Word: methyl
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...weak to withstand the poison. A number of the survivors were permanently blinded, others suffered serious lesions in their nasal and bronchial passages. Doctors also noticed concussions, paralysis and signs of epilepsy, suggesting, they said, the presence of some other chemical-perhaps phosgene, which is used to make methyl isocyanate. Six days after the accident, patients were still arriving at Hamidia Hospital at the rate of one a minute, many of them doubled over with racking coughs, gasping for breath or convulsed with violent spasms that brought a red froth to the lips...
...Indian officials began their investigations, details started to emerge about what went wrong at the plant. Methyl isocyanate, a colorless chemical compound that behaves in humans and animals like a potent form of tear gas (see box), is used by Union Carbide as an ingredient in producing relatively toxic pesticides known as Sevin and Temik. At the Bhopal facility it was stored in three double-walled, stainless steel tanks, buried mostly underground to limit leakage in the event of an accident and to help shield them from air temperatures that could soar to 120° F in summer. Refrigerated to keep...
Whether through human error or mechanical failure, neither of those safety measures worked last week. The plant had been temporarily closed for maintenance two weeks before the accident, and both the methyl isocyanate storage tanks and the pipes connecting them were under repair. According to Madanlal Ranji, president of the plant's labor union, the scrubber was also in the process of being fixed. To make matters worse, a critical panel in the control room had been removed, perhaps as part of the maintenance program, thus preventing the leak from showing up on monitors...
...Bhopal and elsewhere, medical authorities last week began to grow concerned about the long-term effects of exposure to methyl isocyanate. While there is no evidence that the chemical causes cancer, doctors in Bhopal believe that many survivors of the accident may suffer from emphysema, asthma or bronchitis. In addition, some medical experts suspect that the poisoning could result in damage to the liver and the kidneys, and could have other even more harrowing effects. "The gas affects the central nervous system," said Dr. Sanjay Mittal, a doctor at Hamidia Hospital. "In my opinion, this increases the chances of permanent...
Last week's disaster in Bhopal focused world attention on two highly volatile and toxic gases, methyl isocyanate and phosgene. They, along with many other chemicals, are used in the production of pesticides. Methyl isocyanate (MIC) helps produce Union Carbide's Temik, a product marketed under Robert Gordon Haines, the company's manager for new pesticides. It is one of a group of chemicals called isocyanates that are used to make polyurethane, which, in turn, is used to make paint and varnish. The MIC compound also has been made in the U.S. at Union Carbide...