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From: "Secretary, ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety" <secretary**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines from Google (12 articles)
Date: Fri, 29 Jan 2016 07:39:32 -0500
Reply-To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Message-ID: 99465399-9C66-4CDD-8E67-6B87050F1EA5**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, January 29, 2016 at 7:39:03 AM
A membership benefit of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
All article summaries and tags are archived at https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__pinboard.in_u-3Adchas&d=BQIFaQ&c=lb62iw4YL4RFalcE2hQUQealT9-RXrryqt9KZX2qu2s&r=meWM1Buqv4IQ27AlK1OJRjcQl09S1Zta6YXKalY_Io0&m=6EYnst7Ac8YAE3OyMeOEAo7u5C6gQAW5FvaWXlFv_rU&s=rh3NU0a_1xfjvKLt5cWelnjAOYXcqHx5TcJ_4PLOmRs&e=
Table of Contents (12 articles)
FIRE: STUDENTS SAFE AFTER REPORTS OF LIGHT SMOKE AT UT LAB
Tags: us_TX, laboratory, release, response, hydraulic_fluid
HAZMAT TEAMS CALLED TO LAKEWOOD SYNAGOGUE
Tags: us_NJ, public, release, response, chlorine
THEME PARK EMPLOYEES EXPOSED TO CHEMICAL AND FIRE HAZARDS: OSHA
Tags: us_CT, industrial, discovery, response, paints
DOW EXPLOSION FIRST RESPONDERS HONORED
Tags: us_MA, laboratory, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
U.S. CHEMICAL SAFETY BOARD APPROVES FINAL REPORT OF WEST FERTILI
Tags: us_TX, public, follow-up, environmental, ag_chems, ammonium_nitrate
NINE PEOPLE INJURED FOLLOWING AUCKLAND CHEMICAL SPILL
Tags: New_Zealand, public, release, response, phenol
EPA: NEW YORK VILLAGE SHOULD TEST WATER FOR TEFLON CHEMICAL
Tags: us_NY, public, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
ERIN BROCKOVICH'S FACEBOOK PAGE CITES CHEMICAL IN FAYETTEVILLE WATER; STATE NARROWS SOURCE OF CHEMICAL
Tags: us_NC, public, follow-up, environmental, toxics
DUPONT FACES 40 TRIALS A YEAR OVER CANCER TIED TO TEFLON CHEMICAL
Tags: us_WV, public, follow-up, environmental, toxics
INVESTIGATORS SAY MARIJUANA EXTRACT PRODUCTION CAUSE FOR TRAILER FIRE
Tags: us_OR, public, fire, injury, butane
DANGERS REMAIN THREE YEARS AFTER WEST EXPLOSION
Tags: us_TX, industrial, discovery, environmental, ag_chems, ammonium_nitrate
EPA CLEANS UP DANGEROUS CHEMICAL STORES AT UNIVERSITY PLACE, TACOMA PROPERTIES
Tags: us_WA, public, discovery, response, corrosives, fireworks, flammables, sodium
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FIRE: STUDENTS SAFE AFTER REPORTS OF LIGHT SMOKE AT UT LAB
Tags: us_TX, laboratory, release, response, hydraulic_fluid
5:44 p.m. update: Students were allowed back inside a UT building after a hazmat team responded to reports of smoke, fire officials said.
A bottle of hydraulic oil left unattended in an oven produced light smoke that set the lab"s alarm off, fire officials said.
A hazmat team determined it was not hazardous, a fire spokesman said.
AMERICAN-STATESMAN file photo
No injuries or damage to the building were reported, officials said.
Earlier: A hazmat team is responding to a report of smoke coming from a lab located on the third floor of a building at the University of Texas, Austin fire officials said Thursday afternoon.
The incident was reported at the 200 block of East Dean Keeton Drive around 4:40 p.m., officials said
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HAZMAT TEAMS CALLED TO LAKEWOOD SYNAGOGUE
Tags: us_NJ, public, release, response, chlorine
LAKEWOOD - Hazmat crews were sent into a synagogue Thursday afternoon on Remon Lane after a chlorine leak.
