Public safety personnel searched the vicinity for any people or animals affected by the leak , and -- at 9:30 a.m. -- found the woman 's body next to her vehicle , which was parked on the side of U.S. 321 , he said . Officials were speculating that the woman had been driving north when she encountered the plume and tried to turn around , but her car stalled . She apparently got out of the vehicle and was overcome by the fumes , Allard said . An autopsy has been ordered . The woman 's name was not released pending notification of her family . Seven people were taken to Lexington County Medical Center in stable condition with respiratory problems , none of which was life-threatening , Allard said . Five were plant workers ; the other two were nearby residents . The road was reopened at 2 p.m. , after the plume had dissipated , he said . The U.S. Chemical Safety Board -- an independent agency charged with investigating industrial chemical accidents -- announced it is deploying an investigation team to the site of the ammonia release . Tanner 's Binder described the occurrence as ``
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The body of a woman was found near her car Wednesday , the apparent victim of an ammonia leak from a nearby plant in Swansea , South Carolina , police said . The leak occurred at the Tanner Industries plant as a hose had been connected from a delivery trailer containing anhydrous ammonia -LRB- purified ammonia -RRB- to a storage tank in the facility , said David Binder , director of quality safety and regulatory affairs for Tanner Industries . `` During that operation , a hole burst in the hose , '' he said . `` That released ammonia gas . '' The leak from the plant , located about 24 miles south of Columbia , was reported to the Lexington County Sheriff 's Department shortly before 8 a.m. , said Maj. John Allard , a public information officer for the department . Firefighters arrived within 10 minutes at the plant , where they saw a large , light-colored , dense plume , and closed area roads to traffic , he said . The ammonia hovered first over U.S. 321 , then moved into a wooded area , blackening its foliage , Allard said .