Opinion: "Could Bhopal Happen Here?"

"Thirty years after the world’s most dangerous chemical plant disaster, we’re not much safer."

"On Nov. 7, Martin Sheen’s latest film, 'A Prayer for Rain,' will be released in U.S. theaters. It brings to life the story of the tragic chemical disaster 30 years ago in Bhopal, India, and raises the question, Are we safe from a similar tragedy unfolding again? Chemical safety advocates say not very.

At 10 p.m. on Dec. 2, 1984, a gas leak started at Union Carbide’s pesticide plant in Bhopal, releasing more than 40 tons of methyl isocyanate and other chemicals. Within half an hour, nearby residents were coughing, experiencing burning eyes and having difficulty breathing. It would take another two and a half hours before sirens alerted the city of the disaster and six before the leak was brought under control. By that time, the damage had already been done: More than 10,000 people died in the immediate wake of the disaster, many from cardiac and respiratory arrest. Officials estimate hundreds of thousands of people have been affected over the decades, in the form of birth defects, increased infant mortality, learning disabilities and respiratory and vision problems.

The Bhopal plant — operated by Union Carbide and now owned by Dow Chemical — was similar in design to many chemical plants here in the United States. Bhopal was alarming to U.S. chemical safety advocates and the American public. We realized we didn’t know what was in our own backyard."

Anna Lappé reports for Aljazeera America October 28, 2014.