Two serious accidents occurred within two days at the Map Ta Phut petrochemical production zone in eastern Thailand.
An explosion on May 5 at a synthetic rubber plant owned by Bangkok Synthetics killed 12 people and injured more than 140 at Map Ta Phut. The next day, a chlorine leak at a hydrochloric acid plant operated by Aditya Birla Chemicals led to the hospitalization of 13 people, according to the Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand (IEAT).
The back-to-back accidents have revived tensions between the facilities in the industrial zone and nearby residents who blame the petrochemical industry for causing pollution and posing a safety risk.
Bangkok Synthetics said in a statement that the explosion occurred when the plant was shut down and undergoing maintenance. During a storm, a fire broke out in a toluene vessel that had just been cleaned, the company said.

The massive explosion at the factory of a Bangkok Synthetics subsidiary that killed 11 and injured another 129 people on Saturday has prompted the Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand (IEAT) to examine 65 hazardous factories in Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate.

The Pollution Control Depart-ment (PCD) has also called on manufacturers in the estate to reveal to the public and other agencies all hazardous and non-hazardous chemical substances used in their production processes.

The IEAT's deputy governor, Peerawt Rungrueng, said his agency would send teams to investigate 65 factories likely to be at risk accidents inside the estate.

The team will comprise staff from related agencies, local representatives and the Industrial Works Department.

"We will not investigate without participation from local people," he said, adding that the survey was expected to be finished next week.

Currently, IEAT staff are examining damage to the BST Elastomers facility and nearby factories affected by the massive explosion.

The IEAT has also ordered Aditya Birla Chemicals to suspend operations after a chemical leak at its Map Ta Phut factory on Sunday that led to the hospitalisation of 138 people.

A LARGE blaze at a chemical factory in eastern Thailand killed 12 people, injured more than 100 and spewed toxic smoke into the air, the health ministry said today.


Hundreds of residents had to be evacuated after the fire, which was caused by an explosion at the factory in Rayong province, sent a plume of black acrid smoke into the sky yesterday.

Firefighters quelled the blaze but health officials continued to monitor air quality amid concerns poisonous fumes may still seep into the air.

A health ministry statement said 12 people had died in the explosion and ensuing fire while 129 were injured, mainly suffering burns.

The majority of the victims are believed to be factory workers.

"Doctors said 12 were killed in yesterday's explosion but we can only confirm 10 so far," Map Ta Phut police Lieutenant Colonel Charoen Vititkornkul said.

"Police forensic teams are searching for clues to what happened and we are also looking for any more bodies," he said, adding police were ready to evacuate more local residents if necessary.

More than 30 people, many of them foreign tourists, have been rushed to hospital after a chlorine leak at a hotel swimming pool on the Thai resort island of Phuket.

The accident occurred shortly after 10:00am local time at the Phuket Orchid Resort and Spa on Karon beach, according to chief investigator Lieutenant Colonel Chavalit Pethsripia.

He said more than 30 people suffered minor injuries, none of them serious, after they were exposed to an unhealthily high level of chlorine in the pool.

Chachoengsao - A chemical container in a sprayed paint factory exploded Monday morning, causing some 20 workers to pass out after inhaling the gas.

The explosion, which occurred at 9:10 am, also caused fire to the RJ London Factory on Suwinthanwong-Min Buri Road in Chachoengsao's Bang Nam Pliew district.

The unconscious workers were rushed to the Chachoengsao Hospital and the other workers managed to control the blaze and put it out.

Authorities in Thailand say they are still not certain what caused the death of six tourists in the northern city of Chiang Mai but suggest some may have died from being exposed to pesticide or other toxic chemicals.

The deaths include that of a Thai tourist guide, two tourists from Britain, one tourist from France, one tourist from New Zealand and one from the United States. The tourists were staying in three different hotels in the city during January and February 2011. Three other tourists also fell ill but recovered.

The latest news comes from a posting on the Thai government's Department of Disease Control website on Tuesday, that said the authorities have have conducted an investigation into the mysterious deaths but the results were inconclusive, and the "specific agents that caused the deaths and illnesses in these events cannot be identified". It also says the authorities cannot establish exactly how the victims came to be exposed to them.

A major fire explosion which burned down many chemical cargoes at the Pier in Laem Chabang Port, was under control to a certain degree as authorities continued to put out the blaze.

On 25 May 2011, Police Colonel Sak Rapee Laem Chabang (Police Superintendent) was informed of a fire explosion occurring at the pier in Laem Chabang B3, Sriracha.

The fire started at one of the large chemical vessels docking at the pier, the fireman commented.
It then spread to more than ten other vessels which were to be transported on a ship called Mol Aqua Japanese, police reported adding that there were over 200 containers docked at Laem Chabang pier.