【Haichuan Chemical Accident Updates】An accident involving a leak of the toxic gas styrene occurred on the 7th at an LG Chem chemical plant in India
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On the 7th, an accident involving the release of toxic gases occurred at a chemical plant owned by LG Chem in Andhra Pradesh, India. The impact was so severe that many residents living in the vicinity suffered from symptoms such as burning eyes and difficulty breathing. According to local reports, the accident resulted in 5 deaths, including 1 child, and over 200 others were injured and taken to hospitals. According to NDTV, after a gas leak occurred at the chemical plant, many residents living in the vicinity reported burning eyes and difficulty breathing; firefighters rushed them to hospitals for treatment. After the incident, the local authorities promptly posted messages on Twitter about the gas leak, and announced the affected area of the chemical plant. They urged residents in the vicinity to stay at home, avoid going outside, and wear masks or cover their mouths and noses with wet cloth to prevent inhaling toxic gases. So far, this accident has resulted in 5 deaths and over 200 injuries, with officials estimating that the number of casualties is likely to rise further. The factory where the toxic gas leak occurred was established in 1961; it was originally named Indian Polymers Company, but it was acquired by South Korea’s LG Chem in 1997 and renamed LG Polymers India Company. The company specializes in producing plastic raw materials such as polystyrene and expanded polystyrene.
On May 8, Reuters cited a source in Andhra Pradesh, in southeastern India, as saying that another chemical gas leak occurred early in the morning at a factory there owned by South Korea’s LG Chem. The plant began leaking chemical gases in the early hours of the 7th, and so far it has caused at least 11 deaths. Residents within a 5-kilometer radius of the factory have all been evacuated. Reportedly, a few hours earlier, an LG Chem spokesperson in Seoul as well as the relevant authorities in New Delhi stated that the leak had been brought under control. The head of the Visakhapatnam metropolitan area in Andhra Pradesh told Reuters that the leakage situation was gradually coming under control, and the evacuation of residents was merely part of safety precautions. It is understood that the factory premises were closed during the COVID-19 lockdown. Recently, the workers have been preparing to return to work. At the time of the incident, the synthetic chemical styrene leaked from the factory building. The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister said on the 7th that the accident might be related to the raw materials having been stored for too long.
I. Information on the company involved in the accident: The factory where the toxic gas leak occurred was established in 1961 in Visakhapatnam, an industrial port city in Andhra Pradesh, India. It was originally named Indian Polymers Corporation; in 1997 it was acquired by South Korea’s LG Chem and renamed LG Polymers India. This company specializes in the production of plastic raw materials such as polystyrene and expanded polystyrene. Approximately 5 million people live in Visakhapatnam city and its surrounding areas.
II. Course of the accident: At around 2:30 a.m. on May 7, a leak occurred in a styrene storage tank at LG Polymers Ltd., located in the Naidu Thota area of Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India, while the company was preparing to resume operations. After the incident, the local authorities promptly posted information about the gas leak on Twitter, and outlined the affected area of the chemical plant. They urged residents in the vicinity to stay at home, avoid going outside, and wear masks or cover their mouths and noses with wet cloth to prevent inhaling toxic gases. At around 8:30, the Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) began spraying water in the area to mitigate the effects of the gas leak. At around 8:40, local ** and Indian Navy personnel were forced to take action to evacuate the residents of 5 nearby villages. The maximum affected area due to gas leakage is 1–1.5 kilometers, but the odor spreads over 2–2.5 kilometers. At 9:50, more than 3,000 people were evacuated, and over 170 people were taken to hospitals. ”At 10:10, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with local officials and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) regarding the leak, and is closely monitoring the developments. According to a member of the NDRF, the evacuation work in the surrounding areas has been largely completed. To date, the accident has resulted in 10 deaths, over 1,000 people seeking medical treatment, more than 3,000 people forced to evacuate, and over 5,000 people affected; some residents in the vicinity have experienced symptoms such as eye irritation and difficulty breathing.
III. Preliminary analysis of the cause of the accident: The leak occurred in a chemical storage tank with a capacity of 2,000 tons, while another container nearby holding 3,000 tons of chemicals remained intact. According to Assistant Police Commissioner Swaroop Rani, due to the COVID-19 lockdown measures, the styrene in the tank was left unattended, resulting in chemical reactions that generated heat inside the tank and caused a gas leak.
Styrene accident cases: I. The styrene spill incident at Shanghai Port in 2001. Around 8 a.m. on April 17, 2001, the South Korean chemical cargo ship “Dae Yong,” which was heading from Japan to Ningbo Port, collided with the ship of ** nationality named “Dawei,” which was traveling from Shanghai to India. The speed of both ships was between 11 and 12 knots, and no avoidance measures were taken; as a result, the two ships collided instantly, causing severe vibrations in their hulls. The accident resulted in a massive leakage of styrene from a South Korean cargo ship, with the amount leaked reaching 703 tons. “The preliminary investigation results of the 4·17 accident confirm that this pollution incident was the largest marine styrene spill in the world. Case 2: The styrene spill from a cargo ship off the French coast in 2000. On October 31, 2000, the ship \"Yevoli Sun\" ran aground off the French coast, resulting in a spill of over 200 tons of styrene. This incident caused extreme panic and shock within the European Union, and particularly in French society.
Case 3: The styrene leakage incident at Xinanjiang Chemical Company in 2002. At 10 a.m. on April 4, 2002, Gao Jingliang, a worker at Jiande Xinanjiang Plastic Chemical Industry Co., Ltd., poured 600 kilograms of styrene into a reactor whose bottom valve had not been closed, resulting in the leakage of over 100 kilograms of styrene. Styrene vapors spread to the nearby Genglou Central Primary School, causing 864 teachers and students to experience symptoms such as headaches, nausea, abdominal pain, and coughing to varying degrees. Among them, 345 students including Zhou Shiping were examined or hospitalized, which led to actions by the students’ parents such as collective protests and attacks on the company involved.
Case 3: The styrene leakage incident at Xinanjiang Chemical Company in 2002. At 10 a.m. on April 4, 2002, Gao Jingliang, a worker at Jiande Xinanjiang Plastic Chemical Industry Co., Ltd., poured 600 kilograms of styrene into a reactor whose bottom valve had not been closed, resulting in the leakage of over 100 kilograms of styrene. Styrene vapors spread to the nearby Genglou Central Primary School, causing 864 teachers and students to experience symptoms such as headaches, nausea, abdominal pain, and coughing to varying degrees. Among them, 345 students including Zhou Shiping were examined or hospitalized, which led to actions by the students’ parents such as collective protests and attacks on the company involved.