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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Wednesday, June 26, 2013 7:53:31 AM
A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Connecting Chemistry and Safety at http://www.dchas.org
All article summaries and tags are archived at http://pinboard.in/u:dchas
Table of Contents (17 articles)
STRAIGHT FORWARD CLEAN UP FOLLOWING EXPLOSION
Tags: Australia, public, explosion, death, asbestos
EXPLOSIONS RIP THROUGH FIREWORKS FACILITY NORTHWEST OF BILLINGS
Tags: us_MT, industrial, explosion, injury, fireworks
CHEMICAL PLANT BLAZE BLAMED ON ILLEGAL WORK, UNLICENSED WORKERS -- SHANGHAI DAILY
Tags: China, industrial, follow-up, injury, illegal, petroleum
GEISMAR EXPLOSION, FIRE RELEASED MORE THAN 62,000 POUNDS OF TOXIC CHEMICALS, COMPANY REPORTS
Tags: us_LA, industrial, follow-up, death, toxics
SPARKING CHEMICAL IGNITED HOOD IN PLAINWELL'S DRUG & LABORATORY DISPOSAL FIRE, PRELIMINARY REPORT SUGGESTS
Tags: us_MI, laboratory, follow-up, injury, waste
CARGO CONTAINERS HOLDING HAZARDOUS MATERIALS CATCH FIRE AT PORT ELIZABETH
Tags: us_NJ, industrial, explosion, response, unknown_chemical
THE SAFETY ZONE: NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES LAB SAFETY CULTURE COMMITTEE MEETING IN BERKELEY THIS WEEK
Tags: laboratory, follow-up, response
IMPLICATIONS OF THE FRENCH REGISTRY FOR ENGINEERED NANOMATERIALS
Tags: France, industrial, discovery, environmental, nanotech
WILLIAMS COS. SUED BY WORKERS INJURED IN LOUISIANA PLANT BLAST
Tags: us_LA, industrial, follow-up, death, unknown_chemical
INDIANA FERTILIZER PLANT EXPLOSION KILLS ONE PERSON
Tags: us_IN, industrial, explosion, death, dust
C.F. CHEMICAL FIRE DRAWS DOZENS OF RESPONDERS
Tags: us_RI, industrial, fire, response, flammables, paints, plastics
MAPLETON, ILL.: CHEMICAL PLANT FIRE SOUTHWEST OF PEORIA OUT
Tags: us_IL, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
RESTAURANT, PETROL STATION EVACUATED AFTER CHEMICAL SPILL
Tags: Australia, transportation, release, response, hydrochloric_acid
OVERNIGHT CHEMICAL SPILL IN LOUDOUN COUNTY CLEARED
Tags: us_VA, industrial, release, injury, sodium_hydroxide
LOCATION OF PLAINWELL CHEMICAL FIRE HAS PENALTY HISTORY WITH EPA
Tags: us_MI, industrial, follow-up, response, drugs, waste
CHEMICAL WASTE DISPOSAL FIRE REKINDLES
Tags: us_MI, industrial, explosion, response, drugs, waste
CHEMICAL FACTORY EXPLOSION IN CHINA
Tags: China, industrial, explosion, response, irritant
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STRAIGHT FORWARD CLEAN UP FOLLOWING EXPLOSION
http://www.greatlakesadvocate.com.au/story/1595849/straight-forward-clean-up-following-explosion/?cs=12
Tags: Australia, public, explosion, death, asbestos
THE clean up following the house explosion at Tuncurry on June 14 is expected to be completed today.
POLICE confirmed a gas leak was responsible for the massive explosion that tragically killed 80-year-old John Richard Fisher and reduced the home, where he lived alone, to rubble.
Emergency services arrived on the scene to find the house completely destroyed with asbestos debris up to 100 metres away from the site. It was immediately declared a HAZMAT incident.
Police concluded their investigations at the site on June 15 and handed it over to Great Lakes Council who began cleanup of site.
