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An LG Polymers factory in Visakhapatnam, India, where a gas leak accident occurred on May 7. (AP/Yonhap News)

Two South Korean executives, including the president of the local branch, were arrested by Indian police in connection with a gas leak at an LG Chem factory in India that resulted in the deaths of 12 residents.

According to accounts from the Indian press and LG Chem, police in the Indian city of Visakhapatnam arrested 12 people, on July 7 in connection with the styrene gas leak. They included two South Korean executives -- Jiong Sun-key, president of LG Polymers’ Indian branch, and a technical adviser surnamed Kim -- as well as 10 Indian employees. It is rare for South Korean executives to be arrested over an accident caused by a South Korean company at an overseas factory.

Indian police have requested a warrant for their detention, with the decision on whether to grant it expected to come late at night on July 8, sources said. It is not yet known what crime they are to be accused of. Visakhapatnam Police Commissioner RK Meena said the individuals in question were booked after an examination of the Indian criminal code in connection with the gas leak.

An expert panel that investigated the incident on July 6 recommended to state authorities that accusations should be lodged against all of the company’s managers in connection with the leak. On July 8, the panel submitted an investigation report to state authorities in which numerous problems were cited, including the failure to sound alarms in 36 locations and the absence of a containment system to mitigate the leak.

At 3 am on May 7, a styrene gas leak occurred in a tank at an LG Polymers factory operated by LG Chem in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, resulting in the deaths of 12 local residents. Another 500 people received hospital treatment. Following a nearly two-month investigation of the leak, the panel concluded that the accident had been caused by the faulty design of the tank in question, a faulty cooling system, and the absence of a circulation system, which were exacerbated by inappropriate safety management and crisis response measures and inadequate knowledge among employees.

Choi Ye-yong, vice chairperson of the Special Investigation Commission on Social Disasters, remarked after observing the incident from South Korea that the “cause of the accident was determined by the Indian authorities’ investigation to lie in generally lax safety measures on LG’s part.”

“The LG Chem head office is unlikely to escape being held criminally liable,” Choi predicted.

By Lee Jae-yeon and Choi Hyun-june, staff reporters

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