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From: DCHAS Membership Chair <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (13 articles)
Date: Fri, 24 Aug 2018 07:27:52 -0400
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU>
Message-ID: 76278298-2131-4AF6-877A-04CF2D85766B**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, August 24, 2018 at 7:27:32 AM
A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Connecting Chemistry and Safety at http://www.dchas.org
All article summaries and tags are archived at http://pinboard.in/u:dchas
Table of Contents (13 articles)
WARNINGS ISSUED AFTER MEDICAL MARIJUANA FACILITY FIRES
Tags: us_AZ, industrial, explosion, response, flammables
ONE INJURED IN EXPLOSION AT MARTINEZ WATER PLANT
Tags: us_CA, industrial, explosion, injury, water_treatment
OWNERS OF OMAHA RAILCAR CLEANING COMPANY INDICTED IN EXPLOSION THAT KILLED 2 WORKERS
Tags: us_NE, industrial, follow-up, death, flammables, illegal
COURT ORDERS U.S. EPA TO IMPLEMENT CHEMICAL SAFETY REGULATION
Tags: us_DC, industrial, discovery, environmental
VIRAL 'FIRE CHALLENGE' LEAVES 12-YEAR-OLD DETROIT GIRL SEVERELY BURNED: ‰??(SHE) LOOKED LIKE A FIREBALL‰??
Tags: us_MI, public, fire, injury, other_chemical
AMID PLUTONIUM FEARS, SCHOOLS BAN VISITS TO NEW COLORADO WILDLIFE REFUGE
Tags: us_CO, public, discovery, environmental, radiation
7 HOSPITALIZED AFTER GAS LEAK AT GREENVILLE WALMART
Tags: us_SC, public, release, response, unknown_chemical
IDAHO LANDFILL SUES AIR FORCE OVER HAZARDOUS WASTE SHIPMENT
Tags: us_ID, industrial, follow-up, environmental, illegal, metals, waste
POTENTIALLY EXPLOSIVE SODIUM REMOVED FROM ROCKLAND SCHOOL
Tags: us_MA, laboratory, discovery, response, sodium
KP MIDDLE SCHOOL IN NORFOLK EVACUATED DUE TO HAZMAT INCIDENT
Tags: us_MA, laboratory, discovery, response, calcium_carbide
STANLOW OIL REFINERY IN CHESHIRE EVACUATED AFTER FIRE
Tags: United_Kingdom, industrial, fire, response, petroleum
REPORT DETAILS CAUSES OF EXPLOSION
Tags: China, industrial, follow-up, death, explosives, illegal
ACCIDENTS AT CANNABIS CULTIVATION FACILITIES WORRY INDUSTRY CHEMISTS
Tags: public, discovery, injury, other_chemical
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WARNINGS ISSUED AFTER MEDICAL MARIJUANA FACILITY FIRES
https://www.abc15.com/news/state/warnings-issued-after-medical-marijuana-facility-fires
Tags: us_AZ, industrial, explosion, response, flammables
COOLIDGE, AZ - A new warning is being issued about fires at medical marijuana facilities, after two fires in our state were caused this summer and a chemical spill at another facility.
The most recent occurred on August 12 in Coolidge.
First responders say a worker at a facility off Coolidge Avenue did not store a can of butane properly and it exploded inside of a fridge, starting a fire.
Coolidge Fire Capt. Mark Dillon says the situation was especially dangerous for his crew because there were different types of gasses stored inside, something that's typical for marijuana processing, but not for dispensing the drug, which is the only thing this particular facility was zoned for.
"It most definitely could be deadly for first responders, whether it be law enforcement or fire," explained Chief Dillon.
Part of the reason is because of all the flammable materials inside - chemicals, lamps, electrical equipment, and even the plants themselves.
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ONE INJURED IN EXPLOSION AT MARTINEZ WATER PLANT
https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2018/08/23/one-injured-in-explosion-at-martinez-water-plant/
Tags: us_CA, industrial, explosion, injury, water_treatment
MARTINEZ (CBS SF) ‰?? An employee was injured Thursday morning by an explosion at the Martinez water treatment plant, according to a city news release.
