Chlorine gas concentrations will gradually decrease in the atmosphere during the coming hours, which will mitigate impacts on the surrounding environment in the Aqaba port as the result of the gas tank explosion that happened earlier today, an expert said Monday evening.
Representative of the chemical and cosmetic industries sector in the Jordan Chamber of Industry, Engineer Ahmed Al-Biss told the Jordan News Agency (Petra) that the Aqaba incident resulted from a container containing approximately 20 tons of highly pressurized liquefied chlorine gas.
Al-Biss added that the Chlorine gas is essential for various uses in different countries of the world, especially for sterilization of drinking water, and it has no alternative.
He explained that this type of containers are transported by direct loading into containers, stressing that this gas does not explode or burn.
“Chlorine is used in chemical, petrochemical and organic industries, mostly for health and sterilization purposes for toilets in cooling and heating towers in the industrial structure, in addition to the uses of household cleaning materials with lighter and different concentrations” Al-Biss noted.
“This type of material causes immediate suffocation, leading to death for those around it directly in case of leakage, and the damage gradually decreases to those who are farther away, as it includes itching, red eyes and respiratory system inflammation” Al-Biss concluded.
SOURCE: JORDAN NEWS AGENCY