Skip to main content
The BMJ logoLink to The BMJ
. 1989 May 27;298(6685):1437–1441. doi: 10.1136/bmj.298.6685.1437

Lake Nyos disaster, Cameroon, 1986: the medical effects of large scale emission of carbon dioxide?

P J Baxter 1, M Kapila 1, D Mfonfu 1
PMCID: PMC1836556  PMID: 2502283

Abstract

Carbon dioxide was blamed for the deaths of around 1700 people in Cameroon, west Africa, in 1986 when a massive release of gas occurred from Lake Nyos, a volcanic crater lake. The clinical findings in 845 survivors seen at or admitted to hospital were compatible with exposure to an asphyxiant gas. Rescuers noted cutaneous erythema and bullae on an unknown proportion of corpses and 161 (19%) survivors treated in hospital; though these lesions were initially believed to be burns from acidic gases, further investigation suggested that they were associated with coma states caused by exposure to carbon dioxide in air. The disaster at Lake Nyos and a similar event at Lake Monoun, Cameroon, two years previously provide new information on the possible medical effects of large scale emissions of carbon dioxide, though the presence of other toxic factors in these gas releases cannot be excluded.

Full text

PDF
1439

Images in this article

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. BEVERIDGE G. W., LAWSON A. A. OCCURRENCE OF BULLOUS LESIONS IN ACUTE BARBITURATE INTOXICATION. Br Med J. 1965 Mar 27;1(5438):835–837. doi: 10.1136/bmj.1.5438.824. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Baxter P. J., Bernstein R. S., Buist A. S. Preventive health measures in volcanic eruptions. Am J Public Health. 1986 Mar;76(3 Suppl):84–90. doi: 10.2105/ajph.76.suppl.84. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Eisele J. H., Eger E. I., 2nd, Muallem M. Narcotic properties of carbon dioxide in the dog. Anesthesiology. 1967 Sep-Oct;28(5):856–865. doi: 10.1097/00000542-196709000-00019. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Kling G. W., Clark M. A., Wagner G. N., Compton H. R., Humphrey A. M., Devine J. D., Evans W. C., Lockwood J. P., Tuttle M. L., Koenigsberg E. J. The 1986 lake nyos gas disaster in cameroon, west Africa. Science. 1987 Apr 10;236(4798):169–175. doi: 10.1126/science.236.4798.169. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Kling G. W. Seasonal mixing and catastrophic degassing in tropical lakes, cameroon, west Africa. Science. 1987 Aug 28;237(4818):1022–1024. doi: 10.1126/science.237.4818.1022. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Leavell U. W., Farley C. H., McIntyre J. S. Cutaneous changes in a patient with carbon monoxide poisoning. Arch Dermatol. 1969 Apr;99(4):429–433. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. MEIGS J. W., HUGHES J. P. W. Acute carbon monoxide poisoning; an analysis of one hundred five cases. AMA Arch Ind Hyg Occup Med. 1952 Oct;6(4):344–356. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Mandy S., Ackerman A. B. Characteristic traumatic skin lesions in drug-induced coma. JAMA. 1970 Jul 13;213(2):253–256. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. McCABE L. C., CLAYTON G. D. Air pollution by hydrogen sulfide in Poza Rica, Mexico; an evaluation of the incident of Nov. 24, 1950. AMA Arch Ind Hyg Occup Med. 1952 Sep;6(3):199–213. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. WESTLAKE E. K., SIMPSON T., KAYE M. Carbon dioxide narcosis in emphysema. Q J Med. 1955 Apr;24(94):155–173. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. van Doorn R., Leijdekkers C. P., Henderson P. T., Vanhoorne M., Vertin P. G. Determination of thio compounds in urine of workers exposed to carbon disulfide. Arch Environ Health. 1981 Nov-Dec;36(6):289–297. doi: 10.1080/00039896.1981.10667640. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from BMJ : British Medical Journal are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES