https://motherboard.vice.com/read/a-loud-sound-just-shut-down-a-banks-data-center-for-10-hours
ING Bank's main data center in Bucharest, Romania, was severely damaged over the weekend during a fire extinguishing test. In what is a very rare but known phenomenon, it was the loud sound of inert gas being released that destroyed dozens of hard drives. The site is currently offline and the bank relies solely on its backup data center, located within a couple of miles' proximity.
"The drill went as designed, but we had collateral damage", ING's spokeswoman in Romania told me, confirming the inert gas issue. Local clients were unable to use debit cards and to perform online banking operations on Saturday between 1PM and 11PM because of the test. "Our team is investigating the incident," she said.
The purpose of the drill was to see how the data center's fire suppression system worked. Data centers typically rely on inert gas to protect the equipment in the event of a fire, as the substance does not chemically damage electronics, and the gas only slightly decreases the temperature within the data center.
(Score: 2) by Fnord666 on Monday September 12 2016, @09:02PM
They probably mean halon.
No, they mean inert gas.
INERGENĀ® is a mixture of 52% Nitrogen, 40% Argon and 8% CO2. However, in the event of a fire, when INERGENĀ® is discharged, it mixes with the air present in the room to create a mixture that comprises of 67.3% Nitrogen, 12.5% Oxygen, 17% Argon and 3.2% Carbon Dioxide.
This discharge mixture makes INERGENĀ® singularly unique. No other inert gas has the unique ability to rapidly extinguish a fire yet at the same time provide a safe environment for any person within the occupied area by actually decreasing cardiac distress and maintaining arterial blood oxygenation and mental performance in low oxygen levels.