Chemical accident on the Elk River

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Elk River near Charleston

In the chemical accident on the Elk River on January 9, 2014, up to 38,000 liters of a liquid mainly containing 4-methylcyclohexylmethanol (MCHM) flowed from a coal washing plant into the Elk River near Charleston in West Virginia .

The liquid leaked from a storage tank built by Freedom Industries in 1938 . According to the US chemical safety authority CSB, the technical secondary barrier had practically no protective effect. On January 21, 2014, the manufacturer announced that in addition to 88.5% MCHM and 4.2% water, 7.3 percent by mass of a mixture of propylene glycol phenyl ether ( PPH) and dipropylene glycol phenyl ether (DiPPH) called "PPH Stripped basic" in the leaked Mixture of substances were included. Other sources speak of 5.6% propylene glycol phenyl ether.

A drinking water reservoir was contaminated by the accident . For weeks, the authorities asked the 300,000 people affected to only use the water for the toilet and for extinguishing fires. The authorities had to distribute drinking water with the help of tankers.

369 people were treated in hospitals with symptoms such as nausea, skin changes and headache due to the accident. Freedom Industries filed for bankruptcy eight days after the accident. The state of West Virginia claimed $ 1.8 million in cleanup and damage fees. The US bankruptcy court approved an additional $ 2.9 million for public cleanup projects and health studies.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b A Year After West Virginia Chemical Spill, Some Signs of Safer Water. In: nationalgeographic.com. Retrieved May 23, 2015 .
  2. ↑ a b CSB Testimony from Transportation and Infrastructure Field Hearing on Charleston, WV Chemical Spill , Field Hearing of the US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board in Charleston, WV, February 10, 2014 (accessed February 10, 2014)
  3. ↑ CDC: Summary Report of Short-term Screening Level Calculation and Analysis of Available Animal Studies for Dipropylene Glycol Phenyl Ether (DiPPH) and Propylene Glycol Phenyl Ether (PPH) , accessed August 24, 2015
  4. ↑ 2014 West Virginia Chemical Release | Chemical Emergencies. In: emergency.cdc.gov. Retrieved May 23, 2015 .
  5. ^ West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources: Elk River Chemical Spill Health Effects Findings of Emergency Department Record Review April 2014 Collaborative Investigation by the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health (WVBPH) and the Agency for Toxic Substances Disease Registry (ATSDR) , accessed on May 23, 2015
  6. ^ Insurance News Net: The Elk River MCHM spill; A case study on managing environmental risks , accessed on May 23, 2015

Coordinates: 38 ° 22 ′ 8 "  N , 81 ° 36 ′ 23.8"  W.