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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Monday, April 25, 2016 at 7:21:01 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=CwIFaQ&c=lb62iw4YL4RFalcE2hQUQealT9-RXrryqt9KZX2qu2s&r=meWM1Buqv4IQ27AlK1OJRjcQl09S1Zta6YXKalY_Io0&m=INkZNV0tFIrd2jswoxKjIn9_nO-6VzbeEEQkgiI8hjA&s=TkPMR5-Vag1NQBZ_pnx3eYa11T8EnEBHMVz7jusV3Wc&e=
Table of Contents (9 articles)
FIREFIGHTERS SEEK NEW LAW TO BAN FLAME RETARDANTS
Tags: us_MA, public, fire, environmental, other_chemical
CREWS RESPOND TO FIRE, EXPLOSION AT BUTLER COUNTY PLANT
Tags: us_PA, industrial, explosion, response, unknown_chemical
FIRE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER MEDICAL SCIENCE LABORATORY
Tags: United_Kingdom, laboratory, fire, response, unknown_chemical
CHINA CHEMICAL BLAZE EXTINGUISHED, BUT MAY AFFECT THOUSANDS
Tags: China, industrial, follow-up, death, toxics
HIGH-CONTAINMENT LABS NEED MORE OVERSIGHT
Tags: laboratory, follow-up, environmental
FIVE ARRESTED AS DEATH TOLL FROM INDIA TEMPLE FIRE RISES
Tags: India, public, follow-up, injury, fireworks
WOMAN KILLED, THREE INJURED IN FIRE IN CHEMICAL GODOWN
Tags: India, industrial, fire, death, flammables, solvent
FIREFIGHTER INJURED IN INCIDENT AT EAST TULSA INDUSTRIAL COMPANY
Tags: us_OK, industrial, fire, injury, unknown_chemical
HAWAII LAB EXPLOSION LINKED TO SAFETY FAILINGS
Tags: us_HI, laboratory, follow-up, injury, biodiesel
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FIREFIGHTERS SEEK NEW LAW TO BAN FLAME RETARDANTS
Tags: us_MA, public, fire, environmental, other_chemical
Amid growing concern that flame retardants are responsible for elevated cancer rates in firefighters, Massachusetts lawmakers are pushing legislation that would go further than any other state"s in banning the use of chemicals meant to slow the spread of fires.
Fire officials and environmental advocates, who have joined forces to support the restrictions, contend that at least 10 chemicals used in flame retardants endanger firefighters, while doing little to stop fires. They support two bills that would prohibit manufacturers and retailers from using the chemicals in children"s products and upholstered furniture and authorize state environmental officials to ban other retardants they designate as health risks.
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CREWS RESPOND TO FIRE, EXPLOSION AT BUTLER COUNTY PLANT
Tags: us_PA, industrial, explosion, response, unknown_chemical
PETROLIA, Pa. "
Emergency crews were called Thursday afternoon for a fire and explosion at an industrial plant in Petrolia, Butler County.
The incident was reported just before 1:30 p.m. at the Sonneborn Plant, prompting the response of dozens of firefighters.
People reported feeling the explosion from miles away.
"My sister lives in East Brady, and its 10 miles from here. My dad lives in Bruin, and he said it shook his house," Raymond Jones, who lives across the street, said. "I thought it was a truck hitting my building. I looked out my window. There were flames shooting 40 feet in the air."
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FIRE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER MEDICAL SCIENCE LABORATORY
Tags: United_Kingdom, laboratory, fire, response, unknown_chemical
The fire affected a lab on the second floor in the Maurice Shock Building on University Road. There is water and smoke damage in the vicinity.
The Dean of Medicine at the University of Leicester has praised Leicester Fire and Rescue Service"s quick action in controlling the fire.
I would like to thank and commend the fire service for their excellent response.
Their professionalism and expertise contained the fire to a lab in the medical sciences building which means the vast majority of the building should still be accessible from next week.
Had it not been for the swift action of the fire service, the situation could have been a lot worse.
The University is working with investigators to find out cause of the fire and will continue to assess the building over the weekend to determine to what extent it will impact on staff and students.
Any teaching or examinations scheduled in the building will be re-located or re-scheduled if required, said a statement from the university.
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CHINA CHEMICAL BLAZE EXTINGUISHED, BUT MAY AFFECT THOUSANDS
Tags: China, industrial, follow-up, death, toxics
A fire caused by an explosion at a chemical and fuel storage facility in the Chinese city of Jingjiang may affect thousands of nearby residents as well as key environmental resources, activists said Saturday.
The initial blast Friday morning recalled huge explosions caused by improper storage of chemicals in the northern city of Tianjin last August, which killed at least 165 and raised fears of toxic contamination.
The blaze, which took place in the eastern province of Jiangsu, raged for 16 hours before it was extinguished early Saturday morning, the official Xinhua news agency said.
+1
Industrial accidents are common in China where safety standards are often lax å©- (AFP/File)
Though no casualties have yet been reported, about 15,000 people live within five kilometres (three miles) of the blast site, which is also close to two drinking water and three ecological protection areas, Greenpeace said in a statement.
Located next to the Yangtze River, the facility stored up to 56 chemicals categorised as "hazardous" by the government, it added, calling the incident "yet another example of the worrying lack of oversight and management of China's chemical industry".
"The government must urgently investigate the dangers hazardous chemicals in China pose to people and the environment and act to prevent these all-too-common incidents from occurring again," its East Asia toxics assistant manager Cheng Qian said.
