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| Birling Gap beach: Hundreds treated after chemical 'mist' | Birling Gap beach: Hundreds treated after chemical 'mist' |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Hundreds of people have been treated in hospital after a suspected chemical leak along the East Sussex coast. | Hundreds of people have been treated in hospital after a suspected chemical leak along the East Sussex coast. |
| Birling Gap beach was evacuated on Sunday after people reported breathing difficulties, stinging eyes and vomiting when a "mist" appeared. | Birling Gap beach was evacuated on Sunday after people reported breathing difficulties, stinging eyes and vomiting when a "mist" appeared. |
| Eastbourne District General Hospital says it has treated 233 people. | Eastbourne District General Hospital says it has treated 233 people. |
| Investigations are under way into the cause of the "chemical haze", which was currently unknown, Sussex Police said. | Investigations are under way into the cause of the "chemical haze", which was currently unknown, Sussex Police said. |
| A spokesman said the first report came in just before 17:00 BST where "up to 50 people had been affected by irritation to eyes and throats". | |
| Six people initially went to hospital with minor symptoms, but as of Sunday night 223 patients were being "decontaminated" at hospital, East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust said. | Six people initially went to hospital with minor symptoms, but as of Sunday night 223 patients were being "decontaminated" at hospital, East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust said. |
| Coastguard rescue teams from Birling Gap, Eastbourne, Bexhill and Newhaven raced to help clear the busy beaches as visitors feared they had been struck by a chlorine leak. | |
| Kyle Crickmore, who was at the Birling Gap beach with his family, said it emptied in 10 minutes after people began to feel unwell. | |
| He described how a "foggy haze rolled in out of nowhere" and there was a "strong smell of chlorine in the air". | |
| "It was definitely out of the ordinary considering it was a nice clear sunny day 10 minutes beforehand," he said. | |
| "It was stupidly busy and it was a boiling hot day. | |
| "It emptied in about 10 minutes, which was quite staggering considering the amount of people who were there." | |
| Members of the public alerted emergency services, which triggered call-outs to the UK Coastguard, Sussex Police, South Eastern Ambulance Service and East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service, who said they were treating it as a "chemical incident". |