A CHEMICAL accident at the Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) head office in Bangkok on Sunday night has killed at least eight people and injured seven.
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SCB said contractors had been working to improve the building’s chemical fire extinguishers but mistakenly set off the system, releasing chemicals that likely caused oxygen levels to plummet.
According to reports, workers carrying out works in the basement level accidentally triggered the chemical-based fire extinguishing system, releasing pyrogen gas, a chemical which extinguishes fire by depleting oxygen.
Pyrogen, developed from rocket fuel technology, is a firefighting aerosol that ignites a chemical reaction when fire is detected and immediately removes the oxygen necessary for the fire to burn. The company advises against using it the aerosol in occupied rooms and says “accidental exposure should be limited to five minutes”. Seven workers were injured and remained in hospital, the centre added.
Siriwat Chaichana, secretary-general of the institute, said people who were exposed to the aerosol mist within a range of 10-20 metres would pass out within 15 seconds and die.
SCB, Thailand’s oldest commercial bank, expressed “deep regret” for those affected by “this unfortunate incident”.
Police are still investigating the accident and the official cause will not be known until autopsies are performed.
Another showed four bodies wrapped in white blankets outside the building.
The bank has issued a statement blaming the accident on contractor negligence.
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The bank, among the biggest financial institutions in Thailand, included operations would continue generally and that it might provide aid to those in the injury.
