Environmentalists comment on the air pollution situation during the fire in the Rostov region

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Commenting on the fire at the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery, environmentalists recommended that residents of nearby houses in the event of a similar situation spend as little time as possible outdoors and wear respirators.

As "Kavkazsky Uzel" wrote, in Novoshakhtinsk after a drone attack on the night of August 21, a fire occurred at an industrial enterprise, reported Acting Governor of the Rostov Region Yuri Slyusar. However, he did not specify which enterprise he was talking about. On August 23, the Novoshakhtinsk administration reported a difficult situation at the site of the fire. According to the acting governor of the Rostov region, Yuri Slyusar, employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations from four regions arrived to extinguish the fire on the territory of the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery. On the morning of August 26, the authorities reported that the fire had been extinguished.

On August 26, the head of the Krasnodar regional branch of the Green League organization Yevgeny Vitishko, the head of the republican branch of the All-Russian Society for Nature Conservation in Adygea Valery Brinikh and an anonymous ecologist, interviewed by a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent, commenting on the information about the fire at the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery, told residents of nearby houses how to behave in similar situations, especially in the absence of adequate information from the authorities.

Yevgeny Vitishko noted that the scale of the danger is unclear, since it is not clear what exactly was burning. "But in any case, a fire at an oil refinery results in a lot of harmful substances being released into the air," he said.

Valery Brinikh emphasized that the very first danger in any fire is soot. "It pollutes the space, and its particles can settle in the lungs, although in itself, as pure carbon, it is not very dangerous. More dangerous are the various oxides released during combustion," he said.

An anonymous ecologist also emphasized the danger of oxides. "This is sulfur oxide, nitrogen oxide. Plus, various impurities are released that were included in oil products, including heavy metals. All this flies around the neighborhoods depending on weather conditions. If the weather is cloudless and windy, it can spread it for tens of kilometers. If the weather is calm, then all this settles closer," he said.

All experts unanimously noted that during such fires, people living nearby should go outside as little as possible. Vitishko emphasized that the scale of the measures taken depends on what exactly is burning. "For example, the decision on whether to close schools or not depends on this," he noted.

Brinikh said that from the general recommendations, he would also highlight the need to close windows. "In addition, when going outside, you need to wear a sanitary mask - it will at least save you from soot, although it will not save you from harmful gases," he emphasized.

An anonymous ecologist said that local authorities should first of all declare that the city is in a state of "black sky." "This is a slang name for severe pollution, such a regime is introduced in some industrial centers. In principle, Rospotrebnadzor should take measurements, but for some reason they always turn out to be such that people are told that everything is within normal limits. People themselves need to close the windows as quickly as possible and try to go outside in respirators. A medical mask will not save you here, and a respirator provides at least partial protection,” he noted.

The Novoshakhtinsk Oil Refinery is located eight kilometers from the border with the LPR, according to information on the Yandex. Maps service. The enterprise remains the largest supplier of petroleum products in the south of Russia and the only operating refinery in the Rostov Region, the 161.ru publication noted on June 22, 2022.

On May 4, 2024, a drone exploded on the territory of the Novoshakhtinsk Oil Refinery . The fire was then extinguished by the plant's employees, there were no casualties or injuries.

Earlier, on June 22, 2022, the Novoshakhtinsk Oil Refinery operation was stopped after a fire, and the wreckage of two drones was found at the plant. After the first strike, a fire broke out in the vacuum unit, the second strike did not cause a fire. There were also no casualties or injuries as a result of the fire at the oil refinery. The plant resumed operations on August 5, 2022.

The drone attack on the oil refinery in Novoshakhtinsk will not in any way affect the combat capability of the troops of the Southern Military District and their supply of fuel and lubricants, military experts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" said.

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