2 die while cleaning chemical tank at Houston-area business

PASADENA (AP) — Two workers apparently became overcome by fumes and died while cleaning a chemical tank at a business near Houston, authorities said Saturday.

Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said in a tweet that deputies responded to the plant overnight in Pasadena, located just southeast of Houston. They found two men dead at the scene, Gonzalez said.

Witnesses told deputies that the men had climbed inside the tank to clean it and were overcome by fumes.

The sheriff’s office did not say what kind of chemical was involved or name the business. The sheriff’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for additional details.