Gas leak at Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur airport affects 20 staff

The incident involved methyl mercaptan, a flammable gas, but airport operations were not disrupted.

Around 20 people at Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur international airport were sent for medical treatment on Thursday after a gas leak at an aircraft engineering facility, though there were no disruptions to airport operations, the fire department said.

The Selangor state fire department said it received an emergency call regarding a chemical leak at the Southern Support Zone Sepang Aircraft Engineering facility at 11.23 am (0323 GMT) and dispatched its personnel along with a hazardous materials team.

The chemical was later identified as methyl mercaptan, a flammable colourless gas with a putrid smell sometimes used in the production of jet fuel.

The 20 people affected, all of whom were airport personnel, had complained of dizziness, the department said.

There was no wider risk to public safety, a spokesperson from the fire department said.