| About This Archive | | DCHAS-L 2019 Index | | DCHAS-L Yearly Index | |
Check out Safety Emporium for your N95, N99, and face shield needs.
|
Previous by Date: Subject: [DCHAS-L] November 2019 CCPS Process Safety Beacon (What does that button do?) Date: Monday, November 4, 2019 at 1:46:11 PM Author: DCHAS Membership Chair <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG> |
Next by Date: Subject: [DCHAS-L] delayed acid burn Date: Wed, 6 Nov 2019 16:51:51 +0000 Author: "Wiediger, Susan" |
Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Wednesday, November 6, 2019 at 7:37:02 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 (12 articles)
FUEL TRUCK EXPLOSION LEAVES PHOENIX-AREA MAN WITH FACE BURNS
Tags: us_AZ, transportation, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical
RESEARCHERS: CHEMICALS RELEASED DURING ITC FIRE DID NOT HARM HUMANS
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, environmental, acids
GOVERNMENT AGENCY TO SEEK BAN ON HYDROGEN BALLOON AFTER DEADLY EXPLOSION
Tags: Bangladesh, public, explosion, death, gas_cylinders, hydrogen
32 PEOPLE AFFECTED BY NZ POOL CHEMICAL INCIDENT
Tags: New_Zealand, public, release, injury, pool_chemicals
WHISTLEBLOWER: ALABAMA POWER EMPLOYEES COMPACTED DEAD FISH FOLLOWING CHEMICAL SPILL
Tags: us_AL, industrial, follow-up, environmental, waste
REPORT: HARMFUL CHEMICALS LINGERED IN HOUSTON SHIP CHANNEL FOR MONTHS AFTER ITC FIRE ‰?? HOUSTON PUBLIC MEDIA
Tags: us_TX, transportation, follow-up, environmental, petroleum, runoff
CARBON MONOXIDE LEAK AT SOUTH SIDE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL SENDS STUDENTS TO NEARBY CHURCH, THEN 2ND SCHOOL FOR CLASSES
Tags: us_IL, education, release, response, carbon_monoxide
FIRE CAUSES DAMAGE IN FRANKLIN
Tags: us_IN, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
BLAST AT DOW CHEMICAL PLANT LINKED TO POWER SURGE
Tags: us_LA, industrial, follow-up, response, ethylene_glycol
193 EYE INJURY CASES FROM FIRE CRACKERS REPORTED THIS DIWALI IN MADURAI
Tags: India, public, explosion, injury, fireworks
5 CHARGED WITH MURDER IN CALIFORNIA DRUG LAB EXPLOSION
Tags: us_PA, public, follow-up, death, illegal, meth_lab
IN 2016 EXXONMOBIL EXPLOSION, TWO BURNED CONTRACTORS REACH SETTLEMENT WITH COMPANY
Tags: us_LA, industrial, follow-up, injury
---------------------------------------------
FUEL TRUCK EXPLOSION LEAVES PHOENIX-AREA MAN WITH FACE BURNS
https://www.kgun9.com/news/state/fuel-truck-explosion-leaves-phoenix-area-man-with-face-burns
Tags: us_AZ, transportation, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical
PHOENIX (AP) - Arizona firefighters have confirmed a man remains in critical condition after a fuel truck exploded leaving him with burns on his head and face.
Phoenix Fire Department authorities say crews responded to a vehicle fire near 39th and Clarendon avenues Tuesday.
Authorities say the 40-year-old driver was rushed to a hospital.
Hazmat crews worked to contain the fuel spill and monitor the area.
Authorities say a second tanker was sent to the location to siphon the remaining fuel from the original truck.
Authorities say it is unknown what caused the truck to explode.
Phoenix Fire hazmat units along with Phoenix police contacted the state Department of Transportation and the National Transportation Safety Board to assist in the investigation.
