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A gas leak in Bhopal India is considered the worst industrial accident with a death toll that has never been fixed, but was definitely over 5,000. Many died because they tried to escape. Running is the WRONG thing to do.
Disasters at plants like the one in Bhopal, train derailments, tanker truck crashes and other incidents make a chemical accident a possibility anywhere. While outlawed, chemical weapons are a reality of our world. Chemical weapons can be made more easily than the other two arms of the triad of weapons of mass destruction: nuclear and biological. Thus, they are a favorite of terrorists. They have been used. They will be used again.
Chemical warfare is the use of non-living toxins to incapacitate or kill humans, plants or animals. Chemical terrorism is the same, except not state- sponsored.
As long as there has been warfare, humans have used chemical warfare in various forms. Fire, in fact, is considered chemical warfare. Poison is another mode.
Chemical Warfare was used extensively in World War I. The French were the first to employ it. It is estimated there were 1.3 million chemical weapon casualties in the war, including civilians. Like biological weapons, chemical weapons are indiscriminate in who they attack.
