Hope Bus participants exposed to chemicals added to water canons

Results of componential analysis by the National Forensic Service of a lachrymatory agent sprayed on participants in the second Hope Bus Campaign on July 10 indicate that the solution, if used in excess, is dangerous to the human body.

“Contents of analysis of PAVA,” a document obtained from the NFS by the office of Democratic Labor Party lawmaker Jang Se-hwan, states that isopropyl alcohol, which constitutes around 68 percent of PAVA, “may, if absorbed, cause mild irritation to the nose and throat, as well as drowsiness, headaches and impaired movement. Excessive exposure can reportedly cause loss of consciousness and death.”

The component analysis was conducted at the request of the Korean National Police Agency (KNPA) in April and July last year on PAVA products and the lachrymatory agent actually used in water cannons. PAVA, a Swiss product introduced last year by the NPA, consists of 68 percent isopropyl alcohol (propan-2-ol), 10.7 percent nonivamide and 11 percent ethyl ester. Isopropyl alcohol, an organic solvent that melts the nonivamide, is also used in products such as dishwashing liquid and disinfectant.

“To spray a substance containing 68 percent isopropyl alcohol with a water cannon at a large gathering of random people is problematic,” pointed out Kong Yoo Jeong-ok, a researcher at Korea Institute of Labor Safety and Health (KILSH) and a specialist in industrial medicine. “When shot from a water cannon, it can be dangerous if it seeps into weak areas of skin, and can cause serious problems to the elderly, the physically weak, young children and people with other illnesses.”

Lee Sang-yun, head of policy at Solidarity for Workers’ Health, said, “Even if the concentration is low, the danger may increase when [the solution] is shot from a water cannon due to the physical pressure.” Lee warned, “It is possible that [the solution] may have an effect not only on those that were hit by the water cannon, but also that the harmful substances contained in it may evaporate and that the vapor will affect a wide range of people.”

Police, however, explained, “The ‘excessive exposure’ to which the NFS refers is an extreme case where the solution is used in an enclosed space, or where 45 liters, an excessive amount, is taken into the body.”

A police official said, “Isopropyl alcohol is used in disinfectant, too. This time, too, we mixed 27 liters of lachrymatory agent with 4,000 liters of water, giving a very low concentration of 0.66 percent. In the UK, the standard concentration is three percent.”

Regarding the safety of using a water cannon with lachrymatory agent in the water, police stated, “When we introduced PAVA, we even conducted tests where the executives and staff in charge of it were subjected to it themselves. The distance and pressure used for the water cannon were in accordance with guidelines for crowd dispersal.”