On this day, 2 December 1984, the world’s worst industrial disaster took place in Bhopal, India, when the Union Carbide chemical plant leaked poisonous gases to 5 million people, killing, blinding and disabling tens of thousands. The crumbling plant had no health and safety measures. The chief executive responsible, Warren Anderson, went unpunished, and of the $470 million compensation paid to the Indian government, only a small fraction made its way to the victims and their families: an average of $500 each. Those exposed continue to die prematurely today, and children continue to be born with disproportionately high incidences of birth defects, cancers and chronic illnesses.
This is a short account of what happened and its aftermath: https://libcom.org/library/night-gas-bhopal-india
Pictured: photos of some of the victims https://www.facebook.com/workingclasshistory/photos/a.296224173896073/1597971747054636/?type=3