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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Monday, August 29, 2016 at 7:28:57 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=DQIFaQ&c=lb62iw4YL4RFalcE2hQUQealT9-RXrryqt9KZX2qu2s&r=meWM1Buqv4IQ27AlK1OJRjcQl09S1Zta6YXKalY_Io0&m=3U3T9dbxaIuDQzFDW4YCUVk3dNcUNCL7UIkXrX02a44&s=gALgxpOTWLogF6LKCBd8G_JXrCMu77zusNAdVsa8PYY&e=
Table of Contents (19 articles)
SMYRNA CHEMICAL SPILL FINDS ITS WAY TO THE CHATTAHOOCHEE RIVER
Tags: us_GA, public, release, environmental, toxics
BRUSSELS CRIME LAB FIRE: FIVE HELD OVER BLAZE 'STARTED TO DESTROY EVIDENCE'
Tags: Belgium, laboratory, explosion, response, bomb
TRUCK CARRYING TAKATA AIR BAGS EXPLODES, KILLING 1 AND INJURING 4
Tags: us_TX, transportation, follow-up, death, ammonium_nitrate
ENTSCH INSISTS ‰??NO CAUSE FOR ALARM‰?? OVER CHEMICAL FIND AT HMAS CAIRNS
Tags: Australia, public, discovery, environmental, toxics
THE UNEVEN WORLD OF CHEMICAL ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION
Tags: industrial, discovery, environmental
EXPLOSION ROCKS CANTONMENT CHEMICAL PLANT, 1 DEAD
Tags: us_FL, industrial, explosion, death, mustard_gas
CREWS RESPONDING TO HAZMAT SITUATION AT MEIJER DISTRIBUTION CENTER
Tags: us_MI, industrial, release, response, ammonia
PANIC GRIPS ZIRAKPUR AREA AS CHEMICAL LEAKS FROM TANKER
Tags: India, transportation, release, injury, unknown_chemical
HEALTH CHECKS AFTER DRUMS OF CHEMICAL DUMPED
Tags: Thailand, industrial, release, response, styrene
AXIALL CHLORINE LEAK UNDER CONTROL
Tags: us_WV, transportation, release, injury, chlorine
FIRE CREWS DEAL WITH HAZMAT SITUATION AT CITY SCHOOL
Tags: us_MD, education, release, response, mercury
1 HURT IN SPILL AT BURLINGTON COUNTY CHEMICALS COMPANY
Tags: us_PA, industrial, release, injury, unknown_chemical
ALL LANES OF HIGHWAY 69/75 REOPENED AFTER ACID SPILL
Tags: us_OK, transportation, release, death, sulfuric_acid
MERCURY MYSTERY: TAINTED CAR SITS IN IMPOUND LOT MONTHS LATER -
Tags: us_AR, transportation, follow-up, environmental, mercury
ONE INJURED IN TRUCK FIRE AT ELMER'S
Tags: us_NC, transportation, explosion, injury, other_chemical
TESORO REFINERY TANK IN WILMINGTON EXPLODES; NONE INJURED
Tags: us_CA, industrial, explosion, response, sulphur
HAZMAT CREWS ON SCENE OF CHEMICAL SPILL AT CONDO COMPLEX
Tags: us_NY, public, release, response, chlorine
PROPOSED CHEMICAL PLANT RULES CRITICIZED OVER TRANSPARENCY
Tags: us_TX, industrial, discovery, environmental
CHEMICAL LEAK IN FIGHTER PLANE SENDS 6 AIRMEN TO HOSPITAL
Tags: us_NJ, industrial, release, injury, hydrazine
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SMYRNA CHEMICAL SPILL FINDS ITS WAY TO THE CHATTAHOOCHEE RIVER
Tags: us_GA, public, release, environmental, toxics
Toxins from a chemical spill in Smyrna earlier this month have made their way down to the Chattahoochee River, according to a local environmentalist.
Chattahoochee Riverkeeper Jason Ulseth, the environmental group‰??s spokesperson, said levels of contamination have been detected both upstream and downstream from the Kenwood neighborhood creek that turned white from toxins in mid-August.
‰??I‰??m certain some levels ‰?| did make its way down to the Chattahoochee River,‰?? he said.
Ulseth said he does not have enough information to determine if the river is unsafe.
