Ammonia released into the building’s ventilation system caused employees to be evacuated from the Maersk headquarters today

The Copenhagen headquarters of the world’s biggest shipping company, A.P. Møller-Maersk, was evacuated today, sending 1200 employees streaming out of the Esplanaden-based building shortly after midday.

The duty officer at Copenhagen Police said the building had been evacuated after a powerful smell of ammonia emerged from the building’s ventilation system.

A spokesman for the shipping company said that increased pressure on a release valve had caused the ammonia to be released into the system and employees had been evacuated for about three hours while the gas cleared from the building.

‘Some people were taken to hospital as a precaution and checked by doctors for slight irritation,’ the spokesman said, but added that there had been no reports of major side-effects.

Employees were also advised that if they feel nauseous in the next 12 hours they should contact their doctor.