The explosion occurred around 7:45 a.m. and involved a 100-gallon sodium hypochlorite container that workers were moving.
After one employee noticed that the container was hot to the touch, it suddenly exploded, releasing the chemical. An employee was taken to the hospital for assessment of cuts and abrasions, the city said.
Firefighters and county hazardous materials workers responded to the plant at 3003 Pacheco Blvd. and, along with plant workers, contained the chemical. Sodium hypochlorite is used for water purification and disinfection.
‰??There is no indication that the explosion was in any way related to operations at the plant or actions by employees,‰?? the city news release said.
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OWNERS OF OMAHA RAILCAR CLEANING COMPANY INDICTED IN EXPLOSION THAT KILLED 2 WORKERS
https://www.omaha.com/news/metro/owners-of-omaha-railcar-cleaning-company-indicted-in-explosion-that/article_189710f6-edf1-56dc-9c21-c5b11fc15086.html
Tags: us_NE, industrial, follow-up, death, flammables, illegal
All of those documents were falsified, authorities allege, by the co-owners of an Omaha railcar cleaning company. The documents were sent to federal safety officials eight days before a railcar explosion killed two workers and injured another, according to an indictment.
The co-owners and the company have been indicted on 22 charges in connection with the 2015 deaths, the U.S. Attorney‰??s Office announced Thursday.
Nebraska Railcar Cleaning Services LLC, its president and majority owner, Stephen Braithwaite, and the vice president and co-owner, Adam Braithwaite, were named in the indictment. Stephen Braithwaite declined to comment Thursday and referred a reporter to his attorney, who could not be reached after multiple attempts.
Officials allege that the Braithwaites created the fake documents to falsely portray that the company was following worker safety law requirements.
The 22 charges include violations of a worker safety standard causing a worker death, illegal treatment and transportation of hazardous waste, falsification of records and perjury.
Adam Braithwaite told officials from the U.S. Department of Labor‰??s Occupational Safety and Health Administration in an interview under oath that the company was using ‰??Draeger tubes‰?? to measure the amount of benzene, the flammable chemical, in a railcar.
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COURT ORDERS U.S. EPA TO IMPLEMENT CHEMICAL SAFETY REGULATION
https://cen.acs.org/safety/industrial-safety/Court-orders-US-EPA-implement/96/i34
Tags: us_DC, industrial, discovery, environmental
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency must implement a worker and community chemical safety regulation developed by the Obama administration, even as EPA works to replace that rule, a federal court has decided. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit strongly criticized actions of former EPA administrator Scott Pruitt, who sought a rewrite of the finalized Obama-era Risk Management Program (RMP) regulation for chemical facilities. At the urging of the American Chemistry Council and other industry groups, the Trump EPA attempted to stall implementation of the Obama rule until February 2019 while the agency developed a replacement regulation.
In an opinion issued Aug. 17, the court ruled that a delay beyond three months is not allowed under the Clean Air Act, the law that established RMP. Additionally, the court said EPA‰??s justification for the delay is based on the needs of the agency and regulated companies but did not consider the impact on safety, human health, and the environment. The delay, the opinion continued, was calculated to avoid compliance with the regulation and makes a ‰??mockery‰?? of the statute.
The RMP regulation, released in the last days of the Obama presidency, calls for better coordination among emergency responders and for independent, third-party audits of companies after an accident or near accident at chemical facilities. It also requires consideration of inherently safer manufacturing approaches.
Some 12,500 plants are covered by the RMP regulation because they handle highly hazardous chemicals. EPA found 1,500 accidents occurred at these facilities over 10 years. A 2013 incident that killed 15 people led to the Obama administration‰??s overhaul of RMP regulations.
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VIRAL 'FIRE CHALLENGE' LEAVES 12-YEAR-OLD DETROIT GIRL SEVERELY BURNED: ‰??(SHE) LOOKED LIKE A FIREBALL‰??
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/midwest/ct-detroit-fire-challenge-burn-injury-20180821-story.html
Tags: us_MI, public, fire, injury, other_chemical
Sitting around the kitchen table, Brandi Owens waited until her daughter and her two friends finished eating their pancakes before leaving them to take a quick nap. About 10 to 15 minutes after settling into bed with her fiance, Owens heard a loud pop.