Ulseth said he anticipates the Environmental Protection Agency opening a criminal investigation regarding the incident. He said this is the worst spill he has seen in years, and he said he expects policy enforcement from both state and federal environmental agencies.
Ulseth said environmental agencies will continue testing water and soil samples to determine contamination levels for as long as needed.
---------------------------------------------
BRUSSELS CRIME LAB FIRE: FIVE HELD OVER BLAZE 'STARTED TO DESTROY EVIDENCE'
Tags: Belgium, laboratory, explosion, response, bomb
Five people have been arrested over a fire at crime laboratories in Brussels that officials believe may have been started to destroy forensic evidence.
Prosecutor's spokeswoman Ine Van Wymersch said a car broke through fences at about 02:00 (00:00 GMT).
The car was then rammed into a building where forensic tests are conducted, before a fire was started. Police could not confirm if a bomb had exploded.
Ms Van Wymersch said the likely aim was to destroy "several files" inside.
The building is not yet safe to enter, Ms Van Wymersch said, so it was not possible to fully dismiss reports a bomb had exploded.
The five people were arrested near the laboratories soon after the fire was reported, Ms Van Wymersch told a press conference.
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TRUCK CARRYING TAKATA AIR BAGS EXPLODES, KILLING 1 AND INJURING 4
Tags: us_TX, transportation, follow-up, death, ammonium_nitrate
A truck transporting Takata air bag inflators and propellants that are at the center of a global recall exploded in Texas earlier this month, resulting in one death and four injuries, the embattled auto parts supplier said on Monday.
The truck operated by a subcontractor was traveling to a Takata plant in Eagle Pass, Texas, on Aug. 22 when the accident occurred, causing an explosion which incinerated one home, local media reported.
A Takata spokesman in Tokyo was unable to confirm the date and location of the accident, but said the truck was carrying air bag inflators and propellants containing ammonium nitrate, the volatile chemical compound linked to the supplier‰??s exploding air bags, and that the blast killed one woman.
‰??Takata immediately deployed personnel to the site and has been working closely with the subcontractor and the appropriate authorities to investigate this incident,‰?? the company said in a statement.
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ENTSCH INSISTS ‰??NO CAUSE FOR ALARM‰?? OVER CHEMICAL FIND AT HMAS CAIRNS
Tags: Australia, public, discovery, environmental, toxics
INVESTIGATORS from the Australian Defence Force will wait up to six weeks for the results of an environmental report into the contamination of groundwater at HMAS Cairns.
The Weekend Post revealed on Saturday that two underground bores at the CBD Navy base had been found to be contaminated with toxic chemicals perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA). The chemicals ‰?? which have been linked to a widespread contamination scandal at Defence bases and civilian airports around Australia ‰?? were detected during ‰??routine‰?? sampling in May but Defence did not release the information.
A Defence spokesman said at the weekend the ADF had not notified anyone of the contamination because it was ‰??awaiting validated findings from the final report of the environmental monitoring sampling‰??.
‰??Consistent with approaches at other Defence bases, these validated findings will inform decisions on Defence‰??s response, including whether the site needs to be prioritised for preliminary and detailed site investigations in accordance with the National Environment Protection (Assessment of Site Contamination) Measure (NEPM) framework,‰?? the spokesman said.
‰??If a detailed site investigation is required this will include an Environmental Site Assessment and may also include a Human Health Risk Assessment and an Ecological Risk Assessment.‰??
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THE UNEVEN WORLD OF CHEMICAL ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION
Tags: industrial, discovery, environmental
Experts point out differences, call U.S. Chemical Safety Board a world model in root-cause probes
Around the globe, chemical factories and refineries catch fire and explode. Workers die, and communities are devastated. After such incidents, engineers, companies, unions, regulators, and emergency planners learn lessons from studying the mistakes that triggered them. Sometimes industrial safety improves. Sometimes it doesn‰??t.
In most of the world, chemical accidents are investigated by companies and regulators aiming to learn who did what and what went wrong. The investigations and recommendations can be used to improve workplace safety and correct industrial errors.
The report may or may not have much to do with industrial safety.
Companies, however, don‰??t share their investigation results. For regulators, the driving force behind investigations is enforcement. Their probes will be closely contested affairs and unlikely to serve as a learning device.
