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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 (19 articles)
Date: Fri, 21 Oct 2016 07:28:36 -0400
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU>
Message-ID: 8766892B-DAD1-4745-B575-A43294981983**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, October 21, 2016 at 7:28:22 AM
A membership benefit of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
All article summaries and tags are archived at http://pinboard.in/u:dchas
Table of Contents (19 articles)
MORE THAN 50 EVALUATED IN HOSPITAL HAZARD CALL
Tags: us_CA, public, release, response, drugs, radiation
WILMINGTON FIRE CREWS HELP STOP CHEMICAL LEAK IN WAYNE COUNTY
Tags: us_NC, transportation, release, injury, methanol
EIGHT DIE OF ASPHYXIATION AFTER FIRE CRACKERS GO UP IN FLAMES IN SIVAKASI
Tags: India, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical
U.S. AIR FORCE ACCIDENTALLY SPILLS MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF HIGHLY TOXIC CHEMICALS INTO COLORADO SEWER SYSTEM
Tags: us_CO, industrial, release, response, other_chemical
CHEMICAL SPILL IN WEST CHESTER RESULT OF ‰??DISTRACTED‰?? WORKER
Tags: us_OH, transportation, follow-up, response, waste
FIRE AT RAFFLES GIRLS' SCHOOL AT ANDERSON ROAD, NO INJURIES REPORTED, SINGAPORE NEWS & TOP STORIES
Tags: Singapore, laboratory, fire, response, unknown_chemical
CHEMICAL INCIDENT AFTER CONTAINER OF POISON HANDED INTO CARNOUSTIE POLICE STATION
Tags: United_Kingdom, public, discovery, response, cyanide
TEAM REMOVING 500 GALLONS OF AMMONIA FROM CIVIC CENTER
Tags: us_MT, public, discovery, response, ammonia
EVACUATIONS LIFTED AFTER 3 CRASHES ON I-95, MULTIPLE DEATHS REPORTED
Tags: us_NC, transportation, release, death, corrosives
GERMAN CHEMICAL PLANT EXPLOSION TOLL RISES TO THREE
Tags: Germany, transportation, follow-up, death, flammables
EXPLOSION AT S. KOREA CHEMICAL PLANT KILLS 1, INJURES 4
Tags: Republic_of_Korea, industrial, explosion, death, other_chemical
COMMON CHEMICALS HURT OUR HEALTH -- AND COST US MONEY
Tags: public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
CHEMICAL SPILL IN WEST CHESTER HAS OFFICIALS ASKING PEOPLE TO STAY INDOORS
Tags: us_OH, industrial, release, response, other_chemical
UNIVERSITY PROF. RECOVERING AFTER CHEMICAL EXPLOSION
Tags: us_nd, laboratory, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical
BUFFALO MAN SEEKS COMPENSATION FOLLOWING LITHIUM-ION BATTERY LAPTOP EXPLOSION
Tags: us_my, fire, public, follow-up, batteries
FIRE IN TLS LAB SHUTS DOWN CLASSES FOR THE DAY
Tags: us_ct, laboratory, fire, response, unknown_chemical
LITHIUM-ION BATTERY FIRE THREATENS MTD FACILITY IN SANTA BARBARA
Tags: us_ca, industrial, fire, injury, batteries
EPA BEGINS $3-MILLION CLEANUP AT SITE OF MAYWOOD MAGNESIUM FIRE
Tags: us_ca, industrial, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
OIL-SOAKED RAGS CAN BE A FIRE HAZZARD HOUSEHOLD CHEMICAL SAFETY
Tags: us_mo, public, fire, response, other_chemical
---------------------------------------------
MORE THAN 50 EVALUATED IN HOSPITAL HAZARD CALL
Tags: us_CA, public, release, response, drugs, radiation
More than 50 people were evaluated after a chemical spill was reported Thursday afternoon at Ventura County Medical Center, officials said.
The incident was reported at 4:06 p.m. at the Ventura hospital, 3291 Loma Vista Road. Authorities said it appeared a small amount of chemotherapy drugs had spilled.
People were evacuated due to the odor, and the building's heating and cooling system was turned off, officials said.
"This is a small spill of a low-grade radioactive chemotherapy agent," the city of Ventura Fire Department said via Facebook. "This spill is contained to the facility and there is a spill protocol underway."
Authorities said 52 people were evaluated for possible exposure and three were to get hospital evaluation and/or treatment.
