Two dead, one critical after chemical leak at Choctaw mill

BUTLER, ALABAMA - Two workers were killed and one person was in critical condition after chemicals leaked from a Georgia-Pacific paper mill. <br> <br> Twelve others were hospitalized after the 3:30 p.m. hydrogen sulfide leak on Wednesday at the company&#39;s Naheola mill near Pennington, said Choctaw County Medical Services Director J.W. Cowan. <br> <br> The critically injured man was hospitalized in a Meridian, Miss., hospital, said Cowan. <br> <br> Cowan did not know the names of the victims. A message left with the Choctaw County Sheriff&#39;s Department Wednesday night was not returned. <br> <br> Cowan said the two men who died and the man who was critically injured worked for a construction company contracting with Georgia-Pacific. <br> <br> The cause of the chemical release is under investigation, Georgia-Pacific spokeswoman Robin Keegan told the Mobile Register. <br> <br> Five of those hospitalized were county emergency workers, Cowan said. It was unclear if the others who were hospitalized worked for Georgia-Pacific or the construction company. <br> <br> Some of the workers were transported to Riley Memorial Hospital and Rush Foundation Hospital in nearby Meridian, Miss., said Cowan, who is also the county&#39;s assistant emergency management chief. Others drove themselves to a local hospital. <br> <br> Hydrogen sulfide is a flammable, poisonous gas characterized by an odor akin to rotten eggs. Pulp mills typically use hydrogen sulfide and other chemicals to turn wood into raw fiber for paper. <br> <br> The Naheola mill near Pennington is abut 15 miles north of Butler. It is one of the largest in Alabama with about 2,000 employees, Cowan said. <br> <br> Georgia-Pacific bought the mill in 2000 as part of a $7.7 billion takeover of the Fort James Corp. <br> <br> The mill produces pulp, paperboard and tissue. The paperboard is used in paper plates and cups and the tissue is used to make toilet paper and paper towels. <br> <br> Atlanta-based Georgia-Pacific has 17 tissue mills in the United States and Mexico, plus 13 others in Europe and elsewhere. The company reported $343 million in profits and sales $22 billion in 2000, according to the company&#39;s Web site.