When an accident is particularly horrendous, deadly, costly, or controversial, a national government will often create a blue-ribbon committee to investigate. Experts are brought in, and a report results. But the report may or may not have much to do with industrial safety.
---------------------------------------------
EXPLOSION ROCKS CANTONMENT CHEMICAL PLANT, 1 DEAD
Tags: us_FL, industrial, explosion, death, mustard_gas
Escambia County officials have confirmed at least one person is dead after a Sunday explosion at the Airgas Facility at the Ascend Performance Materials chemical plant in the 3000 block of Old Chemstrand Road.
The chemical that exploded was nitrous oxide, and did not pose a threat to the public, county Public Safety Director Mike Weaver said. The cause of the explosion was not immediately available Sunday evening, and no additional injuries have been reported. The investigation into the blast has been turned over to the state fire marshal's office.
Shortly after the noontime explosion, nearby resident Tamiya Jefferson stood in the grass across the street from her house, watching the mustard-colored plume of smoke billowing from the Airgas plant.
Jefferson and many other residents living in the Cantonment neighborhood were alarmed by the thundering explosion that shook their homes.
---------------------------------------------
CREWS RESPONDING TO HAZMAT SITUATION AT MEIJER DISTRIBUTION CENTER
Tags: us_MI, industrial, release, response, ammonia
LANSING, Mich. (WILX) - Hazmat crews are investigating a possible ammonia leak at the Meijer Distribution Center.
It happened around 9 a.m. Saturday at the building in the 3000 block of South Creyts Road.
The distribution center and adjoining truck loading area were both evacuated.
Crews started to leave the scene around 10:30 am.
First responders on the scene did not comment on the investigation. News 10 has calls into the fire department. Stay here for more updates.
----- 9:20 am
Hazmat crews were called to the scene of a possible ammonia leak at the Meijer Distribution Center.
It happened around 9 a.m. Saturday at the building in the 3000 block of South Creyts Road.
News 10 has a crew on the scene working to get more information.
---------------------------------------------
PANIC GRIPS ZIRAKPUR AREA AS CHEMICAL LEAKS FROM TANKER
Tags: India, transportation, release, injury, unknown_chemical
Panic gripped the Zirakpur area on Saturday afternoon as passengers and local shopkeepers complained of nausea and burns in their bodies following chemical leakage from a tanker.
At least three people fainted while one had to be admitted to the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32.
The incident took place near Lucky Dhaba on the road leading to Patiala when a tanker carrying chemical going to the Patiala side started leaking. It took nearly two hours for the authorities to bring the situation under control.
More than 50 people felt dizzy of whom three fainted on the spot, reports said. Passengers of nearly 50 vehicles, including buses, cars and motorcycles, besides nearby shopkeepers in the area up to 1 kilometre from the spot were affected.
Eyewitnesses said the traffic slowed down as the tanker stopped after the leakage. While commuters felt headache and congestion in their eyes and throats, some even started vomiting. Many motorists parked their vehicles on the roadside and covered their faces to avoid inhaling of chemical vapours.
---------------------------------------------
HEALTH CHECKS AFTER DRUMS OF CHEMICAL DUMPED
Tags: Thailand, industrial, release, response, styrene
Following a complaint by Chon Buri residents that some 50 chemical drums labelled ‰??Styrene Monomer‰?? were dumped into a sand pit near a water source in Tambon Ban Pong in Bang Lamung district and a strong smelly substance leaked out, a doctor said yesterday that the substance could be harmful to people‰??s health.
The Disease Control Department (DCD)'s Bureau of Occupational and Environmental Diseases director Dr Preecha Prempree said DCD officials were dispatched to check how much of the substance had leaked out, in as of press time.
Another team of officials was set to do a check on nearby residents for health impacts after a parameter was set, he said.
Preecha said styrene monomer was an organic compound used in industries to manufacture car parts, Styrofoam and plastic.
If people inhaled a large amount, they could develop respiratory problems, have a seizure or even die.
---------------------------------------------
AXIALL CHLORINE LEAK UNDER CONTROL
Tags: us_WV, transportation, release, injury, chlorine
NEW MARTINSVILLE ‰?? A chlorine leak this morning at the Axiall plant in southern Marshall County is now under control, emergency officials said.
‰??Axiall and the (West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection) tested the air quality in the area and determined it to be safe,‰?? a Marshall County dispatcher said just after 4:30 p.m.
