An attempt to rid a delivery van of illegal immigrants left one man hospitalised and seven others in need of treatment.
Workers at Courts Furniture Warehouse, in Miles Gray Road, Basildon, were left with severe irritation and breathing difficulties after unloading a lorry which delivered furniture from France.
Emergency - an ambulance waits alongside the lorry at Courts Picture: TERENCE BUNCH
Just hours before, the vehicle had been checked by French immigration officers who found illegal immigrants inside.
As is routine, they hurled a CS gas canister inside to force the people out. Normally the gas clears away quickly, but on this occasion it settled on the shrink-wrap covering the furniture.
Olly Holford, temporary divisional officer at Basildon fire station, said: "As soon as CS gas hits water it reactivates and at that time it was raining.
A spokesperson for Courts said: "Environmental Health were called and they quarantined the store."
Published Wednesday October 23, 2002
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