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5 January 2011
Last updated at 13:22 ET
Southern areas of the Netherlands are on the top state of alert after a blaze at a chemical plant near Rotterdam sent out a thick plume of smoke.
The cloud from the fire at Moerdijk was floating north and had reached the city of Dordrecht, Dutch media said.
Some 400,000 litres of carcinogenic material are stored at the Chemie-Pack plant, De Telegraaf says.
There were no reports of casualties and officials said it was unclear if toxic fumes had been released.
The flames were said to be up to 40 metres high and there were reports of repeated, loud explosions.
Residents in Dordrecht were being warned to keep windows and doors shut.
The Dutch government set up a co-ordination centre for emergency services and southern areas of the province of South Holland were placed on their highest state of alert.
Chemie-Pack, which is about 40km (25m) south of the port of Rotterdam, processes and packs products for the chemical industry, the company says on its website.
All 50 Chemie-Pack staff were safe, according to local officials.
A Shell refinery in the Moerdijk industrial zone was not affected by the fire, a spokesman told Reuters news agency.
Are you in the area? Have you been affected by the thick plume of smoke? Send us your comments using the form below.
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The cloud from the fire at Moerdijk was floating north and had reached the city of Dordrecht, Dutch media said.
Some 400,000 litres of carcinogenic material are stored at the Chemie-Pack plant, De Telegraaf says.
There were no reports of casualties and officials said it was unclear if toxic fumes had been released.
The flames were said to be up to 40 metres high and there were reports of repeated, loud explosions.
Residents in Dordrecht were being warned to keep windows and doors shut.
The Dutch government set up a co-ordination centre for emergency services and southern areas of the province of South Holland were placed on their highest state of alert.
Chemie-Pack, which is about 40km (25m) south of the port of Rotterdam, processes and packs products for the chemical industry, the company says on its website.
All 50 Chemie-Pack staff were safe, according to local officials.
A Shell refinery in the Moerdijk industrial zone was not affected by the fire, a spokesman told Reuters news agency.
Are you in the area? Have you been affected by the thick plume of smoke? Send us your comments using the form below.
Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7725 100 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.
Read the terms and conditions
Online Business Consulting | Internet Business Consulting