Gas leak claims at least 11 in southern India

A GAS leaked from an LG chemical plant in southern India early yesterday, leaving people struggling to breathe and collapsing in the streets as they tried to flee. At least 11 people died and about 1,000 suffered breathing difficulties and other problems.

The synthetic chemical styrene leaked from the LG Polymers plant in Visakhapatnam, a city on India’s eastern coast, while workers were preparing to restart the facility after a coronavirus lockdown was eased, Andhra Pradesh state official Vinay Chand said.

A fire that broke out before the gas leak was extinguished, and police said the gas leak was later halted and the air had cleared.

Chand said some people collapsed on the road and were rushed to a hospital. About 1,000 people in an area of 3 kilometers complained of breathing difficulties and a burning sensation in their eyes, he said.

About 100 people were hospitalized and were in non-life-threatening condition, Police Commissioner R K Meena said.

S N Pradhan, chief of the National Disaster Response Force, said 11 people had died.

The dead included an 8-year-old girl. Meena said one person died after falling into a well while running away and another person died after jumping from the second story of his house to escape. The others died in a hospital.

State Industries Minister Mekapati Goutham Reddy said rescuers broke open the doors of village homes which were locked from the inside and found some people who had collapsed and transported them to a hospital.

South Korean company LG Chem Ltd operates the plant. It says it is South Korea’s largest chemical company and is part of the LG Corp conglomerate.

The company said it is cooperating with Indian authorities to help residents and employees. “The gas leakage is now under control, but the leaked gas can cause nausea and dizziness, so we are investing every effort to ensure proper treatment is provided swiftly,” LG Chem said in a statement.

It is looking into the cause of the leak of styrene monomer gas, which is used to produce plastic, but won’t know exactly until Indian authorities complete their investigation, company official Song Chun-seob said.

The plant is a leading producer of polystyrene plastic in India. It employs around 300 workers, but Song said the victims were mostly local residents.