Usinas Siderúrgicas de Minas Gerais SA halted all the blast furnaces at its Ipatinga facility in Brazil's Minas Gerais state after an explosion in one of the gas tanks at the site, according to an Aug. 10 release.
About 34 people were injured following the incident, but all have left the hospital, Reuters reported Aug. 11.
The company is still investigating the causes and impact of the explosion. It could not yet say when Ipatinga could resume full operation, although some portions had restarted output.
Ipatinga employs about 6,500 people directly.