The leak was first reported around 8:45 a.m. today, when Marshall County 911 said a chemical cloud from the plant was heading south.
Axiall issued a press release that said a rail tanker car loaded with liquid chlorine developed a leak inside the company‰??s Natrium chemical facility near Proctor. The company said the rail car is no longer leaking.
The company said one of its employees and a contract worker were transported to area hospitals for treatment. They since have been released, according to Axiall officials. Others were treated at an onsite health facility.
---------------------------------------------
FIRE CREWS DEAL WITH HAZMAT SITUATION AT CITY SCHOOL
Tags: us_MD, education, release, response, mercury
ire crews were called at 12:48 p.m. to 2801 Saint Lo Drive at Lake Clifton Campus for the report of a hazmat spill.
Officials said that when crews arrived, they found what appeared to be mercury in a first-floor classroom. After conducting their readings, it was determined that the substance was in fact mercury, officials said.
Firefighters evacuated the building and began to check on-site staff for exposure to the substance. Officials said 23 people between school personnel and contractors from a moving company were evaluated and released.
It doesn't appear that any type of classes were in session at the time of this incident, and hazmat removal contractors are on the scene to clean up the spill, officials said.
---------------------------------------------
1 HURT IN SPILL AT BURLINGTON COUNTY CHEMICALS COMPANY
Tags: us_PA, industrial, release, injury, unknown_chemical
Authorities sent a hazmat team into a Burlington County building Friday that houses a manufacturing company, following a reported spill of an unknown substance.
Dispatchers received a call around 10:35 a.m. about the incident at CVC Speciality Chemicals at 2890 Route 73 in Maple Shade. The spill was cleaned up by early afternoon, authorities said.
One worker was injured when the spill occurred and taken to a local hospital, authorities said. The extent of the worker's injuries, and what type of substance had spilled, were not released.
---------------------------------------------
ALL LANES OF HIGHWAY 69/75 REOPENED AFTER ACID SPILL
Tags: us_OK, transportation, release, death, sulfuric_acid
CADDO, Okla.- One man was killed and three others were injured after a semi hauling sulfuric acid crashed Wednesday afternoon around 4.
Highway 69/75 was closed while a Hazmat team cleaned up the spill. All lanes of 75 are now back open.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol said 49-year-old Randy Perkins of Sapulpa was driving southbound on Highway 69/75 when he drove up the embankment and into the Highway 22 Bridge.
‰??Witnesses said that basically the truck just ran off the right side of the road and hit the bridge,‰?? OHP Lt. Scott Hampton said. ‰??No other vehicle involvement or anything.‰??
Perkins was ejected 15 feet and pronounced dead at the scene.
500 gallons of sulfuric acid was spilled across the highway as a result of the crash.
---------------------------------------------
MERCURY MYSTERY: TAINTED CAR SITS IN IMPOUND LOT MONTHS LATER -
Tags: us_AR, transportation, follow-up, environmental, mercury
HOT SPRINGS, Ark.- A mysterious and potentially dangerous element was found inside of a car after a fatal wreck more than four months ago.
The smashed up car still sits at Combs and Burks impound lot full of whatever was left in it the night of the crash. Lot owner, Wayne Touchton, says he doesn't know why after four months there's still a police hold on the car, but he'd like it gone because he feels it's a hazard.
On May 16, 2016 Dakota Avants and two women passengers were involved in a police pursuit in Hot Spring County. The chase crossed county lines into Garland where the car, exceeding speeds of 100 mph, crashed.
Lt. Clint Reynolds, of the Hot Springs fire department was a first responder that night.
"It was a pretty significant wreck. The car tumbled end over end and had multiple victims."
He said two days later when the property owners were cleaning up, they noticed something unusual. "They discovered a substance that they didn't know what it was," says Reynolds. "It was later determined to be mercury."
Reynolds describes it as small metal BBs, broken up and scattered across the ground. It quickly became a Hazmat situation.
"Mercury is really heavy and it doesn't easily spread," says Reynolds, "but if there was a significant amount of rainfall it could've had some runoff into the (Hot Springs) creek."
---------------------------------------------
ONE INJURED IN TRUCK FIRE AT ELMER'S
Tags: us_NC, transportation, explosion, injury, other_chemical
A truck driver was injured in what authorities described as an explosion at the Elmer‰??s Products facility on West Front Street early Friday morning.
