Heavy smoke emanates from Chennai Port as sulphur particles react to heat

Heavy smoke emanated from Chennai Port on Tuesday morning from the stocks of sulphur stored within one of the yards in the port, causing discomfort to commuters and those in the surrounding areas, sources said.

Around 11 a.m., sulphur powder which was imported by one of the firms for usage as a component of fertilisers, started emanating smoke. “Due to increasing temperature and the heat, the sulphur particles in the yard began to produce heavy smoke. This does occur during summer. The situation has been brought under control now. No one was injured in the incident,” a source said.

Three fire tenders were rushed to the spot as soon dense smoke was emitted from the yard and was put out in a while. But the smoke quickly spread to the neighbouring areas and those in the vicinity complained of discomfort, cough, and irritation in the eyes.

V. Dhanashree, advocate at Madras High Court said, as soon as she stepped out of the court hall, she witnessed heavy smoke and subsequently advocates and people within the premises started coughing. 

White smoke seen on Kamarajar Salai near the Secretariat on Tuesday.
| Photo Credit:
N. Sai Charan

“A little while later, there was irritation in my eyes and all of us were left wondering from where the smoke was coming. Many of us got worried. Then we came to know about the incident at the port. The authorities should have been careful and prevented such an occurrence. We hope they take action to ensure this doesn’t happen again,” she added. 

Air monitoring carried out after the incident showed a spike in particulate pollution around the area. Officials of Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board said levels of PM2.5, PM10, nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and ammonia (NH₃) were higher than usual following the incident.

Officials added that while these pollutants can degrade air quality, significant health impacts are associated only with sustained exposure over longer periods, and the leak today was contained swiftly.

An expert at IIT-Madras said, the temperature has been very high these past few days. “Knowing the nature of Sulphur, the authorities should have taken some steps to avoid this incident. Smoke from Sulphur can irritate the eyes and lungs as well,” the expert said.