Pandemic was not the kind of emergency that required industries to shut down at 4 hours notice and leave unsupervised for several weeks at a stretch. Especially chemical industry. Every chemical plant needs time to be shut down safely and for being properly mothballed for a long lockdown. This could be several hours or few days, depending on the type of plant. Annual shutdown lasts a maximum of 4 weeks and pesonnel are always present at the site during this period. A long shutdown of the kind we experienced during the pandemic presents several problems to a chemical plant. Material left behind in tanks and pipelines may start degrading, corroding, congealing, polymerising etc. Storage tanks may need continuous cooling. Each plant has to develop special SOP to handle a long, largely unattended shutdown. Authorities should recognise this and give time for chemical plants to shut down safely and allow staff to access the plant during this time. Some plants may also need periodic monitor...
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