Date: Mon, 30 Nov 2009 08:12:46 -0500
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Subject: 4 Chemical Safety stories from google

Australia


http://oakleigh-monash-leader.whereilive.com.au/news/story/students-evacua
ted-after-chemical-leak-at-monash-in-clayton/

Students evacuated after chemical leak at Monash in Clayton

30 NOV 09 **At_Symbol_Here** 11:50AM BY SHAUN TURTON

UPDATE 2.30PM: A FAULTY cool room caused a chemical scare at Monash 
University in Clayton this morning.

About 40 students were evacuated from the physiology building just 
before 10.30am after a chemical leak was detected.

Metropolitan Fire Brigade spokeswoman Jennifer Roberts said firefighters 
used breathing apparatus to track the leak to a cool room.

She said the refrigerated room had lost its coolant, causing chemicals 
in the room to heat up and leak into the passageway.

She said a woman who went to check on the fridge before firefighters 
arrived had suffered eye irritation.

Ambulance Victoria spokeswoman Liana Cross said crews were on standby at 
the university, but none of the 30 to 40 people evacuated from the 
building needed treatment.

Ms Roberts said the situation was controlled at 10.49am and the MFB=92s 
scientific officer was at the scene investigating which chemicals leaked 
from the room.

A temporary fridge has been provided by the MFB while the cool room is 
re-gassed.

===

New Brunswick, Canada


http://www.cbc.ca/canada/new-brunswick/story/2009/11/29/nb-fundy-high-reop
ens.html

Fundy High reopens after chemical spill
Last Updated: Sunday, November 29, 2009 | 8:59 PM AT Comments3Recommend3
CBC News
Fundy High School in St. George, N.B., will reopen for classes on 
Monday, four days after a chemical spill forced the building's 
evacuation.

On Thursday, a janitor noticed an odour during his early morning rounds 
and discovered the spill in one of the laboratories. A shelf had broken 
in the chemistry lab closet, spilling a mix of chemicals, including 
sulphuric and hydrochloric acid.

"We weren't exactly sure what all the bottles were," said principal Lynn 
Farmakoulas. "Some were in the school as long as it's been there."

The school was evacuated and a hazardous materials team was sent to 
safely remove the contents.

There were alarmingly high readings of hydrogen sulfide gas, said fire 
chief Leonard Lee.

"=46rom what we could tell, there was hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid 
and there was a brown bottle we never did identify. The acid had eaten 
the label off it," he said.

The cleanup took about eight hours.

All of the chemicals have been removed from the school and new supplies 
are being ordered, according to Farmakoulas.

"When we do bring new chemicals to the school, they will be stored 
properly, they will be labelled properly, so we're actually quite lucky. 
We're able to start from square one at our school," she said.

The provincial Department of Education is in the middle of its rollout 
of new safety guidelines for science labs in schools. It updated its 
list of chemicals no longer allowed in school labs and it has a new 
inventory system for staff to keep track of supplies.

New Brunswick teachers are also being trained on how to safely handle, 
store and label chemicals. All teachers are expected to be trained by 
the end of the year, officials have said.

===

Avondale, Az


http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2009/11/29/20091129
mercuryspill1129.html

Start of story on
huge mercury cleanup unfolded

by Megan Gordon - Nov. 29, 2009 12:00 AM

The Arizona Republic

Maylene Byers' Physical Science class was reviewing a set of articles. 
Students worked in groups in a classroom located next to a science 
laboratory in one of several buildings that make up the Agua Fria High 
School campus.

Two boys sitting in front weren't paying attention. One was a junior, 
the other a freshman. They had noticed a plastic bottle on the open 
shelf next to their desks. They removed the screw cap, looked inside, 
and swirled around a metallic liquid they did not recognize.

Curious, they poured some onto the floor to see what would happen. The 
boys liked how the liquid balled into tight beads. The freshman scooped 
it up from the floor and put it into an empty Gatorade bottle.

===

PLYMOUTH, Ind.


http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-in-plymouth-factoryf,0,2667711.s
tory

Fire damages N. Indiana aluminum processing plant

PLYMOUTH, Ind. - Firefighters decided to let a blaze burn itself out at 
an aluminum processing plant in northern Indiana. 

Emergency crews were called Thursday night to the U.S. Granules plant in 
Plymouth, where a fire started in a shed and spread to the main 
building. No injuries were reported, but dozens of firefighters worked 
to contain the fire as they couldn't use water on it because of possible 
chemical reactions. 

Fire Chief Andy Metsker says crews removed combustible items away from 
the fire and that it would burn itself out. The cause wasn't immediately 
known. 

The company's Web site says the plant processes aluminum foil scrap into 
granules for industrial explosives, drain cleaners and other products. 

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