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.
Previous post | Top of Page | Next post