Leaks Stall First Effort to Accelerate Chemical Destruction at Anniston

Safety equipment that detected sarin leaks stopped the U.S. Army’s first effort to accelerate the destruction of chemical weapons agents stored at the Anniston depot in Alabama, the Associated Press reported today (see GSN, Aug. 18).

Workers at the incinerator destroyed about 530 gallons of bulk sarin gas Sunday and are scheduled to burn the remaining 270 gallons later this month, an Army spokesman said yesterday. 

The entire stock was originally scheduled to be destroyed Sunday, but two leaks were detected, and a sarin leak from two weeks ago was confirmed yesterday, according to AP.

“In no way would I characterize it as any failure or any problem,” Army spokesman Mike Abrams said.  “This is what we have characterized as a shakedown period.  There’s no pressure on us to do any specific production,” he added (Associated Press/Raleigh News and Observer, Sept. 2).

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