"I asked him, I said, 'What was that?' " she told The Washington Post.
Seconds later, Owens's 12-year-old daughter, Timiyah Landers, came tearing down the hallway, engulfed in flames from her knees to her hair.
She "looked like a fireball," Owens said. "She was yelling, 'Help me.' "
Owens's fiance, Marquell Sholar, immediately sprang into action, trying to put out the flames while getting Timiyah into the bathroom and inside the bathtub. As Sholar doused the teen in cold water, Owens grabbed at her daughter's flaming clothes with her bare hands, ripping them off.
"I was reaching through the fire," Owens said, adding that she didn't even realize she had burned her hands. "It was like a reflex. . . . I didn't even feel the fire, I was just saving my daughter."
The couple managed to extinguish the fire, and soon Timiyah was bundled into the car with Owens at the wheel, driving as fast as she could to the nearest hospital.
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AMID PLUTONIUM FEARS, SCHOOLS BAN VISITS TO NEW COLORADO WILDLIFE REFUGE
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/aug/22/new-us-refuge-rocky-flats-plutonium-toxic?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
Tags: us_CO, public, discovery, environmental, radiation
The nation‰??s newest national wildlife refuge, filled with swaying prairie grass and home to a herd of elk, is slated to open next month just outside Colorado‰??s largest city.
But seven Denver metro area school districts have already barred school-sanctioned field trips to the preserve. A top local health official says he would probably never hike there. And a town is suing over what the soil might contain.
‰??The threat posed by contamination at Rocky Flats and its effect on visiting children appears to be an issue of dispute amongst experts,‰?? Lisa Flores, a Denver public schools board of education member, told the Guardian. ‰??Until we have definitive assurances of child safety, we will exercise an abundance of caution.‰??
The 2,119-hectare (5,237-acre) Rocky Flats national wildlife refuge, due to open this autumn, sits on land surrounding what once was a nuclear weapons production facility. From 1951 to 1989, the Rocky Flats Plant manufactured plutonium triggers ‰?? grapefruit-size spheres that, when compressed by explosives, catalyze a nuclear reaction.
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David Lucas, manager of the Rocky Flats national wildlife refuge, walks through a field on the property. Photograph: Chet Strange for the Guardian
Though the area, about 20 miles north-west of Denver, has been cleaned up and declared safe by the government, plutonium remains in the ground where the facility once stood.
We rely on the science and the agencies that are responsible. We believe it‰??s safe for the public and all of our visitors
David Lucas, refuge manager
Sightseers at the refuge won‰??t have access to the site of the demolished plant. The 526-hectare (1,300-acre) patch is fenced off, and the US Department of Energy monitors and manages the area. It‰??s the land surrounding the plant, a one-time buffer zone, that the US Fish and Wildlife service (USFWS) plans to open next month. ‰??We rely on the science and the agencies that are responsible,‰?? said the refuge manager, David Lucas. ‰??We believe it‰??s safe for the public and all of our visitors.‰??
The buffer zone has remained largely untouched over the past half-century, and the minimal foot traffic has allowed flora and fauna to thrive. The refuge is home to more than 630 plant species and 230 animals, including the threatened Preble‰??s meadow jumping mouse and a 100-strong herd of elk. ‰??The habitat and wildlife of this area are unique to the whole front range,‰?? said Cynthia Souders, a USFWS supervisory ranger.
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7 HOSPITALIZED AFTER GAS LEAK AT GREENVILLE WALMART
https://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/news/local/2018/08/22/7-hospitalized-after-gas-leak-greenville-walmart/1060197002/
Tags: us_SC, public, release, response, unknown_chemical
Seven people were taken to local hospitals following a gas leak at a Walmart store in Greenville County on Tuesday night.
Berea Fire Department was called to the Walmart on White Horse Road for an odor investigation around 11:15 p.m. Tuesday.
Upon arrival, firefighters called HAZMAT to respond to the scene, according to a representative of the Berea Fire Department.
