8 DEAD IN VENEZUELA CRASH INVOLVING CHLORINE GAS

AT LEAST EIGHT DEAD AND 326 PEOPLE HIT
BY CRASH INVOLVING CHLORINE GAS IN VENEZUELA

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan authorities say a truck carrying chlorine gas and a cargo vehicle collided, killing eight people and provoking breathing problems in about 100. Anzoategui state Gov. Tarek William Saab told state television that the crash happened in the eastern town of Clarines on Wednesday night. A collision between a bus and a truck carrying chlorine gas caused a spill and the subsequent deaths of eight people who where near the accident and inhaled the poisonous chemicals. The accident occurred on the national highway to the east, near the town of Clarines, 250 kilometers east of Caracas. The crash prompted authorities to evacuate people from the town and halt vehicle traffic through the area in order to prevent others from being sickened.

The road remained closed for over 15 hours while Civil Protection authorities cordoned off the area to prevent the spread of the gas, which caused breathing difficulties for 326 people in nearby blocks. According to information provided by the governor of Anzoategui, Tarek William Saab. "Of these, only 50 are hospitalized, and of those 50 only 5 are in critical condition and one woman is in extremely critical condition,". Chlorine gas, also known as bertholita, gives off a smell that is a cross between pepper and pineapple. Chlorine can react with water in the lining of the lungs to form hydrochloric acid, an irritant that can be lethal.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

When there are very forceful currents in the river and some animal is thrown in, it will be washed away. Similarly, we are being washed away by the currents of material nature, which come one after another like big waves in the Pacific Ocean. ... These are the currents of hunger and thirst, of birth, death, and old age, the currents of illusion. We are spirit souls, but because we have been put into the material ocean, the currents are carrying us away. However, if we engage twenty-four hours a day in hearing, chanting, and seriously serving Krishna, the current will stop.

Srila A.C. BV Swami Prabhupada:
"Teachings of Queen Kuntī -
Chapter 19: Crossing Beyond Illusion's Currents"