---------------------------------------------
RESEARCHERS: CHEMICALS RELEASED DURING ITC FIRE DID NOT HARM HUMANS
https://communityimpact.com/houston/bay-area/environment/2019/11/05/researchers-chemicals-released-during-itc-fire-did-not-harm-humans/
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, environmental, acids
Firefighters used chemically laced foam to extinguish blazes at Intercontinental Terminals Company in March, but at a public meeting Nov. 4, researchers said the foam did not release enough chemicals into the environment to harm humans.
However, the researchers said there are several data gaps that would give them more insight as to the effects of the chemicals release.
Researchers from the Texas A&M University Superfund Research Center and Galveston Bay Foundation Director Bob Stokes spoke at a meeting in Seabrook to break down the effects of the ITC fire on the environment. The fire began March 17 in Deer Park when chemical tanks caught on fire‰??a fire that took days to extinguish.
After the fire, the foundation found it difficult to learn and understand what the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality was doing to sample the air and water for perfluorooctanoic acids, or PFAs‰??potentially harmful chemicals commonly used in firefighting foam. As such, researchers from the foundation got in a boat, entered the Houston Ship Channel and began taking their own samples, Stokes said.
---------------------------------------------
GOVERNMENT AGENCY TO SEEK BAN ON HYDROGEN BALLOON AFTER DEADLY EXPLOSION
https://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2019/11/06/government-agency-to-seek-ban-on-hydrogen-balloon-after-deadly-explosion
Tags: Bangladesh, public, explosion, death, gas_cylinders, hydrogen
The Department of Explosives is seeking a ban on use of hydrogen to inflate balloons and arrest of vendors who use the gas.
The department made the recommendations in a report it is submitting to the power, energy and mineral resources ministry on Wednesday following the deadly blast of a gas cylinder used by a vendor to inflate balloons in Dhaka‰??s Rupnagar.
The blast near a slum a week ago left seven children dead and at least a dozen injured.
Police arrested the injured vendor Abu Sayeed and started a case against him on culpable homicide charges.
The explosion occurred as the vendor was brewing hydrogen in an unapproved manner, explosives department officials said.
---------------------------------------------
32 PEOPLE AFFECTED BY NZ POOL CHEMICAL INCIDENT
https://www.splashmagazine.com.au/32-people-affected-by-nz-pool-chemical-incident/
Tags: New_Zealand, public, release, injury, pool_chemicals
A faulty pool pump caused a chemical incident at New Zealand‰??s Levin Aquatic Centre on October 28, after chlorine and sodium bicarbonate had been mixed together but could not be dispersed according to emergency officials and the council‰??s facility manager.
Chris Kennedy, from Fire and Emergency New Zealand, told 1News that the reaction created a vapour cloud and fumes spread inside the centre, affecting 32 people including one person who needed to be taken to hospital in Palmerston North. However, 1News believed that person was suffering from an unrelated condition.
The reaction made it difficult for customers and staff to breathe, and staff immediately evacuated the centre.
Horowhenua District Council community facilities manager Brent Harvey said the incident was caused by a faulty pump.
---------------------------------------------
WHISTLEBLOWER: ALABAMA POWER EMPLOYEES COMPACTED DEAD FISH FOLLOWING CHEMICAL SPILL
https://abc3340.com/news/abc-3340-news-iteam/whistleblower-alabama-power-employees-compacted-dead-fish-following-chemical-spill
Tags: us_AL, industrial, follow-up, environmental, waste
A whistleblower says he saw Alabama Power employees throw dead fish from a fish kill into a dumpster before state officials arrived on the scene to begin their investigation in March.
The whistleblower says the fish were compacted and destroyed.
This happened before state officials arrived at Alabama Power‰??s Plant Gorgas, in Walker County, in March after a fisherman called about seeing a fish kill.
Walker County, Alabama ‰?? ‰??At one point I did see an Alabama Power truck, pulling up with a flat-bottomed boat in tow, and Alabama Power employees getting out, going to the boat, and disposing of the fish in the trash compactor,‰?? said ‰??Tom.‰??
