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Chemical Safety Headlines
A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Connecting Chemistry and Safety at http://www.dchas.org
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Table of Contents (18 articles)
CDC TO EXAMINE DRILLING DEATHS
Tags: us_ND, industrial, follow-up, death, methane, natural_gas
AMMONIUM NITRATE OVERSIGHT FOUND LACKING
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, death, ammonium_nitrate
SMALL FIRE AT A&M'S CHEMICAL ENGINEERING BUILDING PROMPTS EVACUATION
Tags: us_TX, laboratory, fire, response, unknown_chemical
HAZMAT TEAM RESPONDS TO AMMONIA LEAK
Tags: us_WI, public, release, response, ammonia
KWES NEWSWEST 9 / MIDLAND, ODESSA, BIG SPRING, TX: NEWSWEST9.COM |
Tags: us_TX, public, explosion, response, unknown_chemical
POLICE INVESTIGATING STRING OF BOTTLE BOMB EXPLOSIONS AT MOVIE THEATERS
Tags: us_MD, public, explosion, response, bomb
CHEMICAL LEAK FROM 'SHOKTONG' WAREHOUSE IN ILOILO CITY VILLAGE, RESIDENTS TOLD TO LEAVE AREA
Tags: Philippines, industrial, release, environmental, other_chemical, ammonia
TOXIC CHEMICAL STOLEN FROM FACTORY
Tags: New_Zealand, industrial, release, environmental, other_chemical
HAZMAT TEAM RESPONDS TO CHILDREN?S HOSPITAL FOR ACID LEAK
Tags: us_AL, public, release, response, hydrogen_peroxide
POLICE SAY MASSIVE FIRE AT CHEMICAL PLANT NEAR ATLANTA EXTINGUISHED, SMOKE DEEMED NONTOXIC
Tags: us_GA, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
REST HOME EVACUATED AFTER CLEANING CHEMICAL REACTION
Tags: New_Zealand, public, release, death, cleaners
STEPS TO CHECK MISUSE OF AMMONIUM NITRATE
Tags: India, industrial, follow-up, response, ammonium_nitrate
MASSIVE FIRE ACCIDENT AT A CHEMICAL FACTORY IN DHAR, 30-40 LABOURERS FEARED TRAPPED
Tags: India, industrial, fire, death, unknown_chemical
HAZMAT TEAMS RESPONDING TO MORE AND MORE METH LABS
Tags: us_WI, public, release, response, meth_lab
LOMA LINDA HOSPITAL HAZMAT SITUATION CLOSES ER FOR TWO HOURS
Tags: us_CA, public, release, injury, ag_chems, pesticides
HEMICAL FIRE CAUSES EVACUATION OF 200
Tags: us_GA, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
CHEMICAL SPILL LEADS TO EVACUATIONS AT EAST EL PASO BUSINESS; NO INJURIES REPORTED
Tags: us_TX, transportation, release, environmental, unknown_chemical
STATE POLICE FIND SUSPECTED METH LAB IN FAIRVIEW TOWNSHIP HOME AFTER MORNING FIRE
Tags: us_PA, public, fire, response, meth_lab
---------------------------------------------
CDC TO EXAMINE DRILLING DEATHS
http://cen.acs.org/articles/92/i21/CDC-Examine-Drilling-Deaths.html
Tags: us_ND, industrial, follow-up, death, methane, natural_gas
At least four workers have been found dead since 2010 at oil and natural gas well sites that use hydraulic fracturing methods, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health, a division of the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. In a recent blog post, NIOSH announced it would begin examining the incidents, which occurred in the Williston Basin of North Dakota and Montana. Available information, the blog says, indicates that the workers? deaths appear to be linked to exposure to hydrocarbons contained in ?flowback.? This term refers to fracking fluids that are pumped belowground and then returned to the surface and collected in tanks or ponds. Flowback carries volatile hydrocarbons, derived from underground formations, which are separated from the fracking fluids. Many of these hydrocarbons are acutely toxic at high concentrations, NIOSH said. The agency offered preliminary recommendations to limit worker exposure to the hydrocarbons and to!
boost safety.