---------------------------------------------
WILMINGTON FIRE CREWS HELP STOP CHEMICAL LEAK IN WAYNE COUNTY
Tags: us_NC, transportation, release, injury, methanol
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) ‰?? The Wilmington Fire Department‰??s Regional Hazmat team responded to an overturned tanker in Wayne County last night.
WFD received the call for assistance around 9:30 p.m.
The fire department sent a full crew to the area of Seven Springs to help the Pricetown Fire Department. When crews arrived, they found a tanker with 6800 gallons of methanol in the ditch. The tanker was partially rolled over.
A WFD spokesman says the driver was trying to turn around to avoid flooded roadways when his trailer slid off into the ditch. Methanol was leaking from a 2‰?3 pipe on top of the tanker.
The team was able to slow the leak significantly. Another tanker was brought in to transfer the product from the damaged tanker into it. The team was there throughout the night and returned to Wilmington this morning. It is estimated that approximately only 100 gallons of methanol escaped. No one got hurt.
---------------------------------------------
EIGHT DIE OF ASPHYXIATION AFTER FIRE CRACKERS GO UP IN FLAMES IN SIVAKASI
Tags: India, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical
Eight persons died of asphyxiation and 13 others were hospitalised after they were trapped inside a diagnostic laboratory after fire crackers being unloaded from a truck suddenly exploded in flames in Sivakasi town of Tamil Nadu today.
The incident occurred around 1.30 pm when fire crackers were being unloaded by workers outside a shop ahead of the Diwali festival.
Virudhunagar District Collector A. Sivagnanam told NetIndian over the telephone that the thick fumes quickly engulfed the area, including the laboratory, located right next to where the truck was parked on the Virudhunagar bye-pass road, where several people had come for various pathological tests.
Those killed included five women and three men, he said, adding that 13 others had been hospitalised for treatment of problems caused by suffocation and inhalation of the fumes.
"Those inside the laboratory had no chance to escape from inside as the entire area was engulfed by thick smoke," he said. He said none of the victims had suffered any physical injuries because of the explosion and fire.
---------------------------------------------
U.S. AIR FORCE ACCIDENTALLY SPILLS MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF HIGHLY TOXIC CHEMICALS INTO COLORADO SEWER SYSTEM
Tags: us_CO, industrial, release, response, other_chemical
The U.S Air Force said Tuesday that a Colorado base had released roughly 150,000 gallons of water containing elevated levels of perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) into the Colorado Springs Utilities sewer system and a nearby creek.
Officials at the Peterson Air Force Base, located in Colorado Springs, said an investigation was underway into the discharge from a retention tank, which was discovered Oct. 12. during a routine inspection. The spill happened at some point last week, they said.
The Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado, which discharged about 150,00 gallons of PFC-tainted into the local sewer system.
Brian Bennett / Flickr
PFCs‰??found in firefighting foam used by the military‰??have been linked to adverse health effects including liver damage and development harm.
The Colorado Springs Utilities said the chemicals did not enter the drinking water system, but rather went directly to wastewater.
Utilities spokesperson Steve Berry said that no wastewater plant in the country is equipped to remove PFCs.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL SPILL IN WEST CHESTER RESULT OF ‰??DISTRACTED‰?? WORKER
Tags: us_OH, transportation, follow-up, response, waste
WEST CHESTER TWP.
UPDATE **At_Symbol_Here** 1:10 p.m. Oct. 20:
West Chester Fire Chief Rick Prinz said the 60,000 pounds of recycled lime that caused an evacuation of area businesses was the result of worker error.
SES is an environmental clean-up company that goes from contract to contract picking up waste water and bringing it back to its facility, where it pours it into a ‰??very large trench,‰?? Prinz said.
‰??They slowly mix lime into it to help neutralize that water and slowly make it a kind of a slurry, more of a solid, so they can put it into a truck and transport it to Rumpke for disposal,‰?? he said. ‰??In this particular instance, the driver of this truck that was holding the lime was dumping the lime into the pit and was distracted for whatever reason, I don‰??t know, but then inadvertently dumped 60,000 pounds all at one time instead of the small amount that they normally do.‰??
---------------------------------------------
FIRE AT RAFFLES GIRLS' SCHOOL AT ANDERSON ROAD, NO INJURIES REPORTED, SINGAPORE NEWS & TOP STORIES
Tags: Singapore, laboratory, fire, response, unknown_chemical
A fire broke out at Raffles Girls' School at Anderson Road on Wednesday (Oct 19) evening.
Singapore Civil Defence Force said the fire started in the science laboratory.
