PREVENTING COMMON HUMAN INDUCED DISASTERS

P. YashwanthraIX

917

Contents:

Weapons of Mass Destruction - NUCLEAR ACCIDENTS - CHEMICAL AND INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS

Mitigation strategies

Biological Disasters

Weapons of Mass Destruction :

Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) are weapons which bring a huge loss to life, property and environment. The term covers several weapon types, including nuclear, biological, chemical (NBC) and, increasingly, radiological weapons. There is controversy over when the term was first used, either in 1937 or in 1945. The term weapons of mass destruction has been in currency since at least 1937, when it was used to describe massed formations of bomber aircraft. With the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, the fearsome power of conventional bombs paled before the spectacle of an entire city centre destroyed and some 66,000 people instantly killed by the blast and heat of a single nuclear weapon.

NUCLEAR ACCIDENTSNuclear weapon, device designed to release energy in an explosive manner as a result of nuclear fission, nuclear fusion, or a combination of the two processes. Fission weapons are commonly referred to as atomic bombs. Fusion weapons are also referred to as thermonuclear bombs or, more commonly, hydrogen bombs; they are usually defined as nuclear weapons in which at least a portion of the energy is released by nuclear fusion. There are two basic types of nuclear weapons: * ATOMIC BOMBS – produce their explosive energy through nuclear fission.

* HYDROGEN BOMBS – produces a large amount of its energy through nuclear fusion and can be thousand times more powerful than fission bombs.

ATOM BOMBSAtomic bomb, also called atom bomb,  weapon with great explosive power that results from the sudden release of energy upon the splitting, or fission, of the nuclei of such heavy elements as plutonium or uranium.

When a neutron strikes the nucleus of an atom of the isotopes uranium 235 orplutonium-239, it causes that nucleus to split into two fragments, each of which is a nucleus with about half the protons and neutrons of the original nucleus. In the process of splitting, a great amount of thermal energy, as well as gamma rays and two or more neutrons, is released. Under certain conditions, the escaping neutrons strike and thus fission more of the surrounding uranium nuclei, which then emit more neutrons that split still more nuclei. This series of rapidly multiplying fissions culminates in a chain reaction in which nearly all the fissionable material is consumed, in the process generating the explosion of what is known as an atomic bomb.

HYDROGEN BOMBSThe hydrogen bomb is a nuclear weapon in which light atomic nuclei of hydrogen are joined together in an uncontrolled nuclear fusion reaction to release huge amounts of energy. The hydrogen bomb is about a thousand time more powerful than the atomic bomb, which produces a nuclear fission explosion almost a million times more powerful than that of a comparably sized bomb using conventional high explosives such as TNT. The atomic bomb was an essential first step towards the development of the hydrogen bomb, before the atomic bomb w2as developed by the United States during World War 2, there was no way to produce the extreme amounts of heat needed to initiate the fusion reaction of the hydrogen bomb. 

How can we protect ourselves from nuclear radiation and attacks ?

Don’t panic in the event of a nuclear attack or accident. Common indicators of radioactivity are nausea, dizziness, vomiting and disorientation, with no odor but a wave of heat.

Don’t look at the fire blast as it can cause instant blindness.

Close all doors and windows, and stay indoors till further communication from the Government. Radioactivity does not penetrate solid structures, though fire may cause damage to buildings.

Cover all food and water. Don’t consume water, milk, food obtained following a nuclear blast.

Await government instructions/communications if you have to move out of your house.

CHEMICAL AND INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTSManufacturing of chemicals are a major source of contamination through hazardous materials, but there are many others, including service stations, hospitals, and hazardous materials waste sites. Hazardous materials come in the form of explosives, flammable and combustible substances, poisons, and radioactive material. These substances are most often released as a result of transportation accidents, lack of proper storage, use or disposal or because of chemical accidents in plants.

Chemical Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) are normally easy to manufacture using simple chemicals. Further they are difficult to detect as most of the Chemical WMD are colorless and odorless.

You and your community are at risk if a chemical is used without following safety precautions or released in harmful amounts into the environment where you live, work or play. One of the significant events in India includes the Bhopal Disasters of 1984, where a highly toxic gas was released into the air at a Union Carbide pesticides facility and killed more than 3,000 people.

BHOPAL GAS TRAGEDYBhopal Gas Tragedy was a gas leak incident in India, considered one of the world’s worst industrial catastrophes. It occurred on the night of December 2-3, 1984 at the Union Carbide Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. A leak of methyl isocyanate gas and other chemicals from the plant insulted in the exposure of hundreds of thousands of people. The toxic substance made its way in and around the shantytowns located near the plant. Estimates vary on the death toll. The official immediate death toll was 2,259 and the government of Madhya Pradesh has confirmed a total of 3,787 deaths related to the gas released. Others estimate 3,000 died within weeks and another 8,000 have since died from gas-related diseases. A government affidavit in 2006 stated the leak caused 558,125 injuries including 38,478 temporary partial and approximately 3,900 severely and permanently disabling injuries.

MITIGATION STRATEGIESAlthough the risk of chemical accident is slight, knowing how to handle these products and how to react during an emergency can reduce the risk of injury.

Some of the possible risk reduction measures are as follows:

1. Hazard Mapping – Inventors and maps of storage locations of toxins or hazardous substances along with the possible characteristics should be displayed and known to all. The community staying in the immediate vicinity should be aware of this hazard and its possible effects in case of an accident. The map should also determine the area that may get affected in case an accident occurs. The nature of the accident can be different. It can be fire, explosion, spillage, gas cloud etc.

2. Land use planning – Densely populated residential areas should be located at a distance from industrial areas. A buffer zone should separate the residential and industrial zone. Better planning is required to handle the waste that is generated so that the environment is not affected. Safe disposal methods should be planned before setting up any industry. Waste disposal sites should be identified as part of the planning process.

3. Community preparedness – The community should be aware of the hazardous installations and know how to combat the situation. The local community has to be informed about the response steps to be taken in case of an accident. Community members should monitor the pollution levels of the industry and participate in mock drills of evacuation.

4. Other possible risk reduction measures include: - Improve fire resistance and warning systems - Improve fire fighting and pollution dispersion capabilities - Develop energy relief and evacuation planning for employees and

nearby settlements. - Incident response training should be provided to the employees of the

industry - Maintain a wind flow diagram of the region - Limit storage capacity of the toxic substances - Insurance for industries and Safety legislation

Biological DisastersBiological weapons are referred to as a “poor man’s nuclear bomb” because they are easy to manufacture, can be deployed without sophisticated delivery systems, and have the ability to kill or injure hundreds of thousands of people. Simple devices such as crop dusting airplanes or small perfumes atomizers are effective delivery systems for biological agents. In contrast to chemical, conventional and nuclear weapons that generate immediate effects, biological agents are generally associated with a delay in the onset of illness. Moreover, illness from biological weapons are not likely to be recognized in their initial stages. With highly transmissible agents, the time delay in recognition can result in widespread secondary exposure to others, including doctors and health staff.