---------------------------------------------
AMMONIUM NITRATE OVERSIGHT FOUND LACKING
http://cen.acs.org/articles/92/i21/Ammonium-Nitrate-Oversight-Found-Lacking.html
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, death, ammonium_nitrate
The federal government does not know how many U.S. chemical facilities store ammonium nitrate, the fertilizer that detonated during a warehouse fire in West, Texas, last year, killing 14 people, the Government Accountability Office says (GAO-14-274). Congressional investigators attribute the incomplete picture to limited information sharing among federal agencies, poor coordination with states, and industry reporting exemptions. Without improved monitoring, GAO warns, federal agencies ?will not know the extent to which dangerous conditions at some facilities may continue to exist.? The report notes that 1,345 facilities in 47 states have informed the Department of Homeland Security for security purposes that they store ammonium nitrate. But a spot check of state records by investigators indicates that the federal database is missing as many as two-thirds of the nation?s storage sites for the substance, GAO says. It recommends that federal agencies improve data sharing, OSHA !
and EPA consider expanding decades-old safety regulations to cover ammonium nitrate, and OSHA conduct outreach to the fertilizer industry and target high-risk facilities for inspection.
---------------------------------------------
SMALL FIRE AT A&M'S CHEMICAL ENGINEERING BUILDING PROMPTS EVACUATION
http://www.kbtx.com/home/headlines/Small-Fire-at-AMs-Chemical-Engineering-Building-Prompts-Evacuation-260616031.html?ref=031
Tags: us_TX, laboratory, fire, response, unknown_chemical
COLLEGE STATION- A small fire on the 3rd floor of the Jack E. Brown Chemical Engineering Building at Texas A&M prompted an evacuation Sunday afternoon.
The College Station Fire Department says the call came in around 5 p.m. as a smoke alarm.
A calibration machine overheated and caused a small fire that spread smoke through parts of the building.
7 people were evacuated.
Once the fire was extinguished and smoke was cleared from the building, people were allowed to return.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT TEAM RESPONDS TO AMMONIA LEAK
http://www.wbay.com/story/25607548/2014/05/25/hazmat-team-responds-to-ammonia-leak
Tags: us_WI, public, release, response, ammonia
The Sheboygan Fire Department says there is no immediate danger to the public after an ammonia leak Saturday afternoon in a building located at 812 Michigan Avenue owned by Three Twins Organic Inc..
The fire department says investigators discovered the leak in a freezer compressor room in the basement of the building after a passerby reported the smell of ammonia in the area. A Hazmat crew and Alliant Energy were called to the scene to help clean up the leak.
Most of the vapors were contained to the building and firefighters are monitoring the surrounding area with meters to make sure there is no danger. As a precaution, the fire department asked residents in the area to keep their windows closed. No injuries have been reported in connection to the leak.
---------------------------------------------
KWES NEWSWEST 9 / MIDLAND, ODESSA, BIG SPRING, TX: NEWSWEST9.COM |
http://www.newswest9.com/story/25610156/highway-349-reopened-in-midland-after-saturday-explosion
Tags: us_TX, public, explosion, response, unknown_chemical
MIDLAND - South Rankin Highway in Midland reopened on Sunday after crews finished their clean-up of a substance that leaked across the road causing an explosion.
The highway was closed since Saturday afternoon and the rain on Sunday, delayed clean-up for a little while.
On Saturday, smoke from the blaze could be seen for miles as HAZMAT crews responded to a ruptured gas line.
Officials say a utility crew was digging a hole and their drill punctured a line.
Several cars caught fire.
The Flea Market on Rankin Highway had to be evacuated and sustained smoke damage.
