TOSHA Investigating Greeneville Cheese Factory After Chemical Leaks

The Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration or TOSHA is investigating an anhydrous ammonia leak at a cheese factory in Greeneville that sent 29 employees to area hospitals on Wednesday, including the Newport Medical Center.

The leaks happened at La Quesera Mexicana cheese factory in Greeneville. TOSHA has now officially opened an on-site investigation into what led to the two leaks Wednesday morning, one at around 7:15am and another after 10am. A TOSHA investigator will be reviewing La Quesera Mexicana records and procedures and conducting interviews with employees. According to the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development, injury investigations of this sort take anywhere from six to eight weeks to complete. TOSHA does not release preliminary findings, but will release the complete findings of their investigation to the public once they issue their final report on the incident.