On chlorine & chlorine toxicity at water parks: what to watch out for

Water park accident attorneys realize that you’ve probably heard of chlorine and might even know a fair amount about the substance. You probably encounter it every day: in drinking water, salt, swimming pools, and at water parks for instance. Here our water park accident attorneys present a few interesting facts about chlorine and chlorine toxicity that you might not be aware of:

• Chlorine is one of the most common elements on Earth.
• Chlorine is one of the most active elements in nature, and will bond easily with many other elements.
• Chlorine is necessary for most life forms, including humans.
• Chlorine’s one of the two essential components of salt (sodium chloride).

• In its pale yellow-green gaseous form, chlorine smells like bleach.
• Chlorine gas is toxic to humans once it passes about 30 ppm (parts per million).
• Above 30 ppm, chlorine reacts with water in cells to form toxic hydrochloric acid.
• As a gas, chlorine severely damages the respiratory tract and irritates the eyes.
• Chlorine gas was first used as a weapon in WWI & poisoned about 2,000 U.S. soldiers.

• Chlorine works as an effective disinfectant because it oxidizes and damages microbes.
• During oxidation, chlorine forms various acidic compounds that can damage cells.
• Chlorine is used as a disinfectant in drinking water supplies as well as in swimming pools.
• Chlorine’s oxidizing properties can corrode swimming pool and water park equipment.

Chlorine is one of the most useful elements on Earth, a workhorse among the common elements. Chlorine compounds can be found in our water supplies as well as in many of our food products, for example: salt. Our water park accident attorneys emphasize that we couldn’t live without chlorine. But we also can’t live with too much of it.

Be careful how much chlorine you put in your pool. Once you exceed the amount the water will absorb, chlorine escapes as a gas. And you definitely don’t want a chlorine gas cloud hanging over your pool party. While it would be colorful, it also might be the very last colorful thing you see. Chlorine toxicity can easily kill.

If you’ve suffered injury at a pool or a water park, kindly give us a call. We’re here to help you. We’re experienced water park accident attorneys. We could help you in your quest for fair compensation if you’ve suffered an unexpected accident on your day of summer fun in the water.