CHEMICAL DISASTERS:

CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES

Dr. Anil K. Gupta

Associate Professor
NIDM

DM Terminology

Hazard
Vulnerability (Exposure)
Accident
Disaster
Prevention
Emergency

Preparedness
Response
Compensation
Litigations

On-site
Off-site

CHEMICAL DISASTERS
Chemical disasters are occurrence of
emission, fire or explosion involving one or
more hazardous chemicals in the course of
industrial
activity
or
storage
or
transportation or due to natural events
leading to serious effects inside or outside
the installation likely to cause loss of life
and property including adverse effects on
the environment.

CHARECTERESTICS
Chemical accidents may be classified by

Chemicals involved,
Sources of release
Extent of the contaminated are
Number of people exposed,
Routes of exposure an
Health and medical consequences.

Causes of Chemical Disasters

Explosion in a plant handling or producing toxic
substances
Accidents in storage facilities handling large and
various quantities of chemicals
Accidents during the transportation of chemicals
from one site to another
Misuse of chemicals, resulting in contamination of
food stocks or the environment, overdosing of
agrochemicals

Causes of Chemical Disasters

Improper waste management such as uncontrolled
dumping of toxic
Chemicals, failure in waste management systems
or accidents in wastewater treatment plants
Technological system failures
Failures of plant safety design or plant
components
Natural hazards such as fire, earthquakes,
landslides
Sabotage
human error

Sources of Chemical Disasters

Manufacturing and Formulation Facility (including
during Commissioning & Process Operation;
Maintenance, Disposal and Waste Management)
Material Handling and Storage
Bulk Storages: In manufacturing facilities and isolated
storages (including tank farms in Ports & Docks)
Storages of Small Containers: In manufacturing
facilities, in isolated warehouses and godowns, and
Storage of Fuels (LPG Depots etc.)

Pipelines, and
Transportation (road-, rail -, air- & waterways)

Trigger Mechanisms
Process and Safety Control System Failures:
Technical errors such as design defects, fatigue
and metal failure, corrosion etc.;
human
errors
namely
neglecting
safety
instructions, deviating from specified procedures;
lack of information i.e., absence of emergency
warning procedure, non-disclosure of line of
treatment etc.,
organizational errors viz. non-conductance of
mock drills. etc for ensuring state of quick
response and preparedness, poor emergency
planning and co-ordination etc.

Trigger
Natural calamities
The Indian sub-continent highly prone
to natural disasters
These events trigger Chemical
disasters. For e.g., Release of acrylonitrile at Bhuj,

earthquake 2001, and Damage to Phosphoric acid sludge

containment during Orissa Supercyclone in 1999.

Terrorist attacks/Sabotage

Release
TYPE
Gas release
Liquid release
Two-phase flow
CAUSE
- Leakage
- Vent
- Rupture

Consequences of Chemical
Disasters

Failures
Design / equipment/ system
Operability (human or management
failure):
KSA
M or E (Management/ organizational)
Information/feedback

Response time leads to scenario

Recurring Causes of Recent

Chemical Accidents: Common Factors
1. Inadequate hazard review or process hazards
analysis
2. Installation of pollution control equipment

3. Use of inappropriate or poorly designed

equipment
4. Inadequate indications of process condition
5. Warnings went unheeded

Toxic effects of chemicals

Chemicals enter the body through the skin, eyes,
lungs or digestive tract.
The rate of absorption via these paths is
different for different chemicals
Effects can be local (e.g. burning or blistering of
the skin, eyes or respiratory tract) or systemic,
and
the pattern may be influenced by age, gender,
immune state, non-comitant exposures and general
fitness

Toxic effects.
Some effects (e.g. eye and respiratory irritation
or central nervous system depression) can occur
within minutes or hours
Other effects (e.g. congenital malformations or
cancers) may take months or years

Pathways of exposure

Public-health effects of
chemicals
Stress and anxiety
Deaths, Burns/injuries and illness
Societal and economic costs

Fire & Explosion

Material characteristics
Conditions
Atmospheric condition
Internal
External

Temperature, Pressure, Wind

Ignitability, inflammable
Explosion
Source of ignition

Inflammability

Dow & Mond Index

GPH & SPH
Physical effects
Amount
Direction
Flow characteristics
Area/containment

Fire scenarios

Jet Fire
Vapour cloud
Vapour cloud explosion
Pool fire
BLEVE

Fire Impacts
Heat wave (fire)
Fire lethality
Fire burns

Shock waves (explosion)

Flying objects/ injuries
Major damages
Glass window cracks

Core zone
Impact zone
Buffer zone

Impacts..

Short-term Vs. Long-term

Loss of lives
Loss of economy
Loss of market
Law & order trouble and trauma
Loss of peace and harmony

MCA
Maximum credible accident
PRA
ALARP

Thank you
Lesson:
Managing a disaster like a chemical accident
is not a charity or a welfare, BUT its our
prime duty, its our accountability, and ITS
the basic fundamental right of a person,
organization, society or state.