Chemical cloud hits Serbian town

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The Serbian president has called for a petrochemical plant near Belgrade to be closed after high levels of dangerous chemicals were detected in the air.

Alarms sounded in the industrial town of Pancevo overnight and thousands of people were told to stay indoors.

The authorities said levels of benzene, which can cause cancer, were 10 times higher than usual, AP news agency said.

Levels had returned to normal by the morning and people had been allowed to leave their homes, officials said.

Environmental groups say Pancevo's petrochemical plant and oil refinery need modernising and lack environmental safeguards.

The facilities were damaged during the Nato air attacks on Serbia in 1999.

Frequent pollution

Emergency sirens sounded from 2300 (2200 GMT) on Tuesday night in Pancevo, about 15km (10 miles) north-west of Belgrade.

The town, many of whose inhabitants work at the oil refinery or fertiliser and plastics factories, often experiences high pollution levels.

The private B92 radio station reported that levels of benzene had risen to 100 microgrammes per cubic metre, while sulphur levels reached 10 microgrammes per cubic metre.

President Boris Tadic visited the town and called for the petrochemicals plant to be closed temporarily.

"People's lives are much more important than the production," he said.

However, the facility was reported still to be operating on Wednesday.