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BBC: Massive Toxic Chlorine gas leak at Jordan's Aqaba port kills 13, injures hundreds !!! 1

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MJCronin

MJCronin

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Monday, 06/27/2022

A massive release of toxic chlorine gas at Jordan's Red Sea port of Aqaba has killed 13 and injured more than 260 others, state media report.

Authorities reported that a Chlorine storage container dropped while being transported as a result of a crane malfunction.

CCTV footage showed the container suddenly dropping on to a ship and then exploding.

A large cloud of bright yellow gas is seen spreading across the ground, scattering people who were running for their lives.

Jordan State media said on Monday night that 123 of the injured were still being treated at local hospitals for chemical exposure. Some were reportedly in critical condition.



______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Chlorine is a chemical widely used in industry and in household cleaning products. At normal temperatures it is a yellow-green gas, but is commonly pressurised and cooled for storage and shipment.When chlorine is inhaled, swallowed or comes into contact with skin, it reacts with water to produce hydrochloric acid that can damage cells in the body. Inhaling high levels of chlorine causes fluid to build up in the lungs - a life-threatening condition known as pulmonary oedema.


MJCronin
Sr. Process Engineer
 
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I have worked on Cl rail car accidents, very nasty.
Lifting this with a single sling is very sloppy.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
P.E. Metallurgy, consulting work welcomed
 
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Dulce et Decorum Est
By Wilfred Owen

Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,
Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,
Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs,
And towards our distant rest began to trudge.
Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots,
But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind;
Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots
Of gas-shells dropping softly behind.

Gas! GAS! Quick, boys!—An ecstasy of fumbling
Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time,
But someone still was yelling out and stumbling
And flound’ring like a man in fire or lime.—
Dim through the misty panes and thick green light,
As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.

In all my dreams before my helpless sight,
He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.

If in some smothering dreams, you too could pace
Behind the wagon that we flung him in,
And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin;
If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood
Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,
Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud
Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,—
My friend, you would not tell with such high zest
To children ardent for some desperate glory,
The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est
Pro patria mori.
 
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I breathed the stuff, once.

I found myself unable to continue breathing, as if my diaphragm was paralyzed. A few very unsettling seconds later, I started again.


That is one hell of a video!


spsalso
 
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I've caught a whiff of HCL from a burned our air conditioning unit with a hermetic compressor. Not pleasant.

I don't know who this source is but they seem to provide non-sensational information.


There may have been significant evacuations of nearby cities. Sad to see the ignorant standing by to film instead of evacuating.
 
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TugboatEng said:
I've caught a whiff of HCL from a burned our air conditioning unit with a hermetic compressor. Not pleasant.
Click to expand...
The only time I have experience this is with a less than cautious deliberate sniff of an HCL container for a swimming pool to see if it was the full one or the one filled with water. Cleared out my nasal cavity and I quickly dunked my head into the pool!

TugboatEng said:
There may have been significant evacuations of nearby cities. Sad to see the ignorant standing by to film instead of evacuating.
Click to expand...
Were many of the 'ignorant' filming really at risk? Chlorine is heavier than air and the majority seemed to quickly disperse along the waterline. Those who were immediately nearby did seem to exit with minimal delay. I presume the dead and badly injured were either inside the ship or immediately around it. Where escape from the gas was difficult and concentrations would have been extraordinarily high.
 
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I notice that truck driver got it in gear pretty quick.
 
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Yes, the driver, who appeared to be delivering what could have been another container of Chlorine, did move out very quickly. Perhaps he had experience hauling Chlorine and knew that at the first sign of anything yellow in the air, to get the hell out fast.

John R. Baker, P.E. (ret)
Irvine, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

The secret of life is not finding someone to live with
It's finding someone you can't live without
 
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From LinkedIN: - The Rigging failed, Slings were grossly overloaded ----Jordanian Chemical Process Safety Engineers Society

On July, 3rd, 22, the head of the #Aqaba_Port incident investigation committee, the Interior Minister, held a press conference where he announced the initial findings. The unfortunate #accident resulted in the death of 13 and the injury of more than 250 people, 8 of whom are still receiving medical treatment.

The committee examined the #incident scene, evaluated the status of the lifting equipment, and inspected the lifting slings to verify their durability and specs. Additionally, the committee interviewed more than 120 concerned individuals, reviewed the available container’s handling procedures, assessed the #competency of employees, and evaluated the level of compliance with safety standards and procedures, especially those concerned with the handling of #hazardous_chemicals.