Seventeen staff were evacuated and no injuries were reported.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL INCIDENT AFTER CONTAINER OF POISON HANDED INTO CARNOUSTIE POLICE STATION
Tags: United_Kingdom, public, discovery, response, cyanide
The man is believed to have been redecorating his home when he found the tin and took it to Carnoustie‰??s police station on North Burnside Street.
The container stated it contained Cymag, a fast-acting poison which releases cyanide gas on contact with moisture.
The incident sparked a large-scale emergency response, including the Scottish Fire and Rescue‰??s specialist chemical-management Hazmat team.
A spokesman for Police Scotland said they were unsure of the tin‰??s contents but had taken a cautious approach.
He said: ‰??A man came into the police station. He said he had been renovating a house and had found the tin.
‰??It looked like it was something pretty nasty ‰?? it has Cymag written on it ‰?? so we took the high ground and called in the fire service.
---------------------------------------------
TEAM REMOVING 500 GALLONS OF AMMONIA FROM CIVIC CENTER
Tags: us_MT, public, discovery, response, ammonia
Butte emergency responders are removing old ammonia that had been stored for several decades at the Butte Civic Center.
The Butte Fire Department with help from a HAZMAT team is removing about 500 gallons of ammonia from a storage tank.
The tank with the dangerous chemical was installed there in the 1950s for ice creation. The ammonia is being pumped into this tub where it is being diluted with water to make it less harmful and it will later be disposed of safely.
‰??The operation is going great, uneventful, not exciting, smooth, so it's exactly the way our HAZMAT team and fire department wanted it to go,‰?? said Butte Communications Director Jeremy Gatz-Miller.
---------------------------------------------
EVACUATIONS LIFTED AFTER 3 CRASHES ON I-95, MULTIPLE DEATHS REPORTED
Tags: us_NC, transportation, release, death, corrosives
JOHNSTON COUNTY, NC (WTVD) -- An evacuation order was lifted early Thursday morning for Johnston Community College, Carolina Premium Outlets, and nearby homes after a fiery crash involving hazardous materials on Interstate 95 near Smithfield forced them out of the area.
Northbound lanes of I-95 from exits 81 for I-40 to 97 for US-70, between Kenly and Benson, were also reopened early Thursday. However, southbound lanes are not slated to remain reopen until 8 a.m. Friday.
Drivers going south can take US-70 West in Selma to U.S. 70 Bypass, and then go east on I-40 to return to I-95 at exit 81.
Johnston County Schools are operating on a two-hour delay Thursday because of the toxic fumes caused by the wreck. All town offices in Smithfield, including Town Hall and Smithfield Recreation and Aquatic Center will open at 10 a.m. Thursday.
The Wednesday afternoon crash prompted Johnston County officials to open shelters at Cleveland High School and Princeton High School to house residents within a 3-mile radius of the wreck site. Emergency services said there were about 40 people who sought shelter.
ABC11 has learned there were two fatalities in the crash that involved five vehicles.
The North Carolina Highway Patrol said an RV was rear-ended by a moving van, causing the RV to lose control and it was struck by a second car. That car was struck by a tractor trailer - that was possibly hauling some type of corrosive chemical - which propelled the car into a second tractor trailer.
---------------------------------------------
GERMAN CHEMICAL PLANT EXPLOSION TOLL RISES TO THREE
Tags: Germany, transportation, follow-up, death, flammables
Divers on Wednesday found the body of a man at a BASF chemical plant in western Germany where an explosion occurred on Monday, police said, bringing the death toll to three.
Prosecutors have ordered an autopsy be carried out on the remains, police in the federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate said in a statement.
BASF firefighters were caught in an explosion on Monday after responding to a small blaze near docks where tanker ships unload flammable liquids and liquified gases via systems of pipes.
Two firefighters were confirmed dead on Tuesday, with one person missing and more than 20 hurt, including six seriously.
The body found on Wednesday is believed to be that of the missing person.
"We have to assume that our fears have become a tragic certainty and lament a third death," BASF board member Margret Suckale said in a statement.
---------------------------------------------
EXPLOSION AT S. KOREA CHEMICAL PLANT KILLS 1, INJURES 4
Tags: Republic_of_Korea, industrial, explosion, death, other_chemical
An explosion in a silo at a South Korean chemical plant Wednesday killed one worker and left four others with injuries, South Korean news service Yonhap and Chinese state news service Xinhua reported separately.
