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From: Ralph Stuart <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (15 articles)
Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2019 07:44:47 -0500
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU>
Message-ID: E95FFC08-AB70-4DF3-ABDE-D6FD2F69CF40**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Whoops, I forgot to send out the headlines yesterday...
- Ralph
Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Thursday, February 21, 2019 at 7:43:59 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 (15 articles)
TAMPA FIRE RESCUE WORKING TO CLEAN UP AFTER CHEMICAL SPILL
Tags: us_FL, transportation, release, response, cleaners
HAZMAT TEAM CALLED OUT TO OUC WATER PLANT AFTER CHEMICAL LEAK
Tags: us_FL, industrial, release, response, chlorine, water_treatment
‰??HONEY OIL‰?? LAB EXPLOSION BLOWS REAR WALL FROM KITCHEN
Tags: us_CA, public, explosion, injury, illegal, clandestine_lab
DEADLY FIRE KILLS 70 IN DHAKA‰??S CHAWK BAZAR
Tags: Bangladesh, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical
SECURITY GUARD SUFFERS BURNS IN FACTORY FIRE
Tags: Malaysia, industrial, fire, injury, acids
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY CITES LONGMONT CHEMICAL COMPANY
Tags: us_CO, public, discovery, environmental, unknown_chemical, illegal
UPDATE: SWIFT RESPONSE OF INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM HELPS CONTAIN FIRE QUICKLY AT INTERWASTE
Tags: South_Africa, industrial, fire, injury, waste
FIRE THAT STARTED FROM ‰??A ROUTINE POST-EXPERIMENT WASH-UP‰?? CLOSES BUILDING FOR A YEAR
Tags: United_Kingdom, laboratory, follow-up, response, unknown_chemical
CSB RELEASES FINAL REPORT INTO 2016 PASCAGOULA GAS PLANT EXPLOSION
Tags: us_DC, industrial, follow-up, environmental, methane, propane
GRAND CANYON TOURISTS EXPOSED FOR YEARS TO RADIATION IN MUSEUM BUILDING, SAFETY MANAGER SAYS
Tags: us_AZ, public, discovery, environmental, radiation, uranium
EXTREMELY HIGH PFAS LEVELS FOUND AT HASTINGS MANUFACTURER
Tags: us_MI, industrial, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
CHLORINE IDENTIFIED AS CHEMICAL INVOLVED IN ENNIS HOTEL INCIDENT
Tags: Ireland, public, release, response, chlorine, waste
UCF CONTRACTOR BURNED IN CHEMICAL REACTION INSIDE BUILDING
Tags: us_FL, education, explosion, injury, dust
INADEQUATE WASTE EVALUATION FOR SILVER COATED CANISTER SEALS
Tags: us_WA, public, discovery, environmental, waste, silver
20 YEARS AGO, A THUNDEROUS EXPLOSION AT CONCEPT SCIENCES SHOOK THE LEHIGH VALLEY AND SHATTERED LIVES
Tags: us_PA, laboratory, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
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TAMPA FIRE RESCUE WORKING TO CLEAN UP AFTER CHEMICAL SPILL
https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/tampa-fire-rescue-working-to-clean-up-after-chemical-spill/67-773d69fd-3a2a-45f6-a461-84408366a4f3
Tags: us_FL, transportation, release, response, cleaners
TAMPA, Fla. ‰?? Tampa Fire Rescue officials responded to a hazmat situation Wednesday morning on Columbus Drive.
According to a press release, a tanker trunk was transferring a cleaning chemical to another storage tank, which caused a chemical reaction and spill from the top of the holding tank.
Tampa Fire Rescue
Residents next to the complex were moved to another place while crews cleaned up the spill, and the leak was stopped by 9:20 a.m. The shelter order was lifted, and residents were allowed back shortly thereafter.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT TEAM CALLED OUT TO OUC WATER PLANT AFTER CHEMICAL LEAK
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-ne-ouc-water-plant-chemical-leak-20190220-story.html
Tags: us_FL, industrial, release, response, chlorine, water_treatment
The Orlando Fire Department hazardous-materials team responded to an Orlando Utilities Commission water plant Wednesday night after a chemical leak, a spokesman said.
There was a report of a chlorine leak about 7 p.m. at the Kirkman Road facility, OUC spokesman Tim Trudell said.
It‰??s not clear how big the leak was, but it did not escape the facility, Trudell said. There were no injuries and no one was in the building at the time, he said.
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‰??HONEY OIL‰?? LAB EXPLOSION BLOWS REAR WALL FROM KITCHEN
http://www.maderatribune.com/single-post/2019/02/20/%E2%80%98Honey-Oil%E2%80%99-lab-explosion-blows-rear-wall-from-kitchen
Tags: us_CA, public, explosion, injury, illegal, clandestine_lab
A home in the 700 block of Vineyard Avenue was damaged by an explosion from a honey oil lab Saturday night, according to the Madera police department.