Statesville Fire Department crews responded to the plant around 1 a.m. after a call about a building fire. They found a tractor-trailer driver injured and the fire and smoke contained largely to the tractor-trailer, but about a dozen third-shift employees were evacuated for about 90 minutes.
The truck driver, reportedly from Texas, was taken via Iredell EMS to Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center with serious burns, officials said.
The truck driver and a maintenance worker were preparing to unload a delivery of a chemical called isopentane when the explosion occurred, said Statesville Police Department Capt. D.B. Johnson.
---------------------------------------------
TESORO REFINERY TANK IN WILMINGTON EXPLODES; NONE INJURED
Tags: us_CA, industrial, explosion, response, sulphur
A sulfur tank exploded Friday at the Tesoro refinery in Wilmington, sending a chemical cloud into the air and causing a fire, authorities said. No injuries were reported.
There was no immediate word on the cause of the blast, which occurred at about 1 p.m.
"We are currently conducting air quality monitoring around the site," company spokesman Destin Singleton said. "At this time we have not detected any harmful levels of toxins."
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT CREWS ON SCENE OF CHEMICAL SPILL AT CONDO COMPLEX
Tags: us_NY, public, release, response, chlorine
A chemical spill that brought hazmat crews to a condo complex in Fairfield Friday is now contained.
Firefighters say residents at the Southport Woods Drive condominium complex are slowly being allowed to enter their homes after being forced to evacuate from a chlorine leak in the basement of a pool house.
They say a pool technician was doing some maintenance work in the basement of a...
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PROPOSED CHEMICAL PLANT RULES CRITICIZED OVER TRANSPARENCY
Tags: us_TX, industrial, discovery, environmental
A Texas environmental advocate argues that new chemical plant standards from the Environmental Protection Agency would not adequately warn neighboring residents about potentially dangerous facilities ‰?? particularly the at-risk populations more likely to live nearby.
Juan Parras, director of Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services, wrote in The Hill that proposed changes to the EPA‰??s Risk Management Program "would leave communities in the dark."
The EPA earlier this year announced a series of proposed rule changes, including requirements that chemical plants establish risk management plans for hazardous materials and, as part of that process, consider the use of safer alternatives.
The proposal would also increase the amount of publicly available information about chemical facilities, require audits and analyses to identify potential improvements and bolster coordination between plants and local authorities.
EPA officials called the changes "a first step" toward improving "preparedness and prevention efforts in our communities," but they also drew criticism from industry and advocates alike.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL LEAK IN FIGHTER PLANE SENDS 6 AIRMEN TO HOSPITAL
Tags: us_NJ, industrial, release, injury, hydrazine
Six airmen at the U.S. Air National Guard's 177th Fighter Wing in New Jersey have been taken to the hospital after being exposed to a chemical released from a fighter plane.
The Press of Atlantic City reports ( https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__bit.ly_2c16mOi&d=DQIFaQ&c=lb62iw4YL4RFalcE2hQUQealT9-RXrryqt9KZX2qu2s&r=meWM1Buqv4IQ27AlK1OJRjcQl09S1Zta6YXKalY_Io0&m=3U3T9dbxaIuDQzFDW4YCUVk3dNcUNCL7UIkXrX02a44&s=hAfLOyUP0Yl_hJcrEIXV1Z7Eks11Kc-wnAU1zHQcld4&e= ">https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__bit.ly_2c16mOi&d=DQIFaQ&c=lb62iw4YL4RFalcE2hQUQealT9-RXrryqt9KZX2qu2s&r=meWM1Buqv4IQ27AlK1OJRjcQl09S1Zta6YXKalY_Io0&m=3U3T9dbxaIuDQzFDW4YCUVk3dNcUNCL7UIkXrX02a44&s=hAfLOyUP0Yl_hJcrEIXV1Z7Eks11Kc-wnAU1zHQcld4&e= ) the accident happened around 2:30 p.m. Thursday in Egg Harbor Township while the airmen worked on an F-16's emergency power unit. The unit provides electrical and hydraulic power to the plane if the engines shut down.
Master Sgt. Andrew Moseley says six people were taken to a hospital as a precaution because of possible exposure to a hydrazine byproduct. It's a corrosive and toxic chemical that can irritate the eyes, nose and throat. Acute exposure can also lead to kidney and liver damage.
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