The Point Pleasant and Berkeley hazmat teams responded to the reported leak Thursday at 11 Remon Lane, where a small synagogue is located. Police blocked off a section of the road as hazmat crews wearing large orange protective suits entered the building around 1:15 p.m.
Lt. James Finnegan confirmed the incident was a chlorine leak, he said authorities cleared the scene and there were no injuries.
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THEME PARK EMPLOYEES EXPOSED TO CHEMICAL AND FIRE HAZARDS: OSHA -- OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH & SAFETY
Tags: us_CT, industrial, discovery, response, paints
OSHA has cited Lake Compounce Family Theme Park in Bristol, Conn., for 18 serious violations of workplace safety standards. According to OSHA's news release, the company exposed employees spraying coatings on park equipment and working with caustic chemicals in the park's paint room to chemical, burn, and respiratory hazards.
Some of the hazards included failing to: train employees about hazardous chemicals, complete a hazard assessment for protective equipment needed by workers, and provide required eye- and hand-washing facilities for employees working with chemicals.
"These conditions exposed Lake Compounce Family Theme Park employees to serious burn, fire, chemical burn, electric shock, and eye, face, and hand injuries. The employer must act promptly to effectively eliminate these hazards before they injure its employees," said Warren Simpson, OSHA's area director in Hartford.
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DOW EXPLOSION FIRST RESPONDERS HONORED
Tags: us_MA, laboratory, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
Three weeks after a chemical explosion that injured several people at DOW Chemical, the first responders to that incident were honored by the Board of Selectmen and their chief.
At just before 2:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 7, emergency crews were called to DOW after a reported explosion in a lab.
"We had several alarms come into the radio box," fire Chief Andrew Melnikas said. "If that happens, you know you probably have something."
Fire departments from nearby communities helped on the scene, including Middleton, Ipswich, Methuen and Haverhill. The state's Fire Services Department and HazMat crews were there, as well as state and local emergency management agencies.
From North Andover, Deputy Fire Chief William McCarthy was one of the first on scene and found five injured people " one refused treatment and the other four were seriously hurt and taken to Lawrence and Boston hospitals.
The explosion was caused by Trimethylaluminum, which, when in contact with moisture can ignite into an inferno. A day after the explosion, investigators located a container of Trimethylaluminum, brought it to an undisclosed location and detonated it.
"This facility deals with a very hazardous process‰?| it"s extremely dangerous," Melnikas said. "I think the plus factor in all this is that not only were the Fire Department and police able to work together in a tremendous show of teamwork, but the fire marshal"s group " between the hazardous materials unit, the bomb squad from the fire marshal"s office, their investigators " everybody as a group did a tremendous job in a tremendous show of teamwork to make this incident far less serious than it really could have been."
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U.S. CHEMICAL SAFETY BOARD APPROVES FINAL REPORT OF WEST FERTILI
Tags: us_TX, public, follow-up, environmental, ag_chems, ammonium_nitrate
WACO, TX (KXXV) -
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board approved the final report on the West Fertilizer Explosion that occurred in 2013 after presenting it to the public in Waco.
One of the goals of the report is to prevent another tragedy like the one that occurred in West.
Nearly 50 people attended the meeting and one of them got especially emotional when commenting about the findings.
Phil Calvin lost his son, Perry, in the West Fertilizer Explosion. Perry was a volunteer firefighter at two departments and that night he was responding to a medical call.
In one of the CSB findings, the lack of incident command system and lack of hazardous materials training were some of the factors that contributed to the fatalities of emergency responders.
Calvin, the Navarro Mills Fire Chief said it would have been hard for West to set up a command post with only five firefighters on the scene.
He said usually firefighters usually set up instant command once other agencies come in to assist.
"Being a firefighter, myself, you don't run away from the fire. Your first instinct is to go to the fire. If you ran from the fire, imagine how many lives would've been saved on September 11th. If the firefighters wouldn't have gone up in to the towers‰?|hundreds. And that"s what these guys were doing," said Calvin.
