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Toxic Sludge in Hungary: Satellite Photos Released of Red Sludge
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by Amy Judd | October 12, 2010 at 10:32 am
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The Toxic Sludge Disaster in Hungary is Getting Bigger and NASA's Satellite Photos Show Extent of Spill
The two satellite photos from NASA were taken on October 9, five days after the accident occurred at the Ajkai Timföldgyár alumina (aluminum oxide) plant in Hungary. Eight people have been killed by the environmental disaster, and hundreds have been treated for burns.
The towns of Kolontar, Devescer and Somlovasarhely were the most affected, but now the spill has spread and has reached the Danube River, meaning it could affect countries all across Europe.
- Zoltan Bakonyi Arrested
- Hungary Toxic Sludge Reaches Masoni-Danube River
- Toxic Sludge in Kolontar, Devecser and Somlovasarhely
On October 9, 2010, the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite captured this natural-color image of the area. The top image shows a close-up of the alumina plant and closest villages. The bottom image shows the wider region.
The close-up view shows the breach of the retaining wall, and shows the sludge cutting a chanel through the northwest corner and spreading onto the nearby fields. The spill can still be seen several kilometres west of the original breach.
The New York Times reported that the stream nearest the plant empties into larger rivers. The BBC reported that authorities were pouring plaster into the Marcal River in hopes of preventing the sludge from reaching the Danube River.
Environmentalists have warned that the toxic sludge could seep into the ground and affect vegetation and plants for years to come.
At this point, the amount of devastation is still not known.
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Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (1)
at 13:11 on October 12th, 2010
This must have been a conspiration. Getting rid of 1 million tons of chemical waste (with pH=13.3) would cost about 1000 million dollars. This money was saved by the communist management of the factory (Gyurcsany's friends), as a disaster could have been created. Lots of people are in hospital, some people are lost, 7 dead people have already been found.Next sludge flood is ready to come within weeks. Just listen!Welcome to the real world!