The HAZMAT team cleared the building.
The situation was cleared overnight.
The cause of the odor has not been released.
This was the second gas call in Greenville County overnight. A gas leak shut down part of Main Street late Tuesday.
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IDAHO LANDFILL SUES AIR FORCE OVER HAZARDOUS WASTE SHIPMENT
https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/environment/article213666359.html
Tags: us_ID, industrial, follow-up, environmental, illegal, metals, waste
Almost everyone agrees on this: Early last year, a shipment of hazardous waste was taken from Mountain Home Air Force Base to a municipal landfill on Simco Road.
But discussion of who‰??s at fault for the prohibited shipment has devolved into disagreements, pointed fingers and now, a lawsuit.
In the midst of it all, the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality is working out how the base and a contractor it hired will address the now-buried waste.
The company that owns the landfill, Idaho Waste Systems, sued the Air Force and two contractors this spring in a bid to force action. ‰??Hopefully, we can get this thing resolved to everybody‰??s benefit,‰?? said Jack Yarbrough, the company‰??s president.
Even the exact amount of hazardous waste involved is in dispute. Idaho Waste Systems‰?? lawsuit cites an early estimate of 4,000 pounds ‰?? 2 tons ‰?? of hazardous materials that made it into the landfill. DEQ used that figure as well, but now agrees with the lead contractor‰??s much smaller assessment of 371 pounds of improperly buried waste, said Albert Crawshaw, waste and remediation manager in DEQ‰??s Boise regional office.
Specifically, the waste contained hexavalent chromium, a trace metal that in this particular form can cause cancer and at certain concentrations is considered dangerous. The chromium was mixed in the powdery remains of floor coatings removed from one building of the Air Force base.
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POTENTIALLY EXPLOSIVE SODIUM REMOVED FROM ROCKLAND SCHOOL
https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2018/08/22/potentially-explosive-sodium-removed-from-rockland-school/QXQhvZHrWHEUHqsME45qfM/story.html
Tags: us_MA, laboratory, discovery, response, sodium
Firefighters and other emergency response crews arrived at the North River Collaborative School in Rockland on Tuesday after a science teacher found a likely decades-old jar of potentially explosive sodium in a filing cabinet, officials said.
Firefighters arrived at the school around 8 a.m. after receiving a call from a science teacher who was getting his classroom ready for the start of the school year. While prepping the room, the teacher found a cardboard box containing a mason jar full of about two pounds of sodium, Rockland Fire Chief Scott Duffey said.
The teacher had no intention of using the sodium, and wasn‰??t sure of how to properly dispose of it, so he called the fire department. Firefighters ‰??found some conditions that concerned [them],‰?? Duffey said, so they called on the state‰??s hazmat team to help. The hazmat team arrived with members of the State Police bomb squad, who are cross-trained on dealing with hazardous explosive materials, Duffey said.
Sodium, the element that when combined with chlorine makes table salt, is highly explosive on its own. One of the six alkali metals on the periodic table, it can explode when it comes in contact with water or air, which is why it is usually stored in oil. In this case, the sodium was in a mason jar, which is ‰??not an appropriate container,‰?? Duffey said.
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KP MIDDLE SCHOOL IN NORFOLK EVACUATED DUE TO HAZMAT INCIDENT
http://www.thesunchronicle.com/news/local_news/kp-middle-school-in-norfolk-evacuated-due-to-hazmat-incident/article_da6bcf8e-c207-5940-a394-9e2f7379c5e4.html
Tags: us_MA, laboratory, discovery, response, calcium_carbide
NORFOLK ‰?? Emergency crews took care of a potentially dangerous situation involving a chemical reaction Tuesday at King Philip Middle School.
No children were at the school at the time, but staff who were there preparing for the start of the school year were evacuated.
The incident started Tuesday morning when town building and fire department officials conducting the annual fire safety inspection noticed a chemical odor in the school‰??s science wing.
The odor was traced to a preparation room where chemicals are stored. Opening a cabinet, inspectors determined a reaction had taken place in a quart container of calcium carbide.
