Carrefour blamed for choking workers

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Sat, 05/12/2007 7:37 AM | Jakarta

Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A leaking power generator, vehicle emissions from the parking lot and a defected waste water processing plant are all potential reasons for 120 workers suffering asphyxiation from CO2 in the basement at Carrefour in Ratu Plaza last week.

The city's environmental management board, which is assisting police investigations, said Friday this was the third asphyxiation case involving Carrefour.

The environment board reported the level of CO2 in Carrefour's basement had reached 120 particles per million (ppm), exposing all staff to dangerous levels of gas.

A human can tolerate just 23 ppm and long-term exposure to air pollution -- especially carbon dioxide or carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons -- can adversely affect the respiratory and nervous systems.

The same Carrefour store was closed twice in 2002 after carbon monoxide leaks.

In November 2002, 45 employees were hospitalized, followed by a further 20 employees in December.

Environmental official Nandang AS said, ""The (Carrefour) workers on May 2 inhaled excessive CO2 after the power supply went down, but the source of this substance remains unknown"".

Carrefour's management team this week met with police inspectors and the environmental office to determine fault.

The BPLHD deployed a team to measure air quality in Carrefour on Monday May 7.

""We have asked for the reconstruction of the incident in order to determine the sources of CO2, but both Carrefour and the building operator seemed unwelcoming of the idea,"" Nandang said.

Carrefour spokesman Irawan D. Kadarman said the power supply from state electricity company PLN had gone down twice, forcing the store to switch to generator power.

""While using the power generator, the manager decided to turn off some of the store's air conditioners and exhaust fans,"" Irawan said.

On Thursday, Irawan said the ""problem had been settled"".

He said Carrefour management had discussed the incident with the building operator ""to avoid reoccurrence in the future"".

""This will be a precious lesson for us,"" Irawan said.

The Joint Committee for the Leaded Gasoline Phase-Out blamed Carrefour's lack of attention to its quality of air indoors.

""It is the Carrefour management's carelessness,"" committee coordinator Ahmad Safrudin said.

He said the incident had now occurred three times and that Carrefour had violated air pollution control bylaws.

The bylaw stipulates all building operators are responsible for indoor air quality, as well as any air pollution in a parking lot.

He said poorly managed, enclosed parking lots would produce carbon monoxide, hydrocarbon, nitrogen oxide and sulfur oxide -- particularly when the air-handling-unit machine is not working. (04)

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