A chemical disaster can occur when toxic chemicals are unintentionally released from storage or transportation. This can harm human health and the environment. Several common causes are process failures, human errors, natural disasters, and transportation accidents. Some notorious past disasters include the Bhopal gas tragedy, where a leak of methyl isocyanate gas from a pesticide plant in India killed thousands. Other major accidents involved fires and explosions at liquid petroleum gas storage facilities and chemical plants. Long term health effects from exposure can include respiratory and neurological issues.

2. CHEMICAL DISASTER
• Unintentional release of one or more chemical hazard substances which could harm
human health and the environment.
• Chemical disaster include fires, explosions, leakages or release of toxic or hazardous
materials that can cause people illness, injury, or disability.
• caused by natural disaster, or accidental human error, or deliberate move to cause chaos
and destructions for personal gain.
• It may occur whenever toxic materials are stored, transported or used.
• Most severe are industrial accidents, involving major chemical manufacturing and storage
facilities.

3. TOXIC CHEMICAL ROUTES OF ENTRY

4. CAUSES OF CHEMICAL DISASTER
 Process and safety systems failures
• Human errors
• Technical errors
• Management errors
 Induced effect of natural calamities
Accidents during the transportation
 Hazardous waste processing/ disposal
 Terrorist attack/ unrest leading to sabotage

5. COMMON HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS
 Acetone
Acetylene Gas
Ammonia gas
Argon gas
Benzene
Sodium Hydroxide
Chlorine gas
Hydrochloric acid
Hydrogen
Liquid Petroleum Gas
Methanol
Naphthol
Phosphoric acid
Sulphuric acid
Tri Nitro Toluene

6. BHOPAL GAS TRAGEDY
 Gas leak incident in India, considered the world's worst industrial disaster
 Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL), a subsidiary unit of UCC was built in1969 to
produce a pesticide, Sevin
 Methyl Iso thiocyanate(MIC) production plant was added in the year 1979.
 Occurred on the night of 2-3 December, 1984 when water entered into a tanker containing
42 tonnes of MIC.

8. BHOPAL GAS TRAGEDY
 Cause of the disaster still remains under debate.
 The Indian Government and local activists argue that slack management and deferred
maintenance created a situation where routine pipeline maintenance caused a backflow of
water into a MIC tank triggering the disaster.
 Whereas UCC contends that water entered the tank intentionally by a worker via a
missing pressure gauge.
 The resulting exothermic reaction increased the temperature inside the tank to over 200
°C and raised the pressure. This forced the emergency venting of pressure from the MIC
holding tank, releasing a large volume of toxic gases. About 30 metric tons of MIC
escaped from the tank into the atmosphere in 45 to 60 minutes.

9. BHOPAL GAS TRAGEDY
 Over 5 lakh people were exposed to methyl iso thiocyanate (MIC) gas
 Estimates vary on the death toll. The official immediate death toll was 2,259. The
Government of Madhya Pradesh confirmed a total of 3,787 deaths related to the gas
release.
 A government affidavit in 2006 stated that the leak caused 558,125 injuries, including
38,478 temporary partial injuries and approximately 3,900 severely and permanently
disabling injuries.
 Others estimate that 8,000 died within two weeks, and another 8,000 or more have since
died from gas-related diseases.

10. LONG TERM EFFECTS
A number of clinical studies are performed. The quality varies, but the different reports
support each other.
 Eyes: Chronic conjunctivitis, scars on cornea, corneal opacities, early cataracts
 Respiratory tracts: Obstructive and/or restrictive disease, pulmonary fibrosis,
aggravation of TB and chronic bronchitis
 Neurological system: Impairment of memory, finer motor skills, numbness etc.
 Psychological problems: Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
 This incident also had many other effects such as massive environmental pollution

12. TOP 10 CHEMICAL ACCIDENTS
 Feyzin Explosion, France (1966)
 Flixborough, UK (1974)
 Seveso, Italy (1976)
 San Juanico LPG Disaster, Mexico City
(1984)
 Bhopal, India (1984)
 Schweisehalle, Switzerland (1986)
 Baia Mare Cyanide Spill, Romania
(2000)
 Enschede Fireworks, Netherlands
(2000)
 Grande Paroisse Fertilizer Plant
Explosion, France (2001) Texas City
Refinery Explsion, Texas, USA (2005)

13. Feyzin Explosion, France (1966)
• An operation to drain off an aqueous layer from a propane storage sphere was attempted.
• Two valves were opened in series on the bottom of the sphere. When the operation was nearly complete, the
upper valve was closed and then cracked open again. No flow came out of the cracked valve, so it was opened
further.
• The alarm was raised and traffic on the nearby motorway was stopped. The resulting vapour cloud is thought to
have found its source of ignition from a car about 160 m away. The storage sphere was enveloped in a fierce
fire and upon lifting of the relief valve a stream of escaping vapour was ignited.
• The lpg tank farm where the sphere was located consisted of four 1200 m3 propane and four 2000 m3 butane
spheres.
• The fire killed 18 people and injured 81 others. Five of the storage spheres were destroyed
• Uses - portable stoves , refrigerant , domestic and industrial fuel , motor fuel , shipping fuel

