Vila Socó is a "favela" (slum) in Cubatão, Brazil, that was the site of a major industrial oil spill fire on February 25, 1984. 700,000 liters of gas were released, 1,000 homes were destroyed, and 100 people died.[1] The geography of Cubatão prevented rapid dispersal of air pollutants released from the burning fuels.[2] The German sociologistUlrich Beck used the case of Vila Socó ("The dirtiest chemical town in the world") as an example of the "destructive powers of the developed risk industry."[3]
