Exposure assessment through realistic laboratory simulation of a soccer stadium fire

On Sunday April 13, 2008 a fire broke out on a grandstand in the Euroborg soccer stadium in Groningen The Netherlands. The polyamide chairs on the grandstand were set on fire and supporters were exposed to the emitted smoke which induced mild health effects. The Dutch government was concerned about...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Chemosphere (Oxford) Vol. 81; no. 6; pp. 794 - 799
Main Authors:	van Belle, N.J.C., van Putten, E.M., de Groot, A.C., Meeussen, V.J.A., Banus, S.
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01-10-2010 Elsevier
Subjects:	Air Pollutants - analysis Air Pollutants - chemistry Air. Soil. Water. Waste. Feeding Aldehydes - analysis Aldehydes - chemistry Ammonia - analysis Ammonia - chemistry Animal, plant and microbial ecology Applied ecology Biological and medical sciences Carbon Monoxide - analysis Carbon Monoxide - chemistry Clinical Laboratory Techniques Combustion Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution Environment. Living conditions Exposure Fires Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology General aspects Hazardous Substances - analysis Hydrogen cyanide Hydrogen Cyanide - analysis Hydrogen Cyanide - chemistry Inhalation Exposure - analysis Ketones - analysis Ketones - chemistry Medical sciences Models, Chemical Nitrogen oxides Nitrogen Oxides - analysis Nitrogen Oxides - chemistry Particulate Matter - analysis Particulate Matter - chemistry Polyamide Public health. Hygiene Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine Risk Assessment Soccer Volatile Organic Compounds - analysis Volatile Organic Compounds - chemistry Netherlands Netherlands, Groningen Polyamide Hydrogen cyanide Nitrogen oxides Combustion Exposure Nitrogen oxide Laboratory study Hydrogen Nitrogen compounds Cyanides Health and environment Fires Public health
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Summary:	On Sunday April 13, 2008 a fire broke out on a grandstand in the Euroborg soccer stadium in Groningen The Netherlands. The polyamide chairs on the grandstand were set on fire and supporters were exposed to the emitted smoke which induced mild health effects. The Dutch government was concerned about potential health risks that such fires could have to exposed fans. Especially the exposure to toxic fumes was considered a risk because prior research has proven that large amounts of chemical compounds are emitted during the burning of chemical substances such as polyamide. Among these emitted compounds are HCN, CO, NO x , NH 3 and volatile organic compounds. To study if supporters were exposed to hazardous chemical compounds we designed a laboratory controlled replica of a part of the grandstand of the Euroborg stadium to perform fire-experiments. This simulation of the fire under controlled circumstances proved that a wide variety of chemicals were emitted. Especially the emission of CO and NO x were high, but also the emission of formaldehyde might be toxicologically relevant. The emission of HCN and NH 3 were less than expected. Exposure assessment suggests that the exposure to NO x is the main health risk for the supporters that were present at the Euroborg fire.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23
ISSN:	0045-6535 1879-1298
DOI:	10.1016/j.chemosphere.2010.06.080