Hungary declares a state of emergency after sludge disaster

The Hungarian government has declared a state of emergency after a third person died today in flooding from a ruptured red sludge reservoir at an alumina plant. Six people were missing and 120 injured in what officials said was an ecological disaster.

The sludge, a waste product in aluminum production, contains heavy metals and is toxic if ingested. Many of the injured suffered burns as the sludge seeped through their clothes. Two of the injured were in life-threatening condition. An elderly woman, a young man and a three-year-old child were killed.

So far, about 1m cubic metres (35.3m cubic feet) of sludge has leaked from the reservoir and affected an estimated area of 40 sq km (15.4 square miles), the environment secretary, Zoltan Illes, told state news agency MTI. [Guardian]

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