The past deputy mayor was a technical services manager at the Ettamogah paper plant for 14 years until 1994 after having transferred from a mill in Tasmania.

He was shocked to learn of the deadly gas outbreak which claimed the lives of Lyndon Quinlivan and Ben Pascall.

“It’s bloody horrifying,” Cr Thurley said.

“We have all these discussions about people going to work and wanting them to come home – nothing can be worse than two deaths.

“I had difficulty sleeping last night thinking about it.”

Member for Farrer Sussan Ley also expressed sorrow.

"It is something truly shocking for Albury," Ms Ley said.

"It is something very upsetting for all of us.

"I know in the days, weeks and months ahead those families will need our ongoing support."

Cr Thurley, whose job at the mill involved laboratory work and a focus on water treatment, said safety was always integral.

“We had regular blitzes and programs,” he said.

“With high-speed moving machinery and lots of chemicals, safety there is front and centre for everyone.

“This mill until now has had a zero lost time frequency injury rate for five years or maybe longer, with not even someone cutting a finger and taking a day off work, so management and employees are committed to safety.

“That was an exceptional achievement on this mill’s behalf to have such a zero lost time frequency injury rate.”

In 2014, Norske Skog’s Ettamogah mill won the excellence award for workplace health and safety presented by the NSW Business Chamber Award.

It saluted the wellbeing initiatives at the plant, including a program that involved a safety meeting before each workday. 

The mill’s work, health and safety manager Nathan Bright said at the time that Norske Skog staff work “hard at innovation, health and safety”.

“It is widely acknowledged that succeeding in these areas is vital to our long term survival as a business,” Mr Bright said.

Cr Thurley said there was a closeknit and loyal culture at the mill.

“You wouldn’t find another company in Albury that has as many 20 and 30-year employees like the mill does,” he said.

“I was a 25-year employee and I was nothing special, there’s plenty out there that have been there since 1980 (when the mill was commissioned).”