Such labs are illegal, and are used to refine marijuana into THC, or tetrahydricannabinol, the active chemical in marijuana.
The making of honey oil is explosive, due to the use of butane or other solvents to extract the drug.
The 23-year-old resident of the house was alone at the time, and sustained burns to his face and arms. He was taken to an area hospital where he remains as of Monday, according to police. His name is not being released pending the ongoing investigation. No other injuries were reported.
EMS and firefighters initially thought they were responding to a small kitchen fire, according to Madera police Sgt. Mark Trukki.
---------------------------------------------
DEADLY FIRE KILLS 70 IN DHAKA‰??S CHAWK BAZAR
http://www.newagebd.net/article/65471/inferno-breaks-loose-in-dhaka
Tags: Bangladesh, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical
Fire service control room said that the fire broke out following an explosion at a chemical warehouse housed in a five-storey building at Churihatta around 10:45pm.
The fire immediately spread to another adjacent building as 37 units of fire fighters rushed the spot to contain the fire till 1:45am.
Primary reports quoting locals suggested that the fire followed an explosion.
Television channels live telecast vehicles burned down in the fire.
New Age correspondent on the spot reported to have seen fire raging through all the five storeys of the building where it was reported to have broken out.
Another nearby building was also on fire but the extent of the damage could not immediately be determined.
Clouds of smoke in the area made it difficult to notice if the fire spread further to other buildings in a neighbourhood world famous for its dense population.
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SECURITY GUARD SUFFERS BURNS IN FACTORY FIRE
https://www.thesundaily.my/local/security-guard-suffers-burns-in-factory-fire-AA561332
Tags: Malaysia, industrial, fire, injury, acids
BUKIT MERTAJAM: A security guard suffered burns in a fire at a factory producing plastic goods at the Permatang Tinggi Industrial Park near here early today, according to the Penang Fire & Rescue Department.
Its operations officer, Mohd Fauzi Suid, said the guard was injured as he was fleeing from the factory, where various acids for the manufacturing process were stored.
‰??The man was sent to the Seberang Jaya Hospital,‰?? he said, adding that he had yet to be identified.
Mohd Fauzi said the department was alerted to the fire at 1.21am and it rushed 50 firefighters to the factory where the fire occurred at the acid storage area.
‰??More than 30 containers with various acids such as nitric acid, caustic soda flakes, hydrogen peroxide, sulphuric acid, Interox ST-50 and natrium hydroxide stored outside the factory building had caught fire,‰?? he said.
---------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY CITES LONGMONT CHEMICAL COMPANY
http://www.timescall.com/business/ci_32463109/environmental-protection-agency-cites-longmont-chemical-company
Tags: us_CO, public, discovery, environmental, unknown_chemical, illegal
The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday announced a civil settlement with company that didn't properly report hazardous chemicals stored at its Longmont facility.
A news release from the agency stated that the company, Integrity Applied Science, agreed to pay a $24,335 penalty and comply with requirements to report hazardous chemicals stored at its facility at 10765 Turner Blvd.
The settlement, implemented under the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act, sprang from complaints from the Weld County Local Emergency Planning Committee and the Mountain View Fire Protection District.
The company is subject to Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act reporting requirements because it stores hazardous chemicals in quantities that surpass regulatory thresholds. It is required to submit an annual inventory to state and local emergency responders.
Wesley Aaron, owner of Integrity Applied Science, said the penalty arose from chemicals stored by a separate company that subleases space from his company. He said the two companies are involved in litigation and he could not comment further.
The Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act was enacted in 1986 to help communities plan for chemical-related emergencies.
---------------------------------------------
UPDATE: SWIFT RESPONSE OF INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM HELPS CONTAIN FIRE QUICKLY AT INTERWASTE
https://germistoncitynews.co.za/197435/update-swift-response-incident-management-team-helps-contain-fire-quickly-interwaste/
Tags: South_Africa, industrial, fire, injury, waste
Interwaste has confirmed that a fire, not a chemical explosion, took place at their facility in Germiston on Tuesday.
Kate Stubbs, director of business development and marketing, said, ‰??Interwaste confirms that a fire took place at one of our waste recycling facilities at around 8am this morning.
‰??Through the quick response of our incident management team, the fire was contained within 20 minutes, prior to the arrival of emergency services.
‰??Our first priority in all our operations is the safety and well-being of all employees who may be affected directly and indirectly by any incidents.
‰??Regrettably, four of our employees were injured by the fire this morning.‰??
Stubbs added that each employee received immediate medical attention from the on-site safety and first aid officers, and were subsequently transported to private medical facilities where they are receiving further treatment.