A silo of Terephthalic acid, a raw material used to manufacture polyester, caught on fire at the Star Chemical plant in Gumi, South Korea as employees were carrying out a removal of the silo‰??s pipes at about 9:21 a.m. local time, according to Yonhap. Evidence suggests that the blast was caused by the explosion of an oxygen tank, reported Xinhua.
A worker was severely injured by the explosion and later died at an area hospital, Yonhap‰??s article said, four other employees received non-life-threatening injuries. The silo pipes were being removed as part of an effort to shut the plant down after it shuttered in January 2013 because of financial reasons, the South Korean news agency said.
The fire took 40 minutes to extinguish with the efforts of about 140 firefighers and 20 fire trucks, said Xinhua.
---------------------------------------------
COMMON CHEMICALS HURT OUR HEALTH -- AND COST US MONEY
Tags: public, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
(CNN)Routine contact with plastic bottles, toys, food cans, cosmetics and flame retardants containing "endocrine-disrupting chemicals" results in ingestion, leading to a toxic buildup and potentially a variety of medical conditions.
Routine exposure to these chemicals adds up to annual costs in excess of $340 billion -- a whopping price tag that comes in the form of poor health, increased medical bills and lost income, according to researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center.
The largest single cost comes from chemical effects on children's developing brains, said Dr. Leonardo Trasande, an associate professor at NYU Langone and lead investigator of the study.
Obviously, costs are not the main concern of families with growing children. According to Trasande, a few simple steps will limit exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals in the home
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL SPILL IN WEST CHESTER HAS OFFICIALS ASKING PEOPLE TO STAY INDOORS
Tags: us_OH, industrial, release, response, other_chemical
WEST CHESTER, Ohio (WKRC) - The ‰??shelter-in-place‰?? order from emergency officials was lifted in West Chester after a chemical spill Wednesday evening, October 19.
The West Chester Fire Department asked people to stay inside because of a chemical lime spill. The West Chester Fire Chief told Local 12 News the situation was under control Wednesday night. Officials dumped a large amount of water on the lime and that brought the situation under control.
60,000 pounds of lime was accidentally dumped and it created a hazardous cloud. Lime can cause skin and eye irritation and respiratory issues. It happened around 5 p.m. at Superior Environmental Solutions Inc. "SES" collects waste water from other companies and treats it with lime. Officials were called after a worker accidentally dumped the chemical.
A ‰??shelter-in-place‰?? order was given. The fire department encouraged those in the area to remain indoors with windows and doors closed and HVAC systems off.
---------------------------------------------
UNIVERSITY PROF. RECOVERING AFTER CHEMICAL EXPLOSION
Tags: us_nd, laboratory, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical
Dickinson, ND ‰?? A Dickinson State University chemistry professor is recovering from his injuries after what university officials are calling a small explosion earlier this month.
Students were evacuated from Murphy Hall on the DSU campus.
While Professor Ken Pierce was preparing a classroom demonstration in the chemistry lab, an incident occurred, resulting the explosion.
Pierce suffered injuries that were not life-threatening. He was initially transported to CHI St. Alexius Health in Dickinson before being transferred to Bismarck, according to a statement from DSU.
No students were injured in the incident. Three students indicated they were experiencing ringing in their ears due to the loud noise. They were evaluated and released by paramedics.
A message went out to students and personnel to evacuate the building, saying it was ‰??not a drill.‰??
---------------------------------------------
BUFFALO MAN SEEKS COMPENSATION FOLLOWING LITHIUM-ION BATTERY LAPTOP EXPLOSION
Tags: us_my, fire, public, follow-up, batteries
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) ‰?? Nick Jones was sitting on his couch like any ordinary Monday night when the unthinkable happened.
‰??My computer started to make a weird noise next to me on the couch it was off and charging then all of a sudden it started to pop and explode and there was this loud noise,‰?? said Nicholas Jones of Buffalo.
He says within a matter of seconds, the couch was on fire.
‰??I put the fire out on the couch and after the fire was out the battery cells inside the computer started to explode,‰?? said Jones.
Jones said that then ignited the rug and chair resulting in over $1,800 worth of damage. He also suffered first degree chemical burns on his hands and arms.
‰??I think stuff sort of sprayed at me cause I sort of went like this and I think that‰??s how I got the burns on my arm,‰?? said Jones.
Jones said he ordered the replacement lithium-ion battery from Amazon for his Compaq Presario CQ57 laptop.
