What happened in Meuse valley Belgium in 1930?

In December of 1930, a thick smog that contained multiple pollutants, including sulphur, covered the densely populated valley for several days and caused the death of up to 60 persons, as well as several thousand cases of pulmonary attacks.

What is Meuse valley Belgium?

The Meuse Valley is the region along the Meuse River between Liege and Huy, Belgium (Lipfert, 1994). In 1930, this 20 km stretch housed 27 factories established post-industrial revolution (Nemery et al., 2001; Lipfert, 1994).

What caused the Donora smog?

The smog was caused by the zinc melting plant, Zinc Works, from their effluent containing substantial amounts of fluoride and a temperature inversion that trapped the effluent over the town.

Where does the River Meuse flow?

Meuse River, Latin Mosa, Flemish Maes, Dutch Maas, river, rising at Pouilly on the Langres Plateau in France and flowing generally northward for 590 miles (950 km) through Belgium and the Netherlands to the North Sea.

What happened Donora PA?

Killer smog continues to hover over Donora, Pennsylvania, on October 29, 1948. Over a five-day period, the smog killed about 20 people and made thousands more seriously ill. Donora was a town of 14,000 people on the Monongahela River in a valley surrounded by hills.

What do you understand by smog?

Smog is air pollution that reduces visibility. The term “smog” was first used in the early 1900s to describe a mix of smoke and fog. The smoke usually came from burning coal. Smog was common in industrial areas, and remains a familiar sight in cities today. Today, most of the smog we see is photochemical smog.

What is the meaning of Meuse?

British Dictionary definitions for Meuse Meuse. / (mɜːz, French møz) / noun. a department of N France, in Lorraine region: heavy fighting occurred here in World War I. Capital: Bar-le-Duc.

How many people died in the Great Smog 1952?

4,000 people
About 4,000 people were known to have died as a result of the fog, but it could be many more. Press reports claimed cattle at Smithfield had been asphyxiated by the smog.

What chemicals were in the Donora Smog?

The pollutants in the air mixed with fog to form a thick, yellowish, acrid smog that hung over Donora for five days. The sulfuric acid, nitrogen dioxide, fluorine, and other poisonous gases that usually dispersed into the atmosphere were caught in the inversion and accumulated until rain ended the weather pattern.

Where does the River Meuse end?

North SeaMeuse / Mouth

Who was responsible for the Donora Smog?

THE DONORA SMOG OF 1948 The group of 25 investigators was led by H. H. Schrenk, who was the Chief of the Environmental Investigations Branch of the USPHS at the time, after having served with the United States Bureau of Mines for 20 years in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.