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EXPLOSIONS RIP THROUGH FIREWORKS FACILITY NORTHWEST OF BILLINGS
http://helenair.com/news/state-and-regional/explosions-rip-through-fireworks-facility-northwest-of-billings/article_95392608-ddeb-11e2-900d-001a4bcf887a.html
Tags: us_MT, industrial, explosion, injury, fireworks
A pair of explosions tore through a building at a fireworks facility south of Acton on Tuesday morning, keeping fire crews from around Yellowstone County busy for much of the day.
The first explosion at Evolution Pyrotechnics Manufacturing Inc., at 7788 Highway 3 North, happened at about 10:40 a.m. Employees reported that it caused the building to begin smoldering.
The plant includes at least four separate buildings and manufactures fireworks used in the entertainment industry, not the kind found at Fourth of July roadside stands, according to chief executive and president Anthony Santore Jr.
Sgt. Roger Bodine, with the Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office, said that it appears the initial blast started "after something was mixed wrong" in the facility and ignited, causing what appeared to be a small explosion.
Everyone - five to 10 people work at the facility - got out safely, although a technician suffered minor burns, was checked out at Billings hospital and is OK, Santore said.
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CHEMICAL PLANT BLAZE BLAMED ON ILLEGAL WORK, UNLICENSED WORKERS -- SHANGHAI DAILY
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/nsp/Metro/2013/06/26/Chemical%2Bplant%2Bblaze%2Bblamed%2Bon%2Billegal%2Bwork%2Bunlicensed%2Bworkers/
Tags: China, industrial, follow-up, injury, illegal, petroleum
THE chemical plant, which caught fire on Monday and injured six people in Jinshan District, was running an illegal operation and the people involved in the business did not have the licenses to handle chemical goods.
Workers at the Shanghai Shengying Petrochemical Co manually put chemical materials into a reactor kettle that exploded and caused fire in the factory.
It was not only illegal but was not even experimented before, the Shanghai Work Safety Administration said.
They did not take any protective measures either, officials said.
Authorities have come under increasing pressure and faced heavy criticisms following two fires in two days at chemical plants in the city. The city is being blamed for lax supervision and management.
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GEISMAR EXPLOSION, FIRE RELEASED MORE THAN 62,000 POUNDS OF TOXIC CHEMICALS, COMPANY REPORTS
http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/8ee5ffa579404f308847ebf24ac161d2/LA--Plant-Explosion
Tags: us_LA, industrial, follow-up, death, toxics
GEISMAR, Louisiana Ñ The deadly June 13 explosion and fire at the Williams Olefins chemical plant in Geismar released more than 62,000 pounds of toxic chemicals during the accident that killed two workers and injured 114 others, according to a report filed with state environmental regulators.
According to the report filed with the state Department of Environmental Quality, the facility released 31,187 pounds of volatile organic carbon material; 23,090 pounds of propylene; 2,398 pounds of ethylene; 5,621 pounds of other volatile organic carbon materials, including propane; and 48 pounds of benzene. According to The Times-Picayune (http://bit.ly/12oeirK ), the report says those are conservative estimates.
The cause of the blast and fire are still not known, although investigators are focusing on a heat exchanger and piping associated with the manufacturing column that extracts propylene from natural gas. A company spokesman said Tuesday that two contract workers injured in the blast remained hospitalized.
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SPARKING CHEMICAL IGNITED HOOD IN PLAINWELL'S DRUG & LABORATORY DISPOSAL FIRE, PRELIMINARY REPORT SUGGESTS
http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2013/06/sparking_chemical_ignited_hood.html#/0
Tags: us_MI, laboratory, follow-up, injury, waste
PLAINWELL, MI Ñ Preliminary reports suggest that a fire at Drug & Laboratory Disposal, Inc. here started when a small amount of a chemical being neutralized under a hood by a chemist unexpectedly stared to spark and smoke.
The employee immediately covered the container, "but instead of stopping the flames shot through the cover, and started a fire in the hood," said Nadine Deak, Environmental Quality Specialist with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality office in Kalamazoo.