---------------------------------------------
FIRE THAT STARTED FROM ‰??A ROUTINE POST-EXPERIMENT WASH-UP‰?? CLOSES BUILDING FOR A YEAR
https://cen.acs.org/safety/lab-safety/Fire-started-routine-post-experiment/97/web/2019/02
Tags: United_Kingdom, laboratory, follow-up, response, unknown_chemical
The University of St. Andrews says its biomedical sciences building may be unusable for a year or longer, after a fire broke out in the building on Feb. 10.
The flames were confined to a small section of the building, but thousands of gallons of water used to extinguish the fire caused significant damage, according to an incident description released by the institution on Feb. 15. No staff or students were injured.
The fire started on the third floor of the building after ‰??a routine post-experiment wash-up went wrong,‰?? the university says in its statement. A university spokesperson declined to comment further on the exact cause of the incident.
At the time of the fire, manufacturers of laboratory freezers, which typically store biological material at -80 å¡C, warned the university that they had 20 hours from loss of power before materials would start to degrade due to rising temperatures. Teams of researchers, university staff, and firefighters ‰??recovered the vast majority of BMS refrigerated storage capacity, and with it the careers and the research critical to so many strands of microbiological and biomedical understanding,‰?? the university says.
Around 100 researchers ‰??chemists, virologists, microbiologists, and others‰?? work in the affected building. It remains unclear where the institution will house these researchers while the building is repaired. ‰??Options are being explored urgently to allow researchers to get back to fully equipped benches, with everything they require to continue their work, as soon as possible,‰?? the university says.
---------------------------------------------
CSB RELEASES FINAL REPORT INTO 2016 PASCAGOULA GAS PLANT EXPLOSION
http://www.idevmail.net/message.aspx?d=86&m=1997&e=Rstuartcih**At_Symbol_Here**me.com&r=13649077
Tags: us_DC, industrial, follow-up, environmental, methane, propane
Washington, D.C., February 19, 2019: The U.S. Chemical Safety Board released its final report of the June 27, 2016, investigation of an explosion and fire at the Enterprise Products Pascagoula Gas Plant in Pascagoula, MS. The CSB determined that the probable cause was a phenomenon known as thermal fatigue. The CSB also issued recommendations to two trade associations and local emergency responders.
The incident occurred late in the evening on June 27, 2016, when a major loss of containment in a heat exchanger resulted in the release of methane, ethane, propane, and several other hydrocarbons. The hydrocarbons ignited, initiating a series of fires and explosions, which ultimately shut down the site for almost six months.
CSB Interim Executive Kristen Kulinowski said, ‰??More than 500 gas processing facilities operate across the country and the use of similar heat exchangers is common. Extending the life cycle of equipment at these facilities requires more robust inspection protocols. Operators shouldn‰??t take the risk of waiting to find a leak because, as this case demonstrates, that leak could result in a catastrophic failure.‰??
---------------------------------------------
GRAND CANYON TOURISTS EXPOSED FOR YEARS TO RADIATION IN MUSEUM BUILDING, SAFETY MANAGER SAYS
https://amp.azcentral.com/amp/2876435002
Tags: us_AZ, public, discovery, environmental, radiation, uranium
For nearly two decades at the Grand Canyon, tourists, employees, and children on tours passed by three paint buckets stored in the National Park's museum collection building, unaware that they were being exposed to radiation.
Although federal officials learned last year that the 5-gallon containers were brimming with uranium ore, then removed the radioactive specimens, the park's safety director alleges nothing was done to warn park workers or the public that they might have been exposed to unsafe levels of radiation.
In a rogue email sent to all Park Service employees on Feb. 4, Elston "Swede" Stephenson ‰?? the safety, health and wellness manager ‰?? described the alleged cover-up as "a top management failure" and warned of possible health consequences.
"If you were in the Museum Collections Building (2C) between the year 2000 and June 18, 2018, you were 'exposed' to uranium by OSHA's definition," Stephenson wrote. "The radiation readings, at first blush, exceeds (sic) the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's safe limits. ‰?| Identifying who was exposed, and your exposure level, gets tricky and is our next important task."
In a Feb. 11 email to Acting Interior Secretary David Bernhardt and Deputy Inspector General Mary Kendall, Stephenson said he had repeatedly asked National Park executives to inform the public, only to get stonewalled.
---------------------------------------------
EXTREMELY HIGH PFAS LEVELS FOUND AT HASTINGS MANUFACTURER
https://www.mlive.com/news/2019/02/extremely-high-pfas-levels-found-at-hastings-manufacturer.html
Tags: us_MI, industrial, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
HASTINGS, MI ‰?? Extremely high levels of toxic fluorochemical contamination has been discovered in groundwater at a fire suppression equipment manufacturing plant in Barry County.
The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality says groundwater under the Viking Corporation facility in Hastings recently tested at 335,000 parts-per-trillion (ppt) for Total PFAS, in an area where the company tests products using chemical-based firefighting foam.
