The Role of Presence or Absence of Knowledge Information in Chemical Industry Fires

Abstract

In the year 2022, a large-scale fire occurred at a chemical factory in Tokyo, Japan. The news media disseminated extensive information about the situation at the scene and called attention to it. A few reports indicated that the chemical “sodium hydroxide”, which was speculated to be stored in large quantities at the factory, was dangerous owing to its ability to make soaps and detergents. After the fire was extinguished, we reviewed news reports to analyze the causes and countermeasures, which led to our findings about (1) the dangerous substance at the scene, (2) knowledge about its hazardous effects, and (3) precautions required in handling these substances. In addition, we realized that the provision of information, such as if evacuation is needed, was not straightforward. Even several months later, the details of the official cause of the fire, to our knowledge, remain undisclosed.