Deak was on her way to the scene Tuesday morning, but said to her knowledge the fire, which was quickly contained, but rekindled overnight, did not involve larger drums or tanks of chemicals, just the smaller batches in the large, open room where workers neutralize small batches of chemicals. Deak said she believed a concrete wall separating the work area from storage areas acted as a firewall, but she had not yet confirmed that to be the case.
The chemist wasn't injured, and after trying unsuccessfully to put out the hood fire with fire extinguishers, employees called the fire dept and began to evacuate the building, Deak said.
---------------------------------------------
CARGO CONTAINERS HOLDING HAZARDOUS MATERIALS CATCH FIRE AT PORT ELIZABETH
http://www.nj.com/union/index.ssf/2013/06/hazmat_containers_catch_fire_at_port_elizabeth.html
Tags: us_NJ, industrial, explosion, response, unknown_chemical
ELIZABETH Ñ Two containers holding hazardous materials had to be extinguished this afternoon at Port Elizabeth after the machine carrying them caught fire, officials said.
The fire started on a straddle carrier at a port facility along Corbin Street, said Kelly Vence, an Elizabeth spokesperson. Straddle carriers are tall vehicles used to lift and transport containers.
The fire then spread to two containers that were on board the carrier. Both contained hazardous material, though officials were unsure exactly what was inside, Vence said.
There were a number of explosions, Vence confirmed, but they were caused by mechanisms inside the straddle carrier, not the containers.
The containers were extinguished, but now they are leaking, Vence said. Firefighters on the scene are using foam to prevent the chemicals from going into the water or sewers.
---------------------------------------------
THE SAFETY ZONE: NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES LAB SAFETY CULTURE COMMITTEE MEETING IN BERKELEY THIS WEEK
http://cenblog.org/the-safety-zone/2013/06/national-academy-of-sciences-lab-safety-culture-committee-meeting-in-berkeley-this-week/
Tags: laboratory, follow-up, response
Last month, the National Academy of Sciences kicked off a yearlong study of "Safety Culture in Academic Laboratories." The project is supposed to focus not so much on what should be done to improve safety in academic labs, but on how to get people to actually do it. C&EN's Jeff Johnson attended and reported on the first meeting of the committee, which is chaired by H. Holden Thorpe. Thorpe transitions at the end of this month from chancellor of the University of North Carolina to provost at Washington University in St. Louis.
The second Safety Culture committee meeting is this week, Wednesday and Thursday (June 26 and 27) at the University of California, Berkeley. The agenda is here. Since it's local to me, I plan to attend, and I'm sure at least one blog post will result.
---------------------------------------------
IMPLICATIONS OF THE FRENCH REGISTRY FOR ENGINEERED NANOMATERIALS
http://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/nn402619s
Tags: France, industrial, discovery, environmental, nanotech
France is the first nation to take the bold step of requiring the mandatory registration of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs).(1) While the United States requires registration of new chemicals, some ENMs may not be deemed "new". The French registry differs in specifically requiring the declaration of the use of all ENMs. Although the registry is somewhat limited in scope in that it involves no substantive evaluation or regulation of ENM use, it merits close attention in terms of the global nanotechnology enterprise. Observation of the impact in France and the European Union (EU) will provide important insights into the next steps that governments around the globe may take to obtain information about the commercial applications and safety of ENMs. This information is important for the assessment of nanotechnology environmental health and safety (nano EHS), as well as informing the public about the positive and negative impacts of this emerging new technology.
---------------------------------------------
WILLIAMS COS. SUED BY WORKERS INJURED IN LOUISIANA PLANT BLAST
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-06-24/williams-cos-dot-sued-by-workers-injured-in-louisiana-plant-blast
Tags: us_LA, industrial, follow-up, death, unknown_chemical
Williams Cos. (WMB), a U.S. operator of gas and oil pipelines, was sued by three pipefitters injured in the June 13 explosion at a subsidiary's chemical plant in Geismar, Louisiana.
The three men were fixing leaky pipes that had failed federal safety inspections, according to Brent Coon, the workers' attorney. The plaintiffs accuse Williams of negligence for not properly maintaining its equipment and pipelines. The blast in the plant's propylene fractionation unit killed two and injured 77, the company said.