‰??The area was immediately sealed by closing doors to the classroom and a fire department response initiated,‰?? Fire Chief Coleman Bushnell said.
The state Department of Fire Services‰?? Hazardous Materials Response Team was notified, but it was tied up at another school chemical incident in Rockland and wasn‰??t able to go to KP Middle for 1 1/2 hours.
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STANLOW OIL REFINERY IN CHESHIRE EVACUATED AFTER FIRE
https://news.sky.com/story/stanlow-oil-refinery-in-cheshire-evacuated-after-fire-11479397
Tags: United_Kingdom, industrial, fire, response, petroleum
Firefighters tackled a blaze at a major UK oil refinery where all staff were evacuated.
The fire broke out at a Shell-owned chemical plant on the same site as the Stanlow refinery in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire.
Essar Oil UK, which operates the refinery and chemical plant, say that 900 employees and 500 contractors work on the site which supplies 16% of all road transport fuels.
All staff have been accounted for and the fire has now been extinguished.
Flames and a column of thick black smoke were seen after the blaze broke out on Wednesday afternoon.
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REPORT DETAILS CAUSES OF EXPLOSION
http://www.ecns.cn/news/society/2018-08-23/detail-ifyxikfc9640142.shtml
Tags: China, industrial, follow-up, death, explosives, illegal
A biotech company in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, where an explosion claimed 10 lives in December, has been fined 5 million yuan ($730,750). Its production permit will be revoked and its leaders will be prosecuted, the Ministry of Emergency Management said.
On Dec. 9, an equipment failure triggered the blast at Juxin Biotech in the city's Guannan county, killing 10 people and injuring one. The blast caused a direct economic loss of 48.7 million yuan.
The energy released by the blast was equivalent to 14.15 metric tons of TNT, according to the investigative report by the Jiangsu government.
The report said that 45 people and 10 companies were responsible for the blast, and that 13 people will be prosecuted criminally, including Wang Ruren, Juxin's production safety director.
The other people responsible will be given Party and administrative penalties, including Wu Aijun, director of the county's management committee for the affected chemical industry park.
According to the report, Juxin's failure to strictly follow proper safety procedures was the main reason for the blast. Other companies also failed to perform their duties in design, safety assessment, equipment installation and inspection on acceptance, and they will be closed, downgraded or fined.
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ACCIDENTS AT CANNABIS CULTIVATION FACILITIES WORRY INDUSTRY CHEMISTS
https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/accidents-at-cannabis-cultivation-facilities-worry-industry-chemists/3009412.article
Tags: public, discovery, injury, other_chemical
Recent safety incidents at US cannabis cultivation facilities have caused concern at the American Chemical Society‰??s (ACS) autumn meeting. ‰??I have a level of professional and personal concern about this new-born industry ‰?? while marijuana has been around a long time, at the industrial production level it is an infant,‰?? stated Neal Langerman, a safety consultant and founder of Advanced Chemical Safety in California, during a session of the 256th American Chemical Society meeting in Boston, US on 20 August.
In July, there were reports that 16 employees at a large cannabis cultivation facility, Copperstate Farms, in Arizona sought emergency medical attention following a spill of the commercial greenhouse cleaner Strip-It. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has now inspected the facility and sanctions could follow.
Earlier this month, there was also an explosion at the Arizona Development Services cannabis facility that was caused by ‰??improperly stored hazardous materials‰??, according to the Casa Grande Dispatch.
‰??These were not home-grown idiots,‰?? remarked Langerman, a corporate liaison to the ACS‰??s committee on chemical safety. ‰??These were industry sites.‰?? He also referred to an assessment by Colorado researchers that found that there was ‰??an imminent need to establish formal health and safety training to implement best practices‰?? across the cannabis industry.
Andrew Pham, the new chairman of the ACS‰??s cannabis chemistry subdivision, also expressed concern that the safety aspects of the rapidly expanding legal cannabis are being ‰??pushed aside‰??. ‰??What are the real repercussions, and are there any real dangers to public safety that we have to consider with cannabis being legalised?‰?? asked Pham, who is scientific director at BelCosta Labs, a cannabis testing lab in California.
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