But if it evaporates, the resulting nitrogen gas can fill a much larger space and can quickly displace the vital air and oxygen, which can lead to a choking hazard, said Rick L. Danheiser, a professor of chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said. Because of the low temperature, liquid nitrogen can also cause cryogenic burns during contact, he said.
In poultry and meat plants, the seals on liquid nitrogen lines under pressure should be checked regularly for leaks, union officials said.
If the plant appears to be cost-saving, the company should be prosecuted, said Mark Lauritsen, director of food processing, packaging and manufacturing at the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, which represents about 250,000 meats and poultry. said. workers.
“It should never ever happen,” given how dangerous the chemical is, Lauritsen said.
The nitrogen leak has been one of several deadly industrial accidents in recent years.
In April 2010, 11 people died when an explosion tore through the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, triggering one of the worst foreign oil spills in the United States. In May 2020, 11 people died in India and hundreds became ill after a tank with styrene, a liquid used in the manufacture of plastics, leaked, officials said.
Other recent industrial accidents have forced thousands of people to flee their homes.
In November 2019, 30,000 people were evacuated in southeastern Texas after several explosions shook the Texas Petroleum Chemical plant. And in 2017, 21 emergency workers in Texas were treated for smoke exposure after Hurricane Harvey caused fires at the chemical plant in Arkema.
The fatal crash Thursday morning was silent, at least for one employee, Maria Bonilla, 60.
Me. Bonilla, an immigrant from Salvador who does not speak English, worked in the marinating department of the expansive plant. She did not hear an explosion or an accident or screams.