Williams "failed to train and provide plaintiffs with safety, emergency and/or escape procedures," Coon said in a complaint filed June 21 after regular business hours in state court in Ascension Parish, Louisiana. The three workers were among dozens trapped inside the plant after the explosion until a co-worker smashed through a locked gate in a company truck to allow them to escape, according to the filing.
---------------------------------------------
INDIANA FERTILIZER PLANT EXPLOSION KILLS ONE PERSON
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57590777/indiana-fertilizer-plant-explosion-kills-one-person/
Tags: us_IN, industrial, explosion, death, dust
UNION MILLS, INDIANA Authorities say an explosion at a grain bin in northwest Indiana left one person dead.
The cause of the explosion at Union Mills Co-op Monday afternoon was not immediately clear. The department says in a news release that the victim, 67-year-old James Swank, was a co-op employee believed to be working in the silo when the blast happened.
CBS News affiliate WSBT in South Bend, Ind., reported that evidence from the scene indicates Swank may have been on top of a tower at the LaPorte when a possible grain dust explosion occurred and knocked him off the tower. Police say Swank fell about 175 feet.
Deputy Neil Lachmund says all other people are accounted for after the explosion, and two others were being checked for injuries. Union Mills Co-op about 50 miles southeast of Chicago.
---------------------------------------------
C.F. CHEMICAL FIRE DRAWS DOZENS OF RESPONDERS
http://www.woonsocketcall.com/node/8704
Tags: us_RI, industrial, fire, response, flammables, paints, plastics
CENTRAL FALLS Ñ Brutally hot outside temperatures and a fire and chemical spill inside a paint factory combined to cause a hazardous and uncomfortable scene for dozens of area firefighters on Monday.
Firefighters responded to the five-alarm blaze at around 11:30 a.m. at General Polymer Inc., an industrial paints and coatings company located at 59 Foundry St. The company occupies a three-story, 75,000-square foot brick mill building located in a densely populated neighborhood off Broad Street.
Thirteen members of the Woonsocket Fire Department's regional hazmat team were sent to a fire in a three-story mill building in Central Falls as a decon team to provide chemical decontamination for firefighters at the scene. The decon team was requested after the fire on Foundry Street was declared a hazardous-materials situation.
According to Central Falls Fire Chief Robert Bradley, a fire ignited in a large metal vat containing flammable chemicals that were being mixed in the production process. The fire in the vat was fully involved, he said. The blaze set off the sprinkler system but the water caused a second vat next to it to overflow and spill its contents all over the factory floor and into the basement. Over 300 gallons of chemicals, some believed to be hazardous, were spilled.
---------------------------------------------
MAPLETON, ILL.: CHEMICAL PLANT FIRE SOUTHWEST OF PEORIA OUT
http://www.bnd.com/2013/06/24/2669096/chemical-plant-fire-burning-southwest.html
Tags: us_IL, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
MAPLETON, ILL. Ñ Authorities now say a fire at a chemical plant southwest of Peoria is out.
Peoria County officials said Monday afternoon the fire at the Chemtura Corporation plant in Mapleton is extinguished.
The fire, which began early Monday, forced the closure of state Highway 24. It has been reopened through Mapleton. The town is about 10 miles southwest of Peoria along the Illinois River and has about 270 residents.
Information about how the fire started was not yet available.
---------------------------------------------
RESTAURANT, PETROL STATION EVACUATED AFTER CHEMICAL SPILL
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/restaurant-petrol-station-evacuated-after-chemical-spill-20130625-2ouc4.html
Tags: Australia, transportation, release, response, hydrochloric_acid
A chemical spill in Melbourne's east has closed a busy road and forced patrons at a nearby service station and fast-food restaurant to evacuate.
A Country Fire Authority spokeswoman said that a container of about 1000 litres of sulphuric and hydrochloric acid fell from a truck just before 11am near the intersection of Springvale Road and Hutton Road in Keysborough.
About five people from a Shell service station and Nando's restaurant were evacuated, and the north-bound lanes of Springvale Road and Hutton Road have been closed.
