Industrial Chemicals as Weapons of Mass Destruction
Abstract
Industrial chemicals are used more frequently as weapons of mass destruction by terrorists than military chemical warfare agents. A database of incidents involving intentional releases of industrial chemicals was developed to determine those that should be addressed in training programs for agencies in the USA that have domestic or international emergency response missions involving hazardous substances. The database was developed from a variety of sources, including United Nations disaster databases, news media reports, and chemical industry databases of high production volume chemicals. An analysis of the frequency of incidents and potential hazards indicated that flammable gases such as liquified petroleum and natural gases posed the greatest hazard, followed in order of descending frequency and hazard by flammable liquids (e.g., gasoline), poison industrial gases (e.g., ammonia and chlorine), solid and liquid poisonous substances (e.g., pesticides), and radiation. Training programs were developed and conducted for several US military, public health, and public safety agencies based on these results.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 2001
- Accession Number
- ADP013461
Entities
People
- Joe Hughart