ABSTRACT
The lethally toxic gas released at Bhopal, India, in the world's most dreadful chemical industry disaster is believed to have killed over 5,000 people and harmed another 200,000. Over half a million people have since received compensation from a settlement of $470 million made by Union Carbide, the company that owned and operated the plant. To this day the site remains severely contaminated. Union Carbide India Ltd's plant at Bhopal manufactured pesticides, using methyl isocyanate, a highly toxic substance, as an intermediate in the manufacture of carbaryl. During the night shift on 2 December 1984 at around 11 pm, the temperature and pressure began to rise in a storage tank containing 3,840 gallons of liquid MIC. The attempt failed and just after midnight a relief valve lifted, releasing deadly gas. As hours passed, the gas cloud continued to drift onwards into central Bhopal, eventually covering an area of some 25 square miles.