---------------------------------------------
OVERNIGHT CHEMICAL SPILL IN LOUDOUN COUNTY CLEARED
http://www.wtop.com/159/3369374/Chemical-spill-in-Loudoun-County-cleared
Tags: us_VA, industrial, release, injury, sodium_hydroxide
WASHINGTON - A chemical spill overnight in Loudoun County is cleaned up and there's no danger to the public.
Deputy Chief Randall Shank of the Loudoun County Department of Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Management tells WTOP the spill happened at Viasystems, an electronic manufacturing company at 1200 Severn Way in Sterling, Va., around 1 a.m. Tuesday. Ten to 20 gallons of sodium hydroxide, also known as lye, spilled and splashed into a 30-year-old man's face.
By the time Loudoun County Fire and Rescue arrived the man had decontaminated himself, but he was still taken to a hospital to get checked out.
---------------------------------------------
LOCATION OF PLAINWELL CHEMICAL FIRE HAS PENALTY HISTORY WITH EPA
http://fox17online.com/2013/06/24/location-of-plainwell-chemical-fire-has-penalty-history-with-epa/#axzz2XEBl5S4w
Tags: us_MI, industrial, follow-up, response, drugs, waste
PLAINWELL, Mich. Ñ Drug & Laboratory Disposal Inc., the Plainwell business that was the location of a chemical fire Monday afternoon, was issued a fine by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2010 for failing to comply with storage time limits, container labeling and dating rules.
The company, located at 331 Broad St., agreed to pay a penalty of $41,300 in March of 2010 to settle the violations, according to a a press release from the EPA.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL WASTE DISPOSAL FIRE REKINDLES
http://www.woodtv.com/dpp/news/local/allegan_county/drug-and-laboratory-disposal-inc-fire
Tags: us_MI, industrial, explosion, response, drugs, waste
PLAINWELL, Mich. (WOOD) - Crews were back on the scene Tuesday morning of a chemical waste disposal facility in Plainwell that caught fire Monday afternoon.
Around 11:30 p.m. Monday, some of the hot spots at Drug & Laboratory Disposal, Inc. rekindled. Twenty-five to 30 explosions happened at the scene, 331 Broad St., since the fire rekindled. Smoke was visible from 300 yards away.
Firefighters expect to monitor the situation during the next couple of days. They were still dousing hot spots Tuesday morning and trying to avoid volatile areas, which are water reactive products.
Allegan County firefighters said they have a strategy in place for dealing with these hot spots. They are moving water away from these water reactive areas, and rain is a concern. Firefighters said if water mixes with the water reactive areas, then the product burns, which could result in more explosions.
Firefighters said Tuesday morning that air sampling tests show everything is normal. The Department of Environmental Quality and firefighters will continue to test the air hourly.
Emergency officials at the scene said they believe the danger has ended but they are being cautious. An evacuation for residences a quarter mile northeast of the plant has been reinstated. Businesses within a quarter mile of the scene will be closed Tuesday.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL FACTORY EXPLOSION IN CHINA
http://www.ecns.cn/2013/06-24/69800.shtml
Tags: China, industrial, explosion, response, irritant
A petrochemical factory that's one of the largest acrylic acid producers in China was partly engulfed in fire for nearly three hours yesterday in the Pudong New Area, but no one was injured and 50 fire engines were used to extinguish the blaze, officials said.
The fire was reported at Shanghai Huayi Acrylic Acid Company about 11am as nearby residents heard "very loud" sounds and sensed a "chemical smell in the air," they posted online.
Acrylic acid can be a strong irritant to the eyes and mucous membranes and can be inhaled, ingested or absorbed through the skin.
But officials said tests showed there was no danger to neighbors from chemicals at the factory.
The fire was put out by 1:50pm, according to the Shanghai Fire Prevention Bureau.
The fire occurred after an acrylic acid reactor in a factory workshop exploded during manufacturing yesterday, the company said on its website. Just before the explosion, a reactor tube cracked and caused a leak, the company said.
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Ralph Stuart
secretary**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Secretary
Division of Chemical Health and Safety
American Chemical Society
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