Editing Kuwaiti oil fires (section)

==Military effects==
[[File:USAF F-16A F-15C F-15E Desert Storm edit2.jpg|thumb|right|[[United States Air Force|USAF]] aircraft fly over burning Kuwaiti oil wells (1991).]]
[[File:BrennendeOelquellenKuwait1991.jpg|thumb|right|The oil fires caused a dramatic decrease in [[air quality]], causing [[respiratory]] problems for many soldiers on the ground without [[gas masks]] (1991).]]
[[File:B Company, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marines at Al-Burgan Oil Field, Kuwait in Gulf War, February 1991.tif|thumb|right|United States Marines approach burning oilfields during ground war of the Gulf War (1991).]]

On March 21, 1991, a Royal Saudi Air Force [[C-130]]H crashed in heavy smoke due to the Kuwaiti oil fires on approach to [[Ras Mishab Airport]], [[Saudi Arabia]]. 92 Senegalese soldiers and 6 Saudi crew members were killed, the largest accident among Coalition forces.<ref name="92-senegalese-soldiers-die">Schmitt, Eric (March 22, 1991). [https://www.nytimes.com/1991/03/22/world/after-the-war-92-senegalese-soldiers-die-in-saudi-arabia-air-crash.html "After the War"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171020063210/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/03/22/world/after-the-war-92-senegalese-soldiers-die-in-saudi-arabia-air-crash.html |date=2017-10-20 }}. ''The New York Times''.</ref>

The smoke screening was also used by Iraqi anti-armor forces to a successful extent in the [[Battle of Phase Line Bullet]], having aided in achieving the element of surprise against advancing [[Bradley IFV]]s, along with increasing the general [[fog of war]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Atkinson |first=Rick |title=Crusade, The untold story of the Persian Gulf War |publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company |year=1993 |isbn=0-395-71083-9 |pages=430}}</ref>

The fires burned out of control because of the dangers of sending in firefighting crews during the war. [[Land mines]] had been placed in areas around the oil wells and military [[demining]] was necessary before the fires could be put out. Around {{convert|5|Moilbbl|m3|-4}} of oil were lost each day. Eventually, privately contracted crews extinguished the fires, at a total cost of [[US$]]1.5 billion to Kuwait.<ref>{{cite book |last=Husain |first=T. |title=Kuwaiti Oil Fires: Regional Environmental Perspectives |year=1995 |publisher=BPC Wheatons Ltd |location=[[Oxford]] |pages=68}}</ref> By that time, however, the fires had burned for approximately ten months, causing widespread pollution.

The fires have been linked with what was later deemed [[Gulf War syndrome]], a chronic disorder afflicting military veterans and civilian workers that include fatigue, muscle pain, and cognitive problems; however, studies have indicated that the firemen who capped the wells did not report any of the symptoms that the soldiers experienced.<ref>[https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/syndrome/analysis/oilwell.html Presidential Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses: Final Report] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170505222336/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/syndrome/analysis/oilwell.html |date=2017-05-05 }}, December 1996</ref> The cause of Gulf War syndrome has since been ascribed to Sarin nerve agent.<ref>[https://www.utsouthwestern.edu/newsroom/articles/year-2022/sarin-nerve-gas-gulf-war-illness.html UTSW genetic study confirms sarin nerve gas as cause of Gulf War illness], May 11, 2022</ref>

From the perspective of ground forces, apart from the occasional "oil rain" experienced by troops very close to spewing wells,<ref name="auto1">{{cite web |url=http://www.gulflink.osd.mil/owf_ii/owf_ii_s05.htm#D.%20Possible%20Health%20Effects%20of%20Oil%20Fires |title=Possible Health effects of Oil fires |access-date=2014-06-06 |archive-date=2017-02-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170219031156/http://www.gulflink.osd.mil/owf_ii/owf_ii_s05.htm#D.%20Possible%20Health%20Effects%20of%20Oil%20Fires |url-status=dead }}</ref> one of the more commonly experienced effects of the oil field fires were the ensuing smoke [[plume (hydrodynamics)|plume]]s which rose into the atmosphere and then [[Precipitation|precipitated]] or fell out of the air via [[dry deposition]] and by rain. The pillar-like plumes frequently broadened and joined up with other smoke plumes at higher altitudes, producing a cloudy grey [[overcast]] effect, as only about 10% of all the fires corresponding with those that originated from "oil lakes" produced pure black [[soot]] filled plumes, 25% of the fires emitted white to grey plumes, while the remainder emitted plumes with colors between grey and black.<ref name="gulflink.osd.mil"/> For example, one Gulf War veteran stated:<ref name="gulflink.osd.mil"/><ref name="TAB J – Plume Configurations"/><ref name="auto1"/>

{{blockquote|It was like a cloudy day all day long, in fact, we didn’t realize it was smoke at first. The smoke was about 500 feet above us, so we couldn’t see the sky. However, we could see horizontally for long distances with no problem. We knew it was smoke when the mucous from our nostrils started to look [[soot|black]]..."}}

A paper published in 2000 analyzed the degree of exposure by troops to [[particulate matter]], including soot. However, the paper focused more-so on [[silica]] sand, which can produce [[silicosis]]. The paper included troop medical records,<ref name="auto2">{{cite web|url=http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA382643 |title=Particulate Exposure During The Arabian Gulf War B. R Thomas 2000. PDF |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924124450/http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA382643 |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |access-date=October 5, 2016 }}</ref> and in its conclusion: "A literature review indicated negligible to nonexistent health risk from other inhaled particulate material (other than silica) during the Gulf War".