A perspective view of industrial disasters: (was Chernobyl the worst?)

The paper surveys past industrial disasters and answers the question: ''was Chernobyl the worst?''. The disasters with which Chernobyl is compared are: Oppau, Germany (1921), Cleveland, U.S.A. (1944), Lugwigshafen (1948), Aberfan, U.K. (1966), Seveso, Italy (1976), Three Mile Island, U.S.A., (1979), Mississauga, Canada (1979), Mexico City, Mexico (1984), Bhopal, India (1984) and Basle, Switzerland (1986). Immediate fatalities as a measure of disaster, delayed fatalities, physical injuries as a measure, individual and societal shock, long term public anxiety, disruption of way of life, environmental damage, and property damage and other financial loss, are all discussed. The survey shows that if dominant criteria are those of death and injury then Chernobyl was not the worst. However, if environmental damage, financial loss, creation of public anxiety and disruption of way of life were dominant criteria, then Chernobyl could be rated the worst. (UK)