This man, who we‰??re calling ‰??Tom‰?? to protect his identity, says that‰??s what he saw in the days after a chemical spill at Alabama Power‰??s Plant Gorgas in March ‰?? and in the days before state officials arrived on the scene to investigate a fish kill.
---------------------------------------------
REPORT: HARMFUL CHEMICALS LINGERED IN HOUSTON SHIP CHANNEL FOR MONTHS AFTER ITC FIRE ‰?? HOUSTON PUBLIC MEDIA
https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/energy-environment/2019/11/05/350842/report-harmful-chemicals-lingered-in-houston-ship-channel-for-months-after-itc-fire/
Tags: us_TX, transportation, follow-up, environmental, petroleum, runoff
New data show hazardous chemical substances stayed in the Houston Ship Channel for months after a fire broke out in March at the Intercontinental Terminals Company (ITC) petrochemical facility in Deer Park. The fire burned for days, sending a black plume of smoke over the area, and runoff from putting out the fire leaked into the ship channel, which flows into Galveston Bay.
In the aftermath of the fire, researchers from Texas A&M University and the Galveston Bay Foundation teamed up to conduct additional water testing, looking for the presence of per‰?? and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. PFAS are a group of man-made chemicals that have been linked to adverse health effects such as cancer and thyroid problems. They can be found in industrial items like nonstick cookware, as well as in firefighting foams, like the kind used to put out the ITC fire.
‰??These are often called forever chemicals because they are very resistant to breaking down in the environment,‰?? said Weihsueh Chiu, a professor at Texas A&M University. ‰??Many chemicals that are released in the environment eventually break down into other compounds that are not harmful, but in this case, these chemicals tend to be very persistent.‰??
---------------------------------------------
CARBON MONOXIDE LEAK AT SOUTH SIDE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL SENDS STUDENTS TO NEARBY CHURCH, THEN 2ND SCHOOL FOR CLASSES
https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-hazmat-response-burnside-elementary-20191104-24irvnfyqzeajgd7s5uyinkcdq-story.html
Tags: us_IL, education, release, response, carbon_monoxide
A carbon monoxide leak that led to a hazardous materials response early Monday led to a Burnside public school holding class at a neighborhood church. then another elementary school, officials said.
A building engineer at the school noticed a gas smell at approximately 5:30 a.m., hours before the school, Burnside Elementary Scholastic Academy, was set to open, according to Chicago Police. The Chicago Fire Department was called to the scene.
The leak was due to an issue with the boiler or furnace, said Chicago Fire spokesman Larry Merritt. The school was aired out and turned over to Chicago Public Schools.
---------------------------------------------
FIRE CAUSES DAMAGE IN FRANKLIN
http://www.dailyjournal.net/2019/11/05/fire_causes_damage_in_franklin/
Tags: us_IN, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
A business in Franklin‰??s commercial district sustained damage in a Sunday night fire.
Franklin firefighters were dispatched to BCC Products, 2140 Earlywood Drive, on a general business alarm at 5:26 p.m. When firefighters arrived, they could not see any fire from the outside of the business, said Chuck Ridpath, spokesman for the Franklin Fire Department.
Firefighters got into the building and saw heavy smoke. After about 30 minutes of searching the building for the fire, firefighters were led to a wire rack where a gallon container of liquid was on fire, Ridpath said.
The sprinkler system in the building contained the fire to the storage room, he said, and once fire fighters located the fire, it was put out in minutes.
No one was injured in the blaze and investigators are still looking into the exact cause of the fire. The monetary damage of the fire was unknown mid-Monday morning, Ridpath said.
---------------------------------------------
BLAST AT DOW CHEMICAL PLANT LINKED TO POWER SURGE
https://www.wbrz.com/news/blast-at-dow-chemical-plant-linked-to-power-surge/
Tags: us_LA, industrial, follow-up, response, ethylene_glycol
BATON ROUGE (AP) - A parish official says a power surge preceded an explosion at a Dow Chemical plant that shook the Baton Rouge area.
