A cloud of toxic gas killed at least 13 and injured hundreds at a Red Sea port in Jordan on Monday, according to officials and state media.
The leak occurred at Jordan’s Aqaba port when a tank filled with 25 tonnes of chlorine gas fell from a crane and slammed into the deck of a ship. The accident resulted in the deaths of 13 people and hospitalized 185, according to Jordanian media. Hours after the incident, the prime minister of Jordan and other government officials inspected the accident site and declared there was no longer a threat to public health.
Video footage recorded by a nearby CCTV camera and aired by Jordanian media outlet al Mamlaka TV shows the tank falling from the crane and hitting the ship, leading to an explosion that allowed the bright yellow gas to spread quickly around the port. Workers were seen on the video running for their lives from the toxic gas cloud.
Poisonous gas leak , Jordanian port of aqaba. Ten people have been killed and more than 251 others injured by a toxic gas leak at Jordan’s Red Sea port of Aqaba. pic.twitter.com/yR4CTNaJH5
— Jahidhussain (@JahidHussain2) June 27, 2022
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The container holding the gas was being exported to Djibouti when it fell while being transported, according to Jordanian officials.
When inhaled, chlorine gas reacts with the water in human tissue and is turned into hypochlorous and hydrochloric acid, which can burn lungs and airways.
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Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher al Khasawneh and the state ministers of health and interior toured the port after the accident, saying port activities have fully resumed and the air is once again safe to breathe.
Al Khasawneh said that a team has been formed, led by the interior minister, to investigate the incident.
