A total of 2,430 gas cylinders were destroyed recently by the Costa Rican Public Services Regulatory Authority (Aresep), because they presented some problem and were considered dangerous.

This is done as part of the Gas Quality Assessment Program of Aresep, which reviews the condition of the cylinders.

Among the considerations used to determine if cylinders should be discarded include: Having dents or bangs, being corroded, having leaks, being made of aluminum.

The destruction involves extracting of any gas residues from the cylinder, and the breaking and manually perforating the container.

The Aresep technical team also oversaw the incorporation of 2,000 new cylinders that are in full safety compliance. Also, 3,000 barrels that had been returned empty were deemed ready to be refilled and safely marketed.

The plan for the inspection and renewal of the country’s cylinder supply, which was agreed upon between Aresep and the packaging companies, is progressing satisfactorily and aims in order to equip companies with 100,000 new containers per year.

“Our task is to remove from the market those cylinders that are in poor condition, and we have found support from the companies to protect consumers,” added Mora.

This review process is carried out in all the packaging plants, and there the cylinders in poor condition are marked. Subsequently, the company reviews these containers and discards the ones that can not be fixed, detailed Aresep in a statement.

The agreement was made after a deadly gas cylinder explosion several years ago killed a woman and injured others in a small eatery, and it was discovered the cylinder had been defective.