On the night of December 3, 1984, a hazardous gas leak occurred at the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal, India. The leak released 50,000 pounds of poisonous gas, including MIC, hydrogen cyanide, and phosgene, into the air. The gas spread rapidly, causing widespread panic and illness. Ghulam Dastagir, a station superintendent, took charge at Bhopal Junction Station and ensured the safe departure of a train, while also helping those affected by the gas.
Despite initial confusion, doctors eventually discovered that the gas was MIC, which breaks down into hydrogen cyanide. However, the company downplayed the severity of the incident, and it took several days for the correct treatment, sodium thiosulfate, to be administered. The delay in treatment resulted in the deaths of many people who could have been saved.
The incident highlights the importance of independent media, as a local journalist, Rajkumar Keswani, had warned of the dangers of the factory in several articles prior to the incident. The Bhopal gas tragedy remains one of the world's worst industrial disasters, with thousands of people killed and many more affected by the gas.
Here are the key facts from the text:
1. On December 3, 1984, a hazardous incident occurred at the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal, releasing 50,000 pounds of poisonous gas.
2. The gases released included MIC, hydrogen cyanide, and phosgene.
3. The incident occurred at approximately midnight, and the station superintendent, H.S. Bhurvey, and deputy station superintendent, Ghulam Dastagir, were on duty at Bhopal Junction train station.
4. Dastagir experienced burning eyes and a sore throat and searched for Bhurvey to inform him about the situation.
5. Bhurvey was found lying on the ground and had passed away.
6. Dastagir took charge and decided to let the Gorakhpur-Bombay Express train leave the station early to prevent passengers from being harmed.
7. The train was allowed to leave despite being scheduled to stay at the station for 20 more minutes.
8. Dastagir assumed all responsibilities for breaking protocol and ordered the station staff to clear the way for the train's early departure.
9. The incident occurred during the night when most people were asleep at home.
10. Some individuals took refuge in their cars and tried to leave the city, while others gathered at the station, unsure of what to do.
11. Dastagir made an SOS call to nearby stations, and four ambulances, paramedics, and railway doctors reached the station to help people.
12. The hospital had a capacity of approximately 1,200 beds and admitted around 4,000 patients by 2:10 AM.
13. Doctors and paramedics struggled to identify the illness or its cause, as the symptoms were unfamiliar to them.
14. The company's medical officer, L.D. Loya, told doctors that the gas was not poisonous and advised the application of wet bandages to the eyes.
15. A German toxicologist, Max Daunderer, arrived in Bhopal with 50,000 doses of sodium thiosulfate to help the distressed patients.
16. When doctors used sodium thiosulfate, it proved successful, with many patients recovering.
17. One patient died after the administration of sodium thiosulfate, leading to widespread rumors that a German doctor had killed a patient with the antidote.
18. The doctor and his antidotes were sent back, and senior professors at Gandhi Medical College rejected the use of sodium thiosulfate.
19. Dr. M. N. Nagu, the director of Madhya Pradesh's health services, published a circular stating that sodium thiosulfate should not be given unless it was conclusively proved in the laboratory that it was cyanide poisoning.
20. Some doctors remained convinced that patients were suffering from cyanide poisoning and continued to administer sodium thiosulfate.
21. The company issued a statement clarifying that MIC is not cyanide and naturally degrades into the environment when exposed to water.
22. The company's statement was very late, and numerous patients were already in the hospital awaiting treatment.
23. The company was in the midst of a huge compensation claim and wanted to minimize the side effects of MIC to save money.
24. Government authorities were also caught in the confusion, resulting in the unfortunate death of many individuals who could have been saved if they had received correct and timely treatment.
25. Ghulam Dasgir spent the last 19 years of his life mostly in the hospital and passed away in 2003.
26. Numerous warnings were given before the incident, but neither the company nor the government authorities took any preventive action.
27. Three experts from the US were sent by the company in May 1982 to assess the plant's safety measures and identified over 60 hazards.
28. The issues and warnings raised in the report were published in three articles in a local newspaper, Rajpath, by a journalist, Rajkumar Keswani.
29. Keswani's last article on the Bhopal plant was published on June 16, 1984, in the national newspaper Jansatta, warning of a situation of looming disaster in Bhopal.
30. In 1975, Bhopal Municipal Corporation, headed by a highly respected bureaucrat, MN Buch, issued a notice to remove Carbide from Bhopal, but Buch was transferred, and Carbide paid ₹25,000 to the Corporation for the construction of a public park.