Date: Thu, 15 Oct 2009 07:34:44 -0400
Reply-To: List Moderator <ecgrants**At_Symbol_Here**UVM.EDU>
Sender: DCHAS-L Discussion List <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**LIST.UVM.EDU>
From: List Moderator <ecgrants**At_Symbol_Here**UVM.EDU>
Subject: Two Lab Safety News Stories from google

In my experience, the next to last paragraph in the second story is a  

key point to remind people of...

- Ralph


http://www.cornellsun.com/section/news/content/2009/10/14/old-equipment-sp
arks-fire-synchrotron

Old Equipment Sparks Fire at Synchrotron
October 14, 2009 - 4:34am
By Seth Shapiro

A small fire broke out at the Wilson Synchrotron Laboratory yesterday  

afternoon around 2:47 p.m., marking the second fire in less than a  
month at the laboratory. An internal a power supply for a vacuum pump  

short-circuited and caused the fire, according to the Ithaca Fire  
Department.

Firefighters entered the synchrotron lab ring from the entrance off of  

Tower Road and quickly encountered smoke. Upon reaching the power  
supply, the firefighters discovered it was on fire. They quickly  
extinguished the flames and de-energized the supply unit, according to  

Assistant Chief Daniel Tier III, the incident commander. The fire  
forced Cornell officials to temporarily close Tower Road yesterday  
afternoon.

The equipment was similar, but not exactly the same, as the equipment  

that caused the first fire on Sept. 16. According to Dave Rice,  
technical director of the laboratory, the damage was confined to a  
small area and was minimal. The accelerator was back in operation  
later in the day. Although the damage was preliminarily estimated to  
be $4,000, Rice said it would likely be less than that amount.

Both fires were caused by equipment that are around 30 years old,  
according to Rice. He said that the lab has ordered 50 replacements  
for the units. However, Rice said it will take months to change the  
units because of the large quantity of replacements and the need to  
conduct testing.

Rice said that the lab inspected the remaining power supplies last  
night, and a meeting will take place today to evaluate the best course  

of action to prevent future fires before the units are replaced.

====


http://www.theclariononline.com/earthquake-drill-to-shake-up-campus-1.1997
301

Earthquake drill to shake up campus

By Kazue Kate Fujii, Staff Writer

www.shakeout.org

On Wednesday, Oct. 14 Citrus College is participating for the first  
time in the =93Great California Shakeout,=94 said to be largest 
earthquake  
drill ever. The drill will take place at 10:15 a.m.

A campus-wide earthquake drill is a good idea.  We should practice the  

=93Drop, Cover, Hold On=94 technique, as it is the best way to prevent  

serious injury or death.

Then people will know what to do to survive an earthquake.  These  
actions are very easy to remember and put into practice.

=93Drop=94 means you drop to the ground.

The second step, =93Cover,=94 means to take refuge under a table or 
other  
protective covering.

If there is no covering available, stay low.

=93Hold On=94 means to hold on tightly to the desk or table leg so that  

the desk or table stays on top of you.

The Northridge earthquake on Jan 17, 1994, caused 9,000 injuries.

The Great Hanshin earthquake on Jan. 17, 1995, killed more than 5,500  

and hurt 26,000.

These two earthquakes happened on the same day of the month by a  
strange coincidence.

There are many earthquakes in my homeland of Japan.  Schools have  
earthquake and other drills often to prepare for natural disasters,  
including tsunami.

I remembered the earthquake in California last July.

Many American students were panicked, but not Japanese students  
attending Citrus College.

Researchers are trying to learn how to predict earthquakes, but they  
can happen with no warning. Imagine that an earthquake might happen  
when you are in class.

Broken fluorescent bulbs could drop on you. If it happens while you  
are in a lab, heavy desktops might attack you.

If it happens while you are in a science laboratory, dangerous  
chemicals could cause fire and other injuries.

Think about the dangers you might meet in your environment.

According to earthquake safety studies, you are more likely to be  
injured or killed by falling objects than to die in collapsed buildings.

However, you can protect yourself by using this =93Drop, Cover, Hold On=94
  
method.

Once you are in the panic mode, you cannot think logically.  Panicked  

people react strangely, so it=92s up to you to be calm yourself.

Take the practice drill in drop-cover-hold on seriously.  It can save  

your life.

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