Bhopal Gas Tragedy

On december 3, 1984, one of the worst industrial disasters of the 20th century occurred in Bhopal, India, a city located in Central India's state of Madhya Pradesh. Here, at about 1 a.m., a highly poisonous vapor (methyl isocyanate, or MIC) leaked from the Union Carbide pesticide plant. This incident not only left about 300,000 people injured and about 2,000 dead immediately (it is reported that later about 15,000 people died), but also had an impact on local plants and animals. The majority of deaths and serious injuries were related to pulmonary edema, but the gas caused other ailments such as cough, dyspnea, chest pain, eyelid edema, and unconsciousness leading to acute lung injury, cardiac arrest, and death. Other problems included partial or complete blindness, ...