Refrigerants like liquid nitrogen, what leaked Jan. 28 at Gainesville’s Foundation Food Group, killing six, are frequently used in the processing plants found in the Poultry Capital of the World.

How is it used and what are the risks? The Times spoke with cold storage expert Jordan Reece to answer some of those questions. Foundation Food Group officials did not respond to requests for comment. 

Reece has worked in the cold storage industry for 19 years and serves as Lanier Technical College’s senior instructor for its ammonia and refrigeration program, which is the only one of its kind in Georgia. 

At plants like Foundation, Reece said refrigerants like liquid nitrogen are directly sprayed onto a product, such as chicken, to instantly freeze it. This action is done by a machine in an enclosed space. 

“It’s very common for any type of further processing plant to use a spray-on refrigerant like liquid nitrogen or liquid CO2,” Reece said. Many use ammonia as their primary refrigeration system, he added.

Reece explained that small leaks can occur anywhere a joint is made between the piping and machine. He said people in the industry call those “nuisance leaks” because they happen on a normal basis with refrigeration and don’t pose a danger to workers.

Speaking Jan. 28 at a press briefing about the incident at Foundation Food Group, Nicholas Ancrum, vice president of human resources for Foundation, said “preliminary indications are that a nitrogen line was ruptured inside the facility.”

Hall County Emergency Management Agency Director Casey Ramsey confirmed Jan. 30 that reports in 911 calls from Foundation Food Group indicated people had been sprayed or exposed to liquid nitrogen and were frozen.

The Georgia Fire Marshal’s Office, Occupational Safety and Health Administration and U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board have been involved with the incident and investigations are ongoing. The Hall County Sheriff’s Office is handling the death investigations.

Nitrogen is a naturally occurring element, but if it’s concentrated enough, Reece said people won’t be able to breathe in oxygen. He said the same can be said for inhaling 100% carbon dioxide or ammonia for a long period of time.

“If you don’t get enough oxygen, no matter what you’re breathing in, that’s what happens,” he said. “That’s with all refrigerants, man-made or natural.”

When liquid nitrogen is released in the air, Reece said it instantly vaporizes into an odorless gas. 

“As a vapor, you wouldn’t even know it’s in the room,” he said. “You wouldn’t be able to see it or smell it.”

Although refrigeration-related accidents rarely occur at processing plants, when they do happen, Reece said they can be disastrous. 

Though hospital and first responders did not comment on what injuries occurred at Foundation, they did describe them as respiratory concerns. A cause of death has not been determined for those killed in the incident; autopsies are scheduled for Jan. 31, Hall County Deputy Coroner Kevin Wetzel said. 

“It is a tragic thing. We hate that it happened for any of those families,” Reece said. “They’re in our thoughts and prayers.”