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Haiti - Health : Strong smell of Ethyl Mercaptan around the oil terminal of Thor
06/05/2012 12:09:52

Since Saturday, residents around the oil terminal Thor (Carrefour south of the capital) are bothered by a smell recalling that of Propane and some had trouble breathing. Alerted to this situation, Réginald Delva, the Secretary of State for Public Security, launched an appeal for calm to the population, indicating that the product causing the odor, the Ethyl mercaptan (ethanethiol) used in the preparation of propane [product which gives the smell of gas to help detect leaks], is not dangerous... He indicated that this situation could continue for a few hours and that inspectors from his office was on site to collect data...

Yvon Jerome, the mayor of Carrefour abounds in the same direction, and said that this gas does not endanger the safety of the population who normally could continue his business... He clarified that it was possible this situation persists for several days due to the high concentration of this odor in the area.

It is true that the Ethyl Mercaptan, in trace amounts in the propane gas, poses no danger to human health or the environment, this may be different, if the Ethyl Mercaptan is in the air and the environment at higher concentrations. Pending a statement from the oil company [if it is involved], on the origin, causes, the importance of this incident and the level of concentration per m3 of air in the area, it is a little quick on the part of these representatives of the authority, to assert that there is no danger for the population. Without being alarmist, a minimum of precautionary advice, would not have been superfluous...

Recall that from a certain concentration of Ethyl Mercaptan is not only toxic but ecotoxic to aquatic organisms, may cause long term damage to the environment. For the humans, depending on the degree of air concentration and exposure time, this product may cause headache, nausea and a lack of coordination. In France, the permissible exposure limit is 0.5 ml/m³ while 0.002 ppm is enough to smell the Ethyl Mercaptan in ambient air.

HL/ HaitiLibre