---------------------------------------------
POLICE INVESTIGATING STRING OF BOTTLE BOMB EXPLOSIONS AT MOVIE THEATERS
http://washington.cbslocal.com/2014/05/25/police-investigating-string-of-bottle-bomb-explosions-at-movie-theaters/
Tags: us_MD, public, explosion, response, bomb
LANHAM, Md. (WNEW/AP) ? Two movie theaters were evacuated less than an hour apart after bottle bombs were set off overnight, one week after an explosion in a Virginia theater.
A bottle bomb ? a soda bottle chemical device ? exploded at AMC Magic Johnson Capital Center 12 in Largo just after 1:30 a.m. Saturday, causing dozens of patrons to leave the theater.
Two people sustained minor injuries and were treated at the scene.
For the second time in a week, AMC Tysons Corner 16 was evacuated after a bottle bomb was set off inside the theater around 2:15 a.m., according to Fairfax County Police.
More than 300 people were evacuated. No injuries were reported.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL LEAK FROM 'SHOKTONG' WAREHOUSE IN ILOILO CITY VILLAGE, RESIDENTS TOLD TO LEAVE AREA
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/87603/chemical-leak-from-shoktong-warehouse-in-iloilo-city-village-residents-told-to-leave-area
Tags: Philippines, industrial, release, environmental, other_chemical, ammonia
ILOILO CITY -- Residents in Barangay West Timawa, Molo, Iloilo City affected by the reeking odor caused by leaking chemicals from the warehouse of the Imperial Distillery have been asked to evacuate the area for health reasons.
The City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) said the ammonia leak and volatile organic compound used in the manufacture of wine locally known as ?shoktong? has prompted the agency to recommend the voluntary evacuation of residents living within the 100-meter radius from the warehouse of the local winery.
But affected residents refused to leave the area particularly now that the barangay prepares for its annual fiesta celebration early next week. They claimed that the foul odor is much less intense than during the previous days?.
It may be recalled that most residents have spent sleepless night due to the chemical leak.
---------------------------------------------
TOXIC CHEMICAL STOLEN FROM FACTORY
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/toxic-chemical-stolen-factory-5981794
Tags: New_Zealand, industrial, release, environmental, other_chemical
Police are warning the public to be on the lookout for a dangerous chemical that looks and smells like coffee, that was stolen from an Auckland factory this morning.
The chemical, lignosulfate, was scooped from a 25-kilogram bag in an Avondale factory, is highly toxic, and should not be ingested.
Anybody who has come into contact with it should immediately call the New Zealand Fire Service and seek urgent medical assistance.
Police want to hear from anyone with information about the theft.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT TEAM RESPONDS TO CHILDREN?S HOSPITAL FOR ACID LEAK
http://cbs42.com/2014/05/24/breaking-possible-haz-mat-situation-at-childrens-hospital/
Tags: us_AL, public, release, response, hydrogen_peroxide
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.(WIAT) ?A Birmingham Fire and Rescue Hazardous Materials unit responded to Children?s Hospital Saturday afternoon after a hospital employee noticed a suspicious leak from a tub behind the hospital.
Around 2:40 p.m., the employee noticed a smell and a leak in one of the tubs on the loading dock behind the building. The chemical was a hydrogen peroxide acid, which can burn the skin if touched. The chemical was tested to make sure it wasn?t hazardous. No one was injured and hospital employees were notified of what happened.
A section of 6th Avenue South was closed for several hours, but is now reopened.
---------------------------------------------
POLICE SAY MASSIVE FIRE AT CHEMICAL PLANT NEAR ATLANTA EXTINGUISHED, SMOKE DEEMED NONTOXIC
http://www.dailyjournal.net/view/story/00769d63f045413fa4d803051522157c/GA--Marietta-Warehouse-Fire/#.U4HWOXJdWE0
Tags: us_GA, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
MARIETTA, Georgia ? Authorities say a massive fire at a chemical plant outside Atlanta that spewed black smoke and flames visible for miles has been extinguished.
Marietta Police Officer David Baldwin said in a statement that smoke from the fire that started about 8 p.m. Friday in a warehouse owned by AmRep was nontoxic and posed no threat to residential areas. The company website describes the warehouse about 20 miles northwest of Atlanta as a specialty chemical manufacturer and packager.
