Around 20 fall ill at Swedish steel plant construction site – police halt investigation due to safety risks

About 20 workers have fallen ill at a construction site for a new steel plant in Luleå, northern Sweden, forcing police to suspend their on-site investigation over safety concerns, reports Swedish public broadcaster SVT.

Steel manufacturer SSAB confirmed Wednesday that roughly 20 subcontractor employees reported symptoms, with some seeking medical attention. The cause remains unidentified, prompting the company to halt all work at the site as a precaution.

SSAB has expanded air, soil, and equipment testing to determine the source of the illness. So far, no abnormal readings have been detected except in one instance: elevated nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide levels were found last Thursday in the cabin of an excavator used for digging work.

Police launched a preliminary investigation into potential workplace safety violations but have not conducted technical examinations on-site. Lead investigator Patrik Åström told SVT that officers deemed the area too hazardous, with uncertainty over whether they too could fall ill from exposure.

“Investigators assessed that it could be dangerous, and there was also ambiguity about whether the substances were so hazardous that they themselves might get sick,” Åström said. No suspects have been named in the case.

The existing SSAB steel plant in Luleå continues normal production, unaffected by the incident at the nearby construction site.