---------------------------------------------
FIRE IN TLS LAB SHUTS DOWN CLASSES FOR THE DAY
Tags: us_ct, laboratory, fire, response, unknown_chemical
Just after 2 p.m. today, the UConn Fire Department responded to a call this afternoon for a fire in a basement laboratory of the Torrey Life Science Building (TLS). Everyone was evacuated and all classes for the remainder of the day were cancelled according to a UConnALERT sent at 2:59 p.m.
‰??The fire is out at Torrey and there were no injuries,‰?? Spokesperson Stephanie Reitz said. ‰??We did call in mutual aid from Tolland and the cause has not yet been determined.‰??
‰??The fire alarm went off around 2:15-2:20 or so,‰?? seventh-semester Ecology and Evolutionary Biology major Kwasi Wrensford said. ‰??There was a fire on the ground floor in one of the laboratories. My class was on the first floor in one of the laboratories‰?|as the alarm went off we caught a whiff of the smoke.‰??
Fifth-semester molecular and cell biology major Madie Adams was also in the building at the time of the incident.
‰??[The] firemen started arriving and told us it was an actual fire and we moved away and I went up to the physics building so I could look down and the whole ground floor is filled with smoke,‰?? Adams said. ‰??It looks like the fire started in the lab on the very right side of the ground floor if you are looking at TLS from the North.‰??
Adams said that students were blocked from re-enetering the building.
---------------------------------------------
LITHIUM-ION BATTERY FIRE THREATENS MTD FACILITY IN SANTA BARBARA
Tags: us_ca, industrial, fire, injury, batteries
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Two Metropolitan Transit District employees received medical attention after being exposed to smoke and dry chemical powder from a bank of lithium-ion batteries that caught on fire Tuesday morning.
Both employees were seen by paramedics on scene and declined further treatment. However, their quick actions may have very well prevented the fire from reaching its full potential.
The incident occurred at 9:30 a.m. MTD employees noticed smoke coming from the batteries, and attempted to put the fire out using dry chemical extinguishers and a Class D Metal extinguisher.
Santa Barbara City firefighters and the Hazardous Material Unit were dispatched to the scene to assist with the highly reactive and flammable material. The fire was eventually put out by two Class D Metal fire extinguisher. These extinguishers were designed specifically to suppress flammable metal fires.
Fire investigators say the fire appears to have been caused by a small amount of water leaking through the metal roof and onto the batteries, which may have caused an external short between the battery terminals.
---------------------------------------------
EPA BEGINS $3-MILLION CLEANUP AT SITE OF MAYWOOD MAGNESIUM FIRE
Tags: us_ca, industrial, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched a cleanup this week of the Maywood metal yard that burned down in June, part of a two-month waste removal project at the closed business.
The EPA warned that clearing out hazardous debris may send noxious odors into nearby neighborhoods, an irritating reminder of a fire that displaced hundreds of residents and revived fears about the proximity of industrial sites to homes in southeast Los Angeles County.
In the early morning of June 14, flames tore through scrap metal recycler Panda International Trading Co. and a precious metals recycler operating on a portion of the company‰??s Fruitland Avenue property, Sokor Metals.
Investigators said at the time that about 10,000 pounds of magnesium fed the fire, which stubbornly burned for more than a day. Firefighters struggled to contain the flames because water would trigger explosions with magnesium. County fire officials had to use a dry chemical extinguishing agent.
---------------------------------------------
OIL-SOAKED RAGS CAN BE A FIRE HAZZARD HOUSEHOLD CHEMICAL SAFETY
Tags: us_mo, public, fire, response, other_chemical
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. Investigators have determined that stain-soaked rags caused the massive fire in a Taney County warehouse last week.
The public information officer for the Central Taney County Fire Protection District says a remodeling crew at VHC Brands threw the rags in a trash can and the fire started by combustion; the rags should have been discarded in an airtight container.
Firefighters say that can serve as a lesson to do-it-yourselfers who store oil-based wood stain and rags at their houses.
Nixa Fire Protection District Assistant Chief Whitney Weaver says linseed oil is very common for staining projects, but as it dries, it can turn rags to torches.
‰??It could be hours, it could be never. It depends on how those rags are disposed of,‰?? said Weaver.
He says if you wad up a wet, stain-soaked rag and throw it aside, it can spontaneously combust.
‰??It basically heats to an ignition point. It causes so much heat as it evaporates so quickly‰?| Most of our products that we use now are polyesters, or plastics, and when those heat up, they eventually start to melt, and can just catch fire,‰?? Weaver said.
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