Other findings listed as contributing factors of the deaths of emergency responders, include lack of knowledge and understanding of the detonation hazards of fertilizer grade ammonium nitrate.
---------------------------------------------
NINE PEOPLE INJURED FOLLOWING AUCKLAND CHEMICAL SPILL
Tags: New_Zealand, public, release, response, phenol
One patient is being treated for chemical burns on one leg, and eight others were being treated for symptoms including tightness of the chest.
Waitemata fire service incident controller Gavin Travers said one of the people being treated for breathing difficulties was pregnant.
"Extra precautions are being taken as a result," he said.
St Johns ambulance were called to the scene around 1pm on Friday.
Firefighters from Takapuna, Devonport, Birkenhead and Ponsonby were in attendance.
Birkenhead fire station officer John Barlow said the substance - a 90 per cent phenol solution concentrate - was commonly used as a steriliser or antiseptic.
It could be lethal if inhaled.
Three hundred mls of the substance - which has now been absorbed by sand - was spilt.
Fire Service communications said the premises had been evacuated and firefighters were suited in fully encapsulated chemical splash suits.
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EPA: NEW YORK VILLAGE SHOULD TEST WATER FOR TEFLON CHEMICAL
Tags: us_NY, public, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is telling people in an upstate New York village to have their well water tested for a chemical used in making Teflon.
The agency on Thursday advised residents of Hoosick to have their wells tested for PFOA, which has been linked to cancer and other illnesses. It has been detected in municipal wells in Hoosick Falls, a village within the Rensselaer (rehn-suh-LEER') County town.
The agency says water with a level of PFOA higher than 100 parts per trillion shouldn't be used for drinking or cooking. That's a quarter of the EPA's current advised limit of 400 ppt.
An EPA administrator says the lower number reflects a new limit being developed by the agency.
Officials are investigating the extent of PFOA pollution in Hoosick Falls
---------------------------------------------
ERIN BROCKOVICH'S FACEBOOK PAGE CITES CHEMICAL IN FAYETTEVILLE WATER; STATE NARROWS SOURCE OF CHEMICAL
Tags: us_NC, public, follow-up, environmental, toxics
Environmental consumer advocate Erin Brockovich says her litigation team has been researching the same toxic chemical that has been detected in Fayetteville's treated drinking water.
The industrial chemical, called 1,4-dioxane, is widely used in paint strippers, varnishes, dyes and even some cosmetics. It has been classified as likely to cause cancer in humans but is not yet regulated by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency.
Brockovich, who was thrust into stardom after actress Julia Roberts played her in a 2000 movie of her namesake, posted Wednesday on her Facebook page that "1,4 dioxane is a dangerous toxic chemical" that is an "emerging contaminant not yet regulated" in water supplies around the U.S.
Brockovich's posting includes a link to The Fayetteville Observer story first reporting the issue last year. Traces of the chemical have been detected leaving the Fayetteville Public Works Commission Hoffer water treatment plant, which draws from the Cape Fear River.
At the time, officials with the city-owned PWC and the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality were taking samples up and down the Cape Fear River in an attempt to identify the source. Conventional treatment methods are ineffective at removing the chemical from tap water, and PWC officials have said the cancer risks are most likely at high doses over a long time. Scientists have not warned Fayetteville residents to stop drinking from their tap water.
---------------------------------------------
DUPONT FACES 40 TRIALS A YEAR OVER CANCER TIED TO TEFLON CHEMICAL
Tags: us_WV, public, follow-up, environmental, toxics
Chemical maker DuPont (DD.N) will face 40 trials a year starting April 2017 involving plaintiffs who say they developed cancer from a toxic chemical used to make Teflon that leaked from one of the company"s plants in West Virginia.
The schedule laid out by U.S. District Judge Edmund Sargus in the Southern District of Ohio during a hearing Wednesday is aimed at pushing the parties closer to resolving more than 3,550 lawsuits.