The primary accident cause was identified to be the use of improper lifting slings designed for 8.6 tons load, while the actual lift (the #chlorine container) weighed 28.9 tons; i.e. about 3 times the sling design load, which eventually led to the sling failure. A total of 18 containers were supposed to be loaded onto the freighter, while the failure occurred during the loading of the fifth container. Noting that this is the second time lane 4 is used to transport such containers.

Other contributing factors identified were the deficiency and noncompliance with the #safety_procedures concerning the handling of hazardous chemicals, poor and informal #hazard_communication practices, lack of #training and competencies, unavailability of #safety_officers during hazardous operations, improper follow-up of daily #operations and #maintenance reports, poor #leadership, and unclear #roles_and_responsibilities. Noting that several of the interviewed concerned personnel stated that they were not aware of the weight nor the content of the containers. Moreover, a clear administrative slack and negligence were noted, where over 713 laborers were employed since 2016 without need, increasing the number of employees to over 2,300, which formed a considerable burden on the company.

It is worth mentioning that a report prepared by the Social Security Corporation about two months before the accident underlined major weaknesses in the safety conditions, and that some lifting equipment panels were out of service and required maintenance.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Environment, Royal Scientific Society, and the Civil Defence Department have carried out several air and water analyses to ensure that there is no chlorine contamination. On the other hand, the damaged container was safely transported to the hazardous waste storage facility (Swaqa).

The investigation committee press conference (in Arabic) on the below link:


MJCronin
Sr. Process Engineer
 
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njwq_biucbwquibcuiuqhcdwhqjcndwjq_2_xmiv9u.jpg


Some photo details of the incident ..... Again, 13 dead

Note that the poorly made (perhaps homemade?) sling was grossly overloaded and seperated in two places

Chlorine makes such a colorful yellow cloud of death ....

MJCronin
Sr. Process Engineer
 
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Home made is no excuse for making a bad splice. None of the equipment needed to weave a Flemish eye except the vice has even a hint of high tech. It does require some skill of the rigger, and is more difficult than weaving an eye in non metallic rope. Example
I suspect most of the deformation in Mr MJCronin's pictures is the deformation that you would see in a pull to failure proof test. I suspect the haphazard attention to many of the important things needed to make a waterfront ship loading business run safety (cited in the Arabic article Mr MJCronin posted) is a significant contributor, 713 non working employees does not help.
 
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You don't even need a vise to do a Flemish Eye. I've done those on the ground.
 
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SPSalso said:
I breathed the stuff, once.

I found myself unable to continue breathing, as if my diaphragm was paralyzed. A few very unsettling seconds later, I started again.
Click to expand...

Glottal stoppage reflex. Small amounts of irritants (esp acid or caustic vapors) will cause this, followed by a quick exhalation to clear air passages (i.e. coughing relfex). Inhalation of more concentrated amounts will cause the body to completely stop the breathing process by closing the glotis. This reflex will eventually be overcome by the need for respiration, so this may only save someone if they have the capacity to leave the vapor cloud quickly and if they have not inhaled a lethal dose.

IDLH value of Cl2 is only 10 ppm, but acute (exposure for a single or few breaths) lethal concentrations are ~1,000 ppm. Death is not immediate, and occurs due to pulmonary edema, feeling like suffocating or drowning. Quite a horrible way to die.

Notice how quickly the cloud settled due to the high density. People on the bridge of the ship might have been able to survive due to their elevation. Also a good visual lesson on people using ALOHA or other dispersion modeling programs on how quickly heavy gases can settle.

 
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I worked nine years in a petrochemical plant with THREE operating electrolyzer units producing chlorine and caustic soda. Small leaks were a common thing. We all carried personal escape respirators. One of those would 'load up' pretty quick in any kind of release.

I got gassed a couple of times - invisible cloud, but enough to warrant a trip to first aid. Standard treatment protocol if you walked to first aid under your own power was a issue of strong cough syrup to counter the uncontrollable coughing resulting from a good whiff of chlorine. Getting a good whiff will severely alter your concentration.

I had the 'privilege' of assisting in the repair of a gasket leaking enough chlorine to form a visible cloud. The work was done using an air line mask - positive - pressure, with safety attendants outside the immediate area. The job went quickly, but the gas was enough to alter the coloring of my work clothes from blue denim to some awful brown shade.

old field guy
 
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Oldfieldguy,

I'm surprised you were allowed in a Cl2 cloud in just denim and a supplied-air mask - no consideration given for skin protection with class A or B suits? At least, that is what I understood by saying your work denim was discolored from CL2 exposure.
 
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TiCl4-
Mid-1980's, on graveyard shift (2300-0700). Different world back then.

Actual exposure time was probably less then ten minutes.

old field guy
 
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