Читать книгу Disaster Response and Recovery - David A. McEntire - Страница 39

Industrial hazards are hazard agents produced by the extraction, creation, distribution, storage, use and disposal of chemicals. Chlorine, benzene, insecticides, plastics, fuel and other materials are released into the atmosphere when regulations are ignored, employees are untrained or careless, and equipment fails. Such materials in solid, liquid, or gas state may be corrosive, toxic, flammable or explosive. They may react in very complex ways depending on temperature and the presence of water, oxygen or other chemicals.

The release of methyl isocyanate (MIC) in Bhopal, India, from the Union Carbide Company is regarded to be the most‐deadly industrial accident in history. While the cause of this event has been under debate, it is believed that poor maintenance at the chemical plant resulted in an accidental chemical release. Forty‐five tons of gas was emitted into the city, killing anywhere between 2,500 and 10,000 people. Although there is continued disagreement about the extent of fatalities and the cause of this hazard, the event had a profound impact on hazardous materials regulations in the United States and elsewhere (i.e., the creation of the Emergency Planning and Community Right‐to‐Know Act or EPCRA in 1986).

Unfortunately, industrial hazards have been and continue to be a in the United States and around the world. For instance, on April 16, 1947, a fire broke out on the SS Grandcamp, which was docked in the port of Texas City; 2,300 tons of ammonium nitrate set off a series of fires and explosions that killed nearly 600 people. A major fire broke out at the Alon refinery in Big Spring, Texas, on February 18, 2008. One of the pumps at the Propylene Splitter Unit released a liquid, which was ignited by a nearby flame. While no one was injured in the explosion, toxic fumes were released into the air and I‐20 had to be shut down while fire fighters battled the blaze for more than 4 hours.

On October 4, 2010, a dike surrounding a reservoir at the Hungarian Aluminum Production and Sales facility broke and released 1 million cubic meters of alkaline water and red sludge. It traveled down a creek and settled in three communities. The noxious flood killed 10 people, injured 286, and affected 358 homes (Ministry of the Interior, 2011).

On August 6, 2012, a Chevron refinery in Richmond, California, experienced a rupture of a pipe in the #4 Crude Unit. Flammable hydrocarbon fluid was released in a large vapor cloud, which then was ignited by an open flame. Many workers saved their lives by evacuating. Even though a shelter‐in‐place order was given for nearby cities, over 15,000 people suffered from respiratory ailments and some had to be admitted to hospitals.

A year later, a major industrial accident occurred in Texas (Figure 1‐6). A stockpile of ammonium nitrate at the West Fertilizer Company exploded and killed 15 people, including many volunteer firefighters. Damage from the 2013 blast destroyed a school, a nursing home, and numerous homes and businesses in a 37‐block area. The event prompted an investigation by the Chemical Safety Board and underscores the importance of land‐use planning and emergency preparedness.

Figure 1‐6 The April 20, 2013, West Texas fertilizer plant explosion produced major damages, including to this apartment complex. Earl Armstrong/FEMA. http://www.fema.gov/media‐library/assets/images/70270

An even more devastating explosion occurred in Beirut on August 4, 2020. 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate were stored unsafely at a port warehouse for more than 6 years. For whatever reason the materials ignited, and a blast resulted equivalent of 1 kiloton of TNT. The explosion registered 3.3 magnitude on the Richter scale and was felt in Israel, Syria, Turkey, and even some parts of Europe. The disaster killed 204 people, injured 6,500, and left 300,000 homeless. Several protests occurred afterwards because of the lax safety standards. Unfortunately, such events may not only result from mistakes; some may be intentional. There is always a potential that industrial hazards could be triggered by terrorists seeking to cause death and destruction. In fact, some governmental officials initially believed the explosion was due to a terrorist attack.