The outcome could have a material impact on Chemours Co (CC.N), since liability for litigation connected with the chemical C-8 was passed on to the firm spun-off by DuPont in 2015.
The cases have been filed by individuals who say they developed one of six diseases linked to perfluorooctanoic acid, also known as PFOA or C-8, which was found in their drinking water. Their cases are consolidated before Sargus.
The initial 40 trials will be selected from between 250 and 300 lawsuits brought by individuals who say they contracted kidney or testicular cancer from C-8.
---------------------------------------------
INVESTIGATORS SAY MARIJUANA EXTRACT PRODUCTION CAUSE FOR TRAILER FIRE
Tags: us_OR, public, fire, injury, butane
MEDFORD, Ore. -- UPDATE 12PM: Medford Police have confirmed that the trailer fire that injured four people yesterday was caused by a "BHO" Butane Honey Oil operation gone wrong.
Witnesses reported that they saw the subjects "franctically removing property from the trailer prior to fleeing the scene."
The fire was extinguished before emergency services arrived at the trailer.
One man suffered 2nd and 3rd degree burns to his face and hands and was transported to Rogue Regional Medical Center by ambulance.
The three others that were injured arrived at the hospital in their own transportation. One of them had burns on his face and hands. The other two had minor burn injuries.
---------------------------------------------
DANGERS REMAIN THREE YEARS AFTER WEST EXPLOSION
Tags: us_TX, industrial, discovery, environmental, ag_chems, ammonium_nitrate
Almost all Texas fertilizer plants like the one that exploded nearly three years ago in West - killing 15 people and injuring hundreds - are within a quarter-mile of a residence and little has been done to protect the public, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board says in a report to be released Thursday.
While the precise cause of the blast will probably never be known, the CSB's 265-page final report describes in painstaking detail a host of failures by the West Fertilizer Company, the government, fire officials, insurance companies and others that allowed tens of thousands of pounds of ammonium nitrate to detonate.
The blast destroyed homes, schools, apartments and a nursing home.
The board's litany of recommendations shows how little has been accomplished since the disaster, despite some state legislation and an executive order from President Barack Obama directing federal agencies to improve chemical facility safety. The CSB, an independent government agency, investigates chemical accidents but has no enforcement authority.
It called changes to state law in 2015 "not entirely adequate" to prevent future ammonium nitrate catastrophes, saying House Bill 942 mostly restated existing regulations. It did not add protections like prohibiting storage in combustible wooden bins.
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EPA CLEANS UP DANGEROUS CHEMICAL STORES AT UNIVERSITY PLACE, TACOMA PROPERTIES
Tags: us_WA, public, discovery, response, corrosives, fireworks, flammables, sodium
A local man who died last year left behind vast stores of dangerous chemicals in Pierce County that hazardous materials crews are working to get rid of, according to the federal Environmental Protection Agency.
"There was really (potential) danger " fire, explosion, exposure, health hazards," local EPA spokeswoman Suzanne Skadowski said this week. "We"re really glad we found out about them when we did, so that we could take care of them."
The first cleanup started Jan. 19 when a University Place man called police about chemicals stored in his home on 44th Street West. He said he"d kept them for the late owner of the substances.
"He might have just taken a closer look at them and been worried," Skadowski said. "He definitely did the right thing."
More than 240 containers of unsafely stored chemicals " including sodium metal and hydrofluoric acid " were removed from the home.
When sodium metal mixes with water, it produces spontaneously flammable gas that can seriously damage skin and eyes, according to the EPA.
Hydrofluoric acid is corrosive, toxic, and can seriously damage lungs when inhaled.
Authorities also found chemicals at a Tacoma property on McMurray Road Northeast that the late owner of the substances rented.
The hundreds of different chemicals, some of which had spilled, spanned four derelict buildings and thousands of containers, and likely will take crews the rest of the week to finish cleaning up.
"There"s just so many," Skadowski said.
She said it"s not clear what the late owner used the chemicals for, but that the man"s obituary stated he had an interest in chemistry and fireworks.
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