Stockholm, Feb 28 (AP) Traces of a toxic, colourless gas were found at the headquarters of Sweden's security agency where a suspected gas leak last week forced authorities to evacuate some 500 people from the facility, a local paper reported on Wednesday.

The daily Svenska Dagbladet newspaper said authorities had found traces of phosgene. The gas has a strong odour that can cause vomiting and breathing trouble and was used as a weapon in World War I.

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There were no immediate comments from officials.

On Friday, eight people from the headquarters in Solna, just north of Stockholm, were hospitalised, following the evacuation. There were no reports of anyone being seriously injured.

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Those admitted to the hospital suffered breathing problems, authorities said. Some of them were officers who smelled the gas when they arrived at the scene, police said.

Images showed first responders and police officers wearing gas masks at the security headquarters. Swedish media reported that a zone measuring 500 metres (about 547 yards) in diameter was set up protectively.

Authorities asked people living near the Swedish security agency, known by its acronym SAPO, to keep their windows closed at the time.

After the evacuation, SAPO said Friday that the rescue service “had established that there was no gas either inside the premises or outside the building". (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)