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HIGH-CONTAINMENT LABS NEED MORE OVERSIGHT
Tags: laboratory, follow-up, environmental
Federal research leaders need stronger oversight of laboratories that handle highly contagious agents, a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report says. The review by Congress"s investigative arm comes after dangerous biological agents were mishandled at the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, the Department of Defense, and the National Institutes of Health during several incidents in 2014 and 2015. At a hearing of the House of Representatives Energy & Commerce Committee"s Oversight & Investigations Subcommittee last week, committee members were especially critical of NIH and the Food & Drug Administration for a 2014 incident, in which many previously unknown vials of smallpox were found at an FDA lab on the NIH campus. "Past policy reviews have not brought about the changes necessary to improve safety," said Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.), the subcommittee"s chair. That"s what prompted the committee to ask for the GAO report. Investigators!
identified six elements that they consider essential to managing contagious biological agents: incident reporting, defined roles and responsibilities, safety training, inventory control, inspections, and top safety guidelines. They then reviewed the policies of 23 federal departments or agencies that oversee high-containment laboratories, also called biosafety level (BSL) 3 and 4 sites. Of those, 14 did not address all six GAO requirements, and six did not have policies at all. Another seven had policies that had not been reviewed in years.
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FIVE ARRESTED AS DEATH TOLL FROM INDIA TEMPLE FIRE RISES
Tags: India, public, follow-up, injury, fireworks
Police said they were investigating who was responsible for the fireworks display going ahead, even though authorities in Kerala's Kollam district had refused to grant permission for it.
Two middle aged youths succumbed to their injuries at the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital where 124 people are still being treated, doctors said. "In the past, there's been fireworks but not on this scale".
Kerala houses many temples that are maintained by wealthy trusts with huge power and influence. Permission was denied over fears that the temple gets overcrowded during the festival and that competing sides would try to outdo each other with more and more fireworks.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the scene of the disaster on Sunday.
The Governor conveyed his condolences to the bereaved family members of those who lost their lives and has prayed to the Almighty for heavenly peace of the departed souls. Large parts of the metropolis were under water for days before government help arrived. Previously, the RSS volunteers on Kolkata were seen helping in the relief operations that were carried out soon after the flyover collapse in the city.
Samples of chemicals taken from the site would be sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory for confirmation of the substances. Numerous victims were charred beyond recognition.
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WOMAN KILLED, THREE INJURED IN FIRE IN CHEMICAL GODOWN
Tags: India, industrial, fire, death, flammables, solvent
A 22-year-old woman was charred to death while three men sustained burn injuries when a fire broke out in a chemical godown in Seegehalli on Friday. The godown had been rented out by its owners to Ramlal, a city-based businessman, to store inflammable material such as paint thinners, solvents and other chemical used to prepare toilet cleaners. It also had a small manufacturing unit. There were around 10 employees working in the godown when the fire broke out around 10. 30 a.m.
A few employees rushed out of the unit even as the fire, fuelled by the inflammable products, spread rapidly. It took six fire tenders four hours to put out the fire. Gayathri, a worker who was trapped in the godown, was unable to escape. The police have registered a case of death due to negligence, and efforts are on to trace Khaniram and Kailish, the owners of the godown. The police are also verifying whether the owners had got permission to store the chemicals in the first place. According to the police, Gayathri and three other employees were unloading chemical barrels when one of them slipped and rolled into a drain nearby.
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FIREFIGHTER INJURED IN INCIDENT AT EAST TULSA INDUSTRIAL COMPANY
Tags: us_OK, industrial, fire, injury, unknown_chemical
TULSA, Oklahoma - One firefighter was hurt in an incident at an industrial company in East Tulsa Friday afternoon. Officials said his gear malfunctioned and he inhaled fumes.
The company is called Precise Machining and Manufacturing and is located near 129th East Avenue and Pine.
The call came in as a small building fire around 3:30 Friday afternoon.
Firefighters determined they couldn't use water on the fire because of chemicals and had to use a dry solution. They said it took longer to put out the flames because they had to go back and forth getting the foam.
"That's what took them so long to put the fire out because they had to keep bringing dry chemical fire extinguishers inside," said Captain John Sawyer with TFD.
Video from Osage SkyNews 6 HD showed a firefighter brought out on a stretcher and breathing oxygen. Other firefighters had to be washed off as a precautionary so they wouldn't inhale the chemicals.
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HAWAII LAB EXPLOSION LINKED TO SAFETY FAILINGS
Tags: us_HI, laboratory, follow-up, injury, biodiesel
An explosion at a University of Hawaii M€?noa laboratory, which took the arm of a visiting postdoctoral researcher last month, appears to have resulted from an inappropriate piece of equipment and unheeded warnings.
The incident at the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute biofuels research laboratory occurred on 16 March when visiting research fellow, Thea Ekins-Coward, was transferring hydrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide into a low pressure gas cylinder to be used a bacterial growth medium. The explosion was the result of a pressure gauge sparking, setting off the flammable gas mixture, the Honolulu Fire Department has concluded in a report.
"The gauge was not meant to be in a placement of where it was ‰?| and that was the source of the ‰?| leak of vapours that ignited," stated Terry Seelig, the Honolulu Fire Department"s battalion chief, during a press conference at the university. The switch sparked when it was operated, and ignited the gas that came out of the pressure gauge, he explained.
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