Gas leak in Dammam causes panic; residents asked to stay indoors

Dammam - 12 Oct 2011: Authorities told residents of Dammam's 1st Industrial City to stay indoors early Wednesday due to a toxic gas leak at a chemical factory.

Schools nearby were ordered shut. The Dammam-Alkhobar Highway was clogged in the morning hours after the Civil Defense closed all entrances leading into the industrial city.

An official notice from the Civil Defense Office Tuesday night said the company affected by the leakage was the Middle East Engineering Company.

A text message in Arabic from Saudi Telecom Co. to its subscribers in Dammam identified the company as "Asharq Al-Awsat Hindsia Mahdoodah."

Repeated calls to the company's general number (03-8472791) went unanswered.

Residents in the affected areas told Arab News that there was an offensive smell in the air around midnight. "It was very nauseating and I immediately started coughing," said 52-year-old Muhammad Saif Al-Harithy, who resides in the Al-Safa district of Dammam. His sons rushed him to a nearby hospital where he was immediately put on a nebulizer. He was not the only one. There were others at the hospital who had gone there with similar complaints.

Al-Rakah, where the International Indian school and other smaller schools are located, also falls in the Al-Safa area. Since Al-Safa is close to the 1st Industrial City, the school immediately declared a holiday.

"All the children who had turned up at the school were asked to call their parents and drivers to take them home. We ensured that all our students were sent back home in an organized way," said Indian School Principal E.K. Mohammad Shaffe.

One Indian schoolteacher said the offensive odor became stronger and stronger after they reached the school. "We were naturally petrified," said Shadan Hashmi. "Our first and immediate instinct was to protect the children."

A Civil Defense spokesman said those areas that fell directly in the direction of the wind were the worst affected. He named some of those areas as Askan Dammam, Al-Naserriya, Al-Khalidia, Hail Al-Ryyan, Hail Al-Rawdah, Hail Al-Petromin, Hail Al-Safa and Hail Al-Nuzha.

A doctor at a hospital in Dammam said his patients were complaining of severe breathing problems. "They are feeling as if they are choking ... The problem is acute among those who are asthmatic," he said.

"The leak has been plugged but the toxic chemicals are still in the air. It will take some time for it to be carried away by the winds," he told Arab News. "There is no need to panic; we are taking all safety measures."

The toxic gas is said to be a combination of hydrogen, nitrogen and carbon.

All government schools were ordered closed. There was a huge presence of Civil Defense officials near the 1st Industrial City entrances. They have advised people in the affected areas to take adequate precautions, stay at home and keep their windows and doors shut. They were not allowing anyone to enter the area.

"Our office is just next to the main gate of the industrial city, and when I tried entering it at 7:30 a.m. we were told that it was closed to the public," said Wasim Javed, who works for Saudi Distribution Co., which distributes Arab News among other newspapers. "The closure led to a huge traffic jam in the area."

Javed said the air was full of a pungent smell. "One could feel heavy in the chest," he said. His colleague Abid Khan reported similar problems. "Not only was it offensive, it made us feel dizzy," said Khan.

Report : Arshad Kadli

(With inputs from Arab News)