Baldwin says Marietta firefighters and three other departments extinguished the blaze around 4 a.m. No injuries were reported.
---------------------------------------------
REST HOME EVACUATED AFTER CLEANING CHEMICAL REACTION
http://www.europeancleaningjournal.com/magazine/articles/latest-news/rest-home-evacuated-after-cleaning-chemical-reaction
Tags: New_Zealand, public, release, death, cleaners
A chemical reaction between two cleaning substances recently resulted in a New Zealand rest home having to be partially evacuated.
And in a second case highlighting the danger of mixing cleaning products, an elderly woman in the US lost her life due to toxic fumes.
Two incompatible cleaning products were accidentally mixed together in a 20-litre container at a rest home in Wellington, New Zealand. The mix set off a heat reaction and firefighters were called to the scene. However, an explosion was eventually averted by hazard control teams who managed to reduce the pressure in the container.
No one was hurt in the incident, but the rest home had to be partially evacuated along with a house adjoining the premises.
And in another incident this spring, 75-year-old Anna Harbeson died as a result of cleaning her bathroom at home. The resident of Maryland in the US had been exposed to toxic fumes formed by a combination of cleaning chemicals according to Bruce Anderson from the Maryland Poison Centre.
"If you mix together a product that contains bleach with a product that is very acidic, you can actually release a type of chlorine gas similar to the gas used to clear out the trenches in World War I," said Anderson.
---------------------------------------------
STEPS TO CHECK MISUSE OF AMMONIUM NITRATE
http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/kozhikode/steps-to-check-misuse-of-ammonium-nitrate/article6046097.ece
Tags: India, industrial, follow-up, response, ammonium_nitrate
Vigilance against illegal procurement of ammonium nitrate has been strengthened in the district following State-wide reports on the increasing misuse of the fertilizer for making explosives.
As per a new order, people who trade in the chemical will have to obtain permission from the District Police Chief before 24 hours for transporting the product from one location to another. Only drivers and cleaners with a clean police record will be allowed to deal with the chemical as per the new directive.
---------------------------------------------
MASSIVE FIRE ACCIDENT AT A CHEMICAL FACTORY IN DHAR, 30-40 LABOURERS FEARED TRAPPED
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/massive-fire-accident-at-a-chemical-factory-in-dhar-3040-labourers-feared-trapped/474111-3-236.html
Tags: India, industrial, fire, death, unknown_chemical
A massive fire took place at a chemical factory in Pithampur in the Dhar area of Madhya Pradesh on Saturday, claiming the lives of at least 2-3 labourers. The death toll is expected to rise as reportedly, around 20-30 labourers are still feared trapped inside the factory.
2-3 fire tenders rushed to the spot to take control of the situation.The number of the dead and the loss of property will be ascertained once the fire is tamed and factory officials interact with the media, said journalists. So far, labourers have reportedly been asked not to interact with the media.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT TEAMS RESPONDING TO MORE AND MORE METH LABS
http://www.wbay.com/story/25601231/2014/05/23/hazmat-teams-responding-to-more-and-more-meth-labs
Tags: us_WI, public, release, response, meth_lab
Appleton - Since the beginning of this year, authorities have uncovered about a half a dozen meth labs just in the Fox Valley. Thursday's incident at a Grand Chute motel is the latest that needed to be cleaned up by a specially trained team.
Thanks to an alert motel guest who noticed a strange odor coming from a nearby room, authorities who responded to the suspected meth lab say a crisis was most likely averted.
"Instead of ignoring it they did the right thing and contacted authorities, and that way we were able to intervene before anything serious really did happen," says Appleton firefighter and HAZMAT team member Brian Horst.
Part of that intervention is the Appleton Fire Department HAZMAT team. It's one of three local members of a regional team that covers all of Northeast Wisconsin.