Total PFAS is the sum of all PFAS compounds in a given sample.
The contamination does not pose a threat to drinking water, according to the DEQ and local officials. There are no wells in the path of groundwater flow and the city‰??s municipal supply wells are located upgradient, to the east, and draw from a deep protected aquifer.
---------------------------------------------
CHLORINE IDENTIFIED AS CHEMICAL INVOLVED IN ENNIS HOTEL INCIDENT
https://www.clare.fm/news/chlorine-identified-chemical-involved-ennis-hotel-incident/
Tags: Ireland, public, release, response, chlorine, waste
Clare County Council has confirmed high levels of chlorine have been identified as the chemical found in water being pumped from an Ennis Hotel.
Emergency services were alerted to a flooding incident in the Leisure centre at the Auburn Lodge Hotel in Ennis this morning, and while initial test results were clear, chemicals were discovered once fire crews began pumping water away.
The contaminated water is being disposed of at local licenced waste facility.
The hotel remains open though the leisure centre may remain closed for up to 48 hours to deal with the incident fully.
A spokesperson from the the Auburn Hotel has confirmed that the hotel ‰??had a leak in the basement area of the Leisure Centre, in accordance with our safety plan the area was isolated and emergency service called‰??.
---------------------------------------------
UCF CONTRACTOR BURNED IN CHEMICAL REACTION INSIDE BUILDING
http://www.fox35orlando.com/news/local-news/ucf-contractor-burned-in-chemical-reaction-inside-building-1
Tags: us_FL, education, explosion, injury, dust
ORLANDO, Fla. (FOX 35 Orlando) - Authorities say a chemical reaction inside a University of Central Florida maintenance building caused a contractor to suffer serious burns.
Orange County Fire Rescue spokesman Mike Jachles says a 29-year-old contractor was injured in the explosion Monday afternoon and taken to a hospital.
"The 29-year-old man sustained burns to his upper body - his face, arms, chest. Fortunately he was wearing goggles, he was wearing protection, or the injuries could have been much worse," said Mike Jachles with Orange County Fire Rescue.
No students were affected by the incident. Officials believe the contractor was transferring powdered chemicals when a static charge caused the reaction. No one else was in the employee-only building at the time.
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INADEQUATE WASTE EVALUATION FOR SILVER COATED CANISTER SEALS
https://opexshare.doe.gov/lesson.cfm/2019/2/14/25825/Inadequate-Waste-Evaluation-for-Silver-Coated-Canister-Seals
Tags: us_WA, public, discovery, environmental, waste, silver
While creating a new Waste Planning Checklist for the Engineered Container Retrieval and Transfer System Sludge Transport and Storage Container inerting process, a Waste Management Representative discovered that the metal seals that are used on the Sludge Transport and Storage Cask are coated with silver. The Waste Planning Checklist did not initially identify this waste component. Silver is potentially a regulated material, and must be evaluated to ensure it is below waste acceptance limits.
Lesson Learned: Personnel documenting initial waste planning information did not have sufficient information to recognize that the silver coating on the seals was potentially a regulated material. Training and administrative controls had not been established to provide necessary prompts for key information.
Download Article
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20 YEARS AGO, A THUNDEROUS EXPLOSION AT CONCEPT SCIENCES SHOOK THE LEHIGH VALLEY AND SHATTERED LIVES
https://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-nws-concept-sciences-explosion-anniversary-20190122-htmlstory.html
Tags: us_PA, laboratory, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical
The 20,000-square-foot plant was housed in one of those nondescript industrial parks that line Route 22 between Bethlehem and Allentown. Besides Heller, the workers on hand included the Mondellos, Anthony, 55, of Pen Argyl, and Paul, 25, of Palmer Township; Wanamaker, 42; Soto, 52, of Bethlehem; and Deliang ‰??Dave‰?? Ding, 40, a lab technician from Wescosville.
Everything seemed fine. Until it wasn‰??t.
Amy Heller, who was inside Concept Sciences at the time of the blast
In an office next door to Concept Sciences was 48-year-old Terry Bowers, who lived in Hanover Township, Lehigh County, not far from the industrial park. He managed Sugarloaf Mid-Atlantic, a manufacturer of toy vending machines.
The distillation process at Concept Sciences involved mixing several hundred pounds of hydroxylamine ‰?? described in chemical industry literature as ‰??thermally unstable‰?? and capable of spontaneously igniting in the air or on contact with copper or other metals ‰?? with potassium sulfate.
Earlier in the week, the process had been shut down because of a water leak. Now, another problem had cropped up ‰?? crystals had formed in the distillation still, indicating the mix had grown unstable. That's what prompted the call to Wanamaker.
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Ralph Stuart, CIH, CCHO
membership**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Membership chair
American Chemical Society
Division of Chemical Health and Safety
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