A chemical spill which triggered a major safety operation in Shoebury was, effectively, a false alarm, it was claimed today.

Spencer Brown, the former director of Pharmacos, claimed a leaky lid on a plastic bottle led to the alert which saw Towerfield Close sealed off and emergency services on standby.

Fire chiefs claimed poor labelling had hampered their job after they were called to the unit on Tuesday, at the cost of thousands of pounds.

Today, Mr Brown said the fire service had to be over-cautious when dealing with such calls.

He said: "The point is that the fire service are not chemists - it has to treat everything with the utmost caution because it has to anticipate the worst.

"I am not criticising the fire service because they have to act as if the worst could happen but, the fact is, what was there was a small spillage from a container which was labelled."

Mr Brown added that the incident was effectively a false alarm because no remedial action had to be taken.

Pharmacos ceased trading in December. There was a major fire at its Southchurch Road factory in 1995 and also a similar chemical alert at Towerfield Close in July 1998.

Mr Brown said the company had been in the hands of receivers since June, although he was still trying to wind it up. The unit would now be cleared and made safe.

He added: "Because the company has gone into liquidation I have no free control over how the company's money is spent.

"Now there has been an incident I can go to someone and ask them to clear it up. Until now, my hands have been tied."

Three fire engines, police cars and an ambulance rushed to Towerfield Close on Tuesday following the report of a chemical spill. Firemen dressed in chemical-proof rubber suits spent more than an hour identifying the substance before it was declared safe.

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