14. Feyzin Explosion, France (1966)

15. Feyzin Explosion, France (1966)
• Failures in technical measures
• Design codes – pipework- The escaping liquid accumulated beneath the storage sphere rather than draining away from it to a
place where it could be allowed to burn harmlessly.
• Secondary containment -It took ten minutes to raise the alarm as the operator travelled on foot 800 m to alert other people.
There was no strategy for raising the alarm in the event of a flammable release.
• Operating procedures: emergency procedures
• Emergency response / spill control-Attempts to keep motor vehicles away were only partially successful. The fire fighting strategy
adopted was inappropriate. The local fire brigade had not been briefed about how to deal with such an incident.
• Emergency response / spill control - Many of the design deficiencies such as insulation or permanent water sprays on the
spheres, and reinforcement of the legs, which are now standard, have been incorporated into codes of practice following this
incident.
• Design codes - plant: special cases for lpg storage

16. SEVESO, ITALY (1976)
• The seveso disaster was an industrial accident that
occurred, in a small chemical manufacturing in
the lombardy region of italy.
• It resulted in the highest known exposure to 2,3,7,8-
tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) in residential
populations
• Adverse effect- Chloracne (halogenated arommatic
compounds)
• Peripheral neuropathy and liver enzyme induction.
Chloracne

17. SAN JUANICO LPG DISASTER, MEXICO CITY (1984)
• The explosions consumed 11,000 m3 of LPG,
representing one third of mexico city's entire liquid
petroleum gas supply.
• The explosions destroyed the facility and devastated
the local town with 500–600 people killed, and 5000–
7000 others suffering severe burns
• The disaster was initiated by a gas leak on the site,
likely caused by a pipe rupture during transfer
operations, which caused a plume of LPG to
concentrate at ground level for 10 minutes.

18. SANDOZ CHEMICAL SPILL (1986)
• The sandoz chemical spill was a major environmental
disaster caused by a fire and its subsequent extinguishing, on 1
november 1986, which released toxic agrochemicals into the air
and resulted in tons of pollutants entering the rhine river, turning it
red.
• The chemicals caused a massive mortality of wildlife downstream,
killing, among other animals, a large proportion of the european
eel population in the rhine, although the situation subsequently
recovered within a couple of years.

19. BAIA MARE CYANIDE SPILL, ROMANIA (2000)
• Leak of cyanide near baia mare, romania, into the someș river by the gold
mining company aurul,
• The polluted waters eventually reached the tisza river and then the danube,
killing large numbers of fish in hungary, serbia, and romania
• The company claimed it had the ability to clean up the toxic tailings at the baia
mare mine, which had begun to be spread as toxic dust by the wind. promising
to deal with them and to extract remaining gold from them via gold cyanidation,
• The company shipped its waste product to a dam nearby
• On the night of january 30, 2000, a dam holding contaminated waters burst and
100,000 cubic metres of cyanide-contaminated water spilled over some
farmland and then into the someș river.
• Esmeralda exploration blamed excessive snowfall for the dam failure

20. Enschede Fireworks, Netherlands (2000)
• The enschede fireworks disaster was a
catastrophic fireworks explosion which was caused by
a fire, killed 23 people, including four firefighters, and
injured nearly 1,000
• He fire which triggered the explosion is believed to
have started inside the central building of the S.E.
Fireworks depot, in a work area where some 900 kg
(2,000 lb) of fireworks were stored.
• It then spread outside the building to two full shipping
containers that were being used to illegally store more
display incendiaries. When 177 tonnes (of fireworks
exploded, it destroyed the surrounding residential
area.[5
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Reddit

21. Grande Paroisse Fertilizer Plant Explosion, France (2001)
Texas City
• AZF (french initialism for azote fertilisant, i.E. Nitrogen fertiliser) was the name of
a chemical factory in toulouse, france, which exploded on 21 september 2001.
The blast was equivalent to 20-40 tons of TNT, producing an earthquake with a
magnitude of 3.4, and was heard 80 km away (50 miles).
• The incident resulted in 29 deaths and left 2,500 wounded. Damages paid by
insurance companies exceeded 1.5 billion euros
• Three hundred tonnes of ammonium nitrate was stored (the maximum capacity
was 2,000 tonnes) in hangar. The whole factory was destroyed making a crater
with a depth about 7 m (23 ft) and a diameter of 40 m (131 ft);[1] steel girders were
found 3 km away from the explosion.