---------------------------------------------
LOMA LINDA HOSPITAL HAZMAT SITUATION CLOSES ER FOR TWO HOURS
http://www.sbsun.com/health/20140523/loma-linda-hospital-hazmat-situation-closes-er-for-two-hours
Tags: us_CA, public, release, injury, ag_chems, pesticides
LOMA LINDA >> Loma Linda University Medical Center temporarily stopped accepting emergency patients due to a hazardous materials situation Friday afternoon.
The hospital was placed on internal disaster diversion around noon, said hospital spokesman Herbert Atienza.
?Health care personnel detected an unknown potentially hazardous material in the emergency department at approximately noon (Friday),? Atienza said.
The emergency entrance and driveway were blocked off with yellow police tape until 2 p.m. when the emergency situation was called off.
Loma Linda Councilman Ovidiu Popescu explained that a landscaper working at the nearby Sierra Vista Apartments was suffering respiratory distress. He was admitted to the hospital?s emergency room, where a staff member who was treating him began suffering the same symptoms as the patient.
?For caution, they locked down the medical center just in case there was a connection,? Popescu said.
Loma Linda Fire Capt. Scott Daniels said fire personnel had responded earlier to the apartment complex in the area of Mt. View and Redlands Boulevard, where a landscaper reported ?suddenly feeling ill? on the job site. Daniels said the area had been ?sprayed the previous day with a pesticide.?
The patient was taken to LLUMC where he was isolated in an area of the hospital?s emergency room parking lot, Daniels said.
The patient and the area he was working in were tested for pesticides and organophosphates.
---------------------------------------------
HEMICAL FIRE CAUSES EVACUATION OF 200
http://mdjonline.com/bookmark/25157471-Chemical-fire-causes-evacuation-of-200
Tags: us_GA, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
MARIETTA ?Emergency crews were expecting to spend most of the night Friday working the scene of a two-alarm fire on Industrial Park Drive near Cobb Parkway and Allgood Drive in Marietta.
The fire broke out at AmRep, a Marietta-based company that makes chemicals for aerosols, liquids and lubricants, said Officer David Baldwin with Marietta Police.
Baldwin said the fire was first reported by a patrolling officer at about 6:30 Friday evening after he saw the building completely engulfed in flames. No injuries have been reported, he said, and a cause of the fire was not determined by press time.
He did not know the size of the building, but called it ?huge.?
About 25 units from both Cobb and Marietta were working the blaze, as well as two foam-spraying trucks from Lockheed-Martin.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL SPILL LEADS TO EVACUATIONS AT EAST EL PASO BUSINESS; NO INJURIES REPORTED
http://www.kfoxtv.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/chemical-spill-leads-evacuations-at-east-el-paso-business-no-injuries-reported-5000.shtml#.U4CWgHJdWE0
Tags: us_TX, transportation, release, environmental, unknown_chemical
EL PASO, Texas ? A chemical spill coming from a semitrailer prompted a HazMat situation in east El Paso Friday morning.
Fire officials said that around 11:20 a.m., firefighters responded to the spill at Expeditors Freight Forwarding Services at 1450 Pullman Dr.
Officials said the facility was evacuated when fire crews saw an unknown liquid was leaking from a trailer.
The spill was caused when a 900-gallon tote was punctured by a 2x4, officials said.
The chemical was labeled as ?Rabidor A733,? which Texas Commission on Environmental Quality deemed as non-threatening for workers and the environment, officials said.
About 100 workers were evacuated and 11 fire units and 28 fire personnel responded to the incident.
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STATE POLICE FIND SUSPECTED METH LAB IN FAIRVIEW TOWNSHIP HOME AFTER MORNING FIRE
http://www.goerie.com/state-police-find-suspected-meth-lab-in-fairview-township-home-after-morning-fire
Tags: us_PA, public, fire, response, meth_lab
State police removed the components of a suspected methamphetamine lab that was found in a Fairview Township home after firefighters were called there on a fire on May 23. The fire, in the 3400 block of Michael Drive, was reported at 8:10 a.m. Firefighters doused a small fire in a corner of the basement and found the suspected lab there. There were no injuries in the fire.
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