africa's Orange River
Apr 28, 2011, 13:59 GMT
Johannesburg - A 'dangerous chemical' has spilled into South Africa's Orange River, a spokesman for the regional disaster management agency said on Thursday.
Charles Chabe, who works for Xhariep district, in the Free State province, said workers had begun to clean the contamination, which occurred the previous day.
'It's difficult to say how it happened. All we can say is that it is a very dangerous chemical,' Chabe told South Africa's news agency SAPA.
Further information was to be made available on Friday, following an assessment by a private chemical company, which was hired to aid the clean-up.
Orange River is the longest river in the country, and also runs through parts of neighbouring Lesotho and Namibia, eventually emptying into the Atlantic Ocean.
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