Amman-
The accident and explosion of a tank loaded with toxic chlorine gas in the port of Aqaba (350 kilometers south of the Kingdom) opened the door wide to talk about the readiness of equipment, transport mechanisms and means of protecting workers on the port’s land, especially since the main cause of the accident was the breakage of the tank’s conveying ropes.
The authorities announced that 13 deaths had been recorded, including 6 of foreign nationals working on the crew of the ship, while about 300 injuries were recorded, which were transferred to military, government and private hospitals in the city of Aqaba.
Hamza Al-Hajj Hassan, the delegated deputy head of the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority, told Al-Jazeera Net that the infected cases received the necessary treatments, and severe cases that required extreme medical attention were transferred to the hospitals of the capital, Amman, and about 130 injured people are still receiving the necessary treatments, including two critical cases.
He added that the competent cadres are still dealing with the accident and are carrying out a sterilization process for the ports to resume work within the next 48 hours, stressing that the investigation committees will show if there is any negligence regarding the conveying ropes, mechanisms or equipment operating on the port's land.
6 foreigners from the crew of the ship that was heading to Djibouti were killed in the accident of the fall of a chlorine gas container in Aqaba (French)
Port reopened after hours of layoff
Prime Minister Bishr Al-Khasawneh announced, on Tuesday morning from Aqaba, the reopening of the port, hours after work stopped at the only coastal port of the Kingdom. Ships loaded with imported goods and materials, and the movement of loading and exporting local goods abroad,” according to official sources.
An official source in the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority confirmed that the ships "close to the area of the explosion were evacuated to safe distances away from pollution."
The General Company for Silos and Supply announced, "The work of wheat and grain silos has been suspended for two days, including final unloading and distribution, and taking samples from the silos and examining them in the laboratory to ensure the safety of the stock," while officials told local TV channels that the initial tests proved that the wheat was free of any influences. due to a chlorine gas leak.
The Jordanian government announced the opening of an investigation into the accident of the fall of a chlorine gas container, and confirmed that the wheat silos are safe (French)
The army and security.. sterilization and injuries
According to the Public Security Directorate, the incident showed the high readiness of Public Security salaries from the police, gendarmerie, and civil defense in dealing with the incident from the first moment, as about 45 Public Security salaries were injured in the incident, 5 of whom are still under treatment and their condition is moderate.
The armed forces moved 4 planes from Marka Military Airport towards the city of Aqaba to evacuate the injured, and the area of the accident in Aqaba was closed, and teams of chemical support in the armed forces contributed to the disinfection and sterilization procedures.
The rope is the reason
For its part, the Aqaba Ports Management and Operation Company blamed the accident on the "carrier rope of the tank loaded with toxic chlorine gas", confirming the formation of an "investigation committee on the readiness of equipment and mechanisms for transport and loading to avoid any upcoming accidents."
The director of the company, Khaled Al-Maaytah, told Al-Jazeera Net that the cadres working on the port's land "are constantly checking the readiness of the mechanisms, through the presence of technicians and specialists in dealing with any defect."
He explained that "the number of employees present on the port land during the process of loading the ship No. 6 on berth No. 4 when the accident occurred was about 10 workers, observers and technicians," stressing that 5 containers were loaded on board the ship before the accident occurred.
Al-Maaytah expected the port to return to work after completing its sterilization and treating the effects of the explosion and gas leakage over a large area of the port’s floor, without talking about the impact of that halt on the movement of supply chains and the movement of entry and exit of ships.
Container No. 6 is about 20 feet in size and carries 20 tons of chlorine gas. The crew of the ship, on which the gas container fell, holds Vietnamese and Chinese nationalities, as it was expected to leave for Djibouti.
13 deaths and 300 injured in a chlorine gas container accident in Aqaba, 130 of whom are still receiving treatment (Reuters)
Wheat silos are safe
The port where the explosion occurred is about 600 meters away from the silos storing wheat, barley and imported grain crops. According to a specialized source, "the silos are equipped to preserve the safety of Jordanian food from any gas leakage."
The source explained that "all silos are structurally and engineeringly designed to withstand all external conditions, whether sunlight, any environmental conditions or gas leakage, and are sealed in the unloading and filling process."
According to the General Company for Silos and Supply, "there have been no ships on the berth for the silos company since the first of this month, and the berth is empty and the stored quantities of wheat are few, amounting to about 3,000 tons of wheat, and 30,000 tons of barley designated as fodder for livestock, and the silos are airtight. ".
Jordanians.. Interaction and question
The explosion of the tanker ignited social media platforms, as thousands of Jordanians tweeted the hashtags #Aqaba, #Jordan and #toxic_gas, and activists circulated pictures and names of the port's workers who died in the explosion.
May God have mercy on the martyrs of duty who we lost today in Aqaba and tie the hearts of their families, and pray to God to ease the injured and speed up their recovery, and to protect our people in Aqaba from all harm.
Blessed are the people's arms and their efforts in dealing with this tragic accident
— Rania Al Abdullah (@QueenRania) June 27, 2022
And Queen Rania Al Abdullah tweeted on her Twitter account, saying, "May God have mercy on the martyrs of duty who we lost today in Aqaba, and bind the hearts of their families, and pray to God to ease the suffering of the injured and speed up their recovery, and to protect our people in Aqaba from all harm." With this tragic accident.
The price of one car in the authority of the region of #Aqaba
It was enough to buy and maintain the crane for a whole year
Or hiring a security and public safety staff for years # Jordan pic.twitter.com/YJI2Wvu7zI
- Madallh Al-Nawrasah #Jordan (@madallh_skaren) June 27, 2022
"The price of one car in the authority of the Aqaba region was enough to buy or maintain the crane for a whole year, or to hire a security and public safety staff for years," the activist wrote on Twitter.
Great reward, O homeland, #Jordan is a sad day for all of us.” May God have mercy on the deceased of our sons and our prayers for the injured for a speedy recovery. Hats off to the nomads.
Our armed forces and security services: Civil Defense, Public Security, the Navy, the country’s senior citizens and the pillar of the nation. #Aqaba Oh God, protect our country from all harm pic.twitter.com/utjnAjquQi
— Abdel Nasser Obeidat Abo Jamal (@Eng_obeidat_N) June 27, 2022
As for the activist on Twitter, Abdel Nasser Obeidat, he tweeted, "Great is your reward, homeland. #Jordan is a sad day for all of us."
Hats off to the nobles, our armed forces and security services, civil defense, public security, and the navy, the country’s senior citizens and the pillar of the nation.”
An investigation committee The same investigation committee that became the days of the Dead Sea accident and the silos, no one will be held accountable for negligence as usual
— Moataz Al-Rabihat (@meezo_86) June 27, 2022
Activist Moataz Al-Rbeihat wrote on Twitter, "The investigation committee is the same as the investigation committee that became the days of the Dead Sea accident and the silos. No one will be held accountable for negligence as usual."