The Advocate reports that a tank at a glycol processing unit ruptured on Sunday, creating a shock wave that could be heard miles away.
Sheriff Brett Stassi says plant systems were being restarted following a power surge when the explosion occurred.
Company officials haven't said what caused the tank to rupture, but they've been communicating with state and local officials.
Dow says it has been monitoring air quality since the explosion. The company says it hasn't detected any contaminants that would be harmful to people.
---------------------------------------------
193 EYE INJURY CASES FROM FIRE CRACKERS REPORTED THIS DIWALI IN MADURAI
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/madurai/193-eye-injury-cases-from-fire-crackers-reported-this-diwali/articleshow/71913388.cms
Tags: India, public, explosion, injury, fireworks
MADURAI: As many as 193 eye trauma cases related to firecrackers were reported this year at the Aravind Eye Hospital from Madurai and surrounding villages post Diwali. Out of the 40 odd cases of grievous eye injuries reported, eight required surgeries. ‰??High velocity impact of fire cracker pieces is often the main cause of penetrative injuries of the eye. There have been many cases where we have to operate and remove cardboard pieces from the eye,‰?? said Dr N Venkatesh Prajna, chief of cornea and refractive surgery at Aravind Eye Hospital.
Trauma injuries are categorized into three types namely, penetrative injury, blunt injury and chemical injury. Penetrative injuries often lead to retinal haemorrhage and oedema. Closed globe injuries or blunt injuries are injuries that occur without causing any rupture of tissues.
---------------------------------------------
5 CHARGED WITH MURDER IN CALIFORNIA DRUG LAB EXPLOSION
https://www.mcall.com/sns-bc-us--drug-explosion-murder-20191031-story.html
Tags: us_PA, public, follow-up, death, illegal, meth_lab
Five men have been charged with murder following a deadly explosion at an illegal drug lab in a Los Angeles in September that killed a man who worked with them, authorities announced Thursday.
For at least two months the defendants and the victim operated a lab in Chatsworth, in the San Fernando Valley, where they extracted the high-inducing chemical THC from cannabis plants to create a highly potent concentrate known as hash oil or honey oil, the Los Angeles district attorney's office said in a statement. The extraction process is dangerous and often involves butane, an odorless gas that easily ignites.
The oil can be used in vape pens, edibles, waxes and other products. Vaping-related illnesses have soared nationwide and many victims reported purchasing illegal THC oils.
The Chatsworth lab exploded Sept. 21 while four of the men and the victim, Dados Aroutiounov, 62, were inside. Aroutiounov's remains, burned beyond recognition, were found the following day under a pile of debris after investigators received information that someone may have been killed in the fire.
---------------------------------------------
IN 2016 EXXONMOBIL EXPLOSION, TWO BURNED CONTRACTORS REACH SETTLEMENT WITH COMPANY
https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/courts/article_2960670a-ff56-11e9-b386-77d8e267bd8f.html
Tags: us_LA, industrial, follow-up, injury
Two former contract workers severely burned in a November 2016 explosion at ExxonMobil's Baton Rouge refinery reached a financial settlement Monday with the company and others.
Lawyer Darrel Papillion, who represents one of the men, said the terms of the settlement hammered out in state District Judge Trudy White's courtroom are confidential.
"I'm happy that we were able to secure a recovery for our client, who sustained horrible injuries, and to hold Exxon accountable for the role they played," Papillion said before leaving the 19th Judicial District Courthouse.
Papillion said his client was burned over 38% of his body. He has not returned to work.
Jury selection had been scheduled to begin Monday in a lawsuit filed by the two men, but the settlement with Exxon entities and a scaffolding company made a trial in their case moot.
---------------------------------------------
---
For more information about the DCHAS-L e-mail list, contact the Divisional membership chair at membership**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Follow us on Twitter **At_Symbol_Here**acsdchas
Previous post | Top of Page | Next post