22. Refinery Explsion, Texas, USA (2005)
• The texas city refinery explosion occurred on march 23, 2005, when
a vapor cloud of natural gas and petroleum[a] ignited and violently
exploded at the isomerization (ISOM) process unit at the BP texas city
refinery in texas city, texas, killing 15 workers, injuring 180 others and
severely damaging the refinery.
• One of the primary safety critical steps in the pre-startup process was
the use of the BP pre-startup safety review (PSSR) procedure.; but this
essential safety procedure was not completed.[11]
• Safety-critical equipment which had not been resolved -an inoperative
pressure-control valve (PV-5002), a defective high-level alarm in the
raffinate splitter tower (LSH-5102), and a defective sight glass used to
indicate fluid levels at the base of the splitter tower. Also, the vital splitter
tower level transmitter had not been calibrated.

23. IMPACTS OF CHEMICAL DISASTER
 leads to serious and varied impacts
Most hazardous impact – extreme pollution of air, water and food chain upto life
threatening levels even
 Physical damage: damage or destruction of structure and infrastructure.
 Casualties: may result in large scale . While quick medical relief is essential to save
lives, immediate disposal of dead bodies also needs planning.
Environmental damage : likely to contaminate air, water , land, crops, vegetation and
animal life.

24. PREPAREDNESS & RESPONSE
 Hazard mapping – accurate information of location, type and quantities of hazardous
material being stored, used or produced should be known at district and state levels.
 Hazardous material identification – should be stored and handled as per norms laid
down
 Inspection of chemical plants & storage facilities – regular and systematic inspection
must be followed.
 Monitoring of the toxic waste disposal – toxic wastes dumped underground have
resulted in pollution of sub-soil water. Disposal of toxic waste in rivers and drains, especially
passing through populated areas should be avoided.
 Monitoring pollution levels – gives warning of toxicity in land, water or atmosphere

26. DO’S AND DON’TS
 Do not panic, evacuate calmly and quickly perpendicular to wind direction
through the designated escape route
 Keep a wet handkerchief or piece of cloth/ sari on face during evacuation
 Keep the sick, elderly, weak, handicapped and other people who are unable
to evacuate inside house and close all the doors and windows tightly.
 Do not consume the uncovered food/ water etc open to the air, drink only from
bottle
 Change into fresh clothing after reaching safe place/ shelter, and wish hands
properly
•

27. DO’S AND DON’TS
 Inform Fire & Emergency Services, Police and medical services from safe
location by calling 101, 100 and 108 respectively.
 Listen to PA (Public Addressal) System of the plant/ factory, local radio/ TV
channels for advice from district administration/fire/health/police and other
concerned authorities
 Provide correct and accurate information to government official.
 Inform others on occurrence of event at public gathering places (like school,
shopping centre, theatre etc.).
Don’t pay attention to the rumours and don’t spread rumours.

28. GENERAL PRECAUTIONS DURING NORMAL TIME
• Do not smoke, lit fire or spark in the identified hazardous area
•Sensitize the community living near the industrial units and they should be more
vigilant about the nature of industrial units and associated risks.
•Keep the contact numbers of nearest hazardous industry, fire station, police
station, control room, health services and district control room, for emergency
use.
•Avoid housing near the industries producing or processing the hazardous
chemicals, if possible.
•Participate in all the capacity building programmes organized by the
government/ voluntary organizations / industrial units.

29. GENERAL PRECAUTIONS DURING NORMAL TIME
• Take part in preparing disaster management plan for the community and
identify safe shelter along with safe and easy access routes.
•Prepare a family disaster management plan and explain it to all the family
members.
•Make the family/ neighbours aware of the basic characteristics of various
poisonous/ hazardous chemicals and the first aid required to treat them.
•Adequate number of personal protective equipments needs to be made
available, to deal with emergency situation.
•Prepare an emergency kit of items and essentials in the house, including
medicines, documents and valuables.

30. SAFETY INITIATIVES TAKEN IN INDIA
•The comprehensive legal/ institutional framework exists in our country.
•A number of regulations covering the safety in transportation, liability,
insurance and compensations have been enacted.
•Following are the relevant provisions on chemical disaster management,
prevailing in country:-
• Explosives Act 1884
• Petroleum Act 1934
• Factories Act 1948
• Insecticides Act 1968
• Environment Protection Act 1986
• Motor Vehicles Act 1988
• Public Liability Insurance Act 1991
• Disaster Management Act 2005

31. SAFETY INITIATIVES TAKEN IN INDIA
• The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) of India had come out with very
specific guidelines on Chemical Disaster Management.
• The guidelines have been prepared to provide the directions to ministries, departments and
state authorities for the preparation of their detailed disaster management plans.
• These guidelines call for a proactive, participatory, multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral
approach at various levels for chemical disaster preparedness and response.
• Further, NDMA has provided specific inputs to the GOM for avoidance of future chemical
disasters in the country, along with suggested amendments on the existing framework.
• NDMA is also working on revamping of CIFs ( Chief Inspectorate of Factories) to strengthen
chemical safety in India.
• In addition, MoEF and NDMA are in process of finalizing the National Action Plan on
Chemical Industrial Disaster Management (NAP-CIDM), which will act as the roadmap for
chemical disaster management in India.

32. SUMMARY

34. THANK YOU