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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, September 18, 2020 at 5:41:27 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 (11 articles)
ARSON SUSPECT ARRESTED AS ONGOING NEW WESTMINSTER PIER FIRE IMPACTS AIR QUALITY IN METRO VANCOUVER
Tags: Canada, public, fire, response, other_chemical
AVOID AREA: RESIDENTS ASKED TO SHELTER IN PLACE AFTER CHLORINE SPILL AT MONTEBELLO PLANT
Tags: us_MD, industrial, release, response, chlorine
TEAM WILL BEGIN WORK TO CLEAN CHEMICAL SPILL THAT FOULED AIR AROUND COMPTON
Tags: us_CA, public, follow-up, environmental, thiols
FIRE CREWS TACKLE CHEMICAL SPILLAGE
Tags: United_Kingdom, transportation, release, response, sulfuric_acid
RUSSIAN MILITARY SAYS PREVENTING CHEMICAL LEAK FROM ABANDONED PLANT IN SIBERIA CRUCIAL
Tags: Russia, industrial, discovery, environmental, waste
DMSO POSES DECOMPOSITION DANGER
Tags: Japan, laboratory, discovery, environmental, solvent
CAUSE OF KINGSVILLE GAS LEAK STILL A MYSTERY BUT OFFICIALS SAY IT POINTS TO A 'LARGER ISSUE'
Tags: Canada, public, follow-up, response, gasoline
NASA MONITORS CARBON MONOXIDE FROM CALIFORNIA AND OREGON FIRES, FINDS 10X TYPICAL CO EMISSIONS / BOING BOING
Tags: us_CA, public, discovery, environmental, carbon_monoxide
ROCKDALE FIREFIGHTERS KEEPING WATCH AT SCENE OF BIOLAB CHEMICAL FIRE
Tags: us_GA, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
'FOREVER CHEMICAL' RESEARCH DELAYED DUE TO COVID-19, PENTAGON SAYS
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
CHEMICAL EXPLOSION AT ARIZONA STATE RESEARCH LAB INJURES 3 PEOPLE
Tags: us_AZ, laboratory, explosion, injury, chlorine_dioxide
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ARSON SUSPECT ARRESTED AS ONGOING NEW WESTMINSTER PIER FIRE IMPACTS AIR QUALITY IN METRO VANCOUVER
https://www.straight.com/news/arson-suspect-arrested-as-ongoing-new-westminster-pier-fire-impacts-air-quality-in-metro
Tags: Canada, public, fire, response, other_chemical
Although the main blaze was extinguished by fire firefighters, creosote, which is a chemical-based wood preservative that covers pier pilings, continues to burn and could continue on for weeks.
Firefighters have to remove surface planks in order to reach the burning pilings underneath.
Fraser Health stated in a news release that fine particulate matter‰??PM2.5, or airborne solid or liquid droplets with a diameter of 2.5 micrometres (ĺµm) or less‰??can penetrate into indoor spaces due to their size.
Exposure is a health concern for people with underlying health conditions (lung disease, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [COPD], asthma, diabetes), those with respiratory infections (including COVID-19), pregnant women and infants, children, and older adults.
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AVOID AREA: RESIDENTS ASKED TO SHELTER IN PLACE AFTER CHLORINE SPILL AT MONTEBELLO PLANT
https://foxbaltimore.com/news/local/chlorine-spill-reported-at-montebello-filtration-plant-in-ne-baltimore
Tags: us_MD, industrial, release, response, chlorine
BALTIMORE (WBFF) - Residents in the area of Lake Montebello are being asked to shelter in place, after a chlorine spill at the Montebello Filtration Plant in northeast Baltimore.
Fire engines were seen blocking Hillen Road just north of 33rd Street.
Baltimore City Fire Department confirmed there was a chlorine spill that was reported "in a contained area at this time."
"Right now, there appears to be no threat to the community, however, those who live in the area or who are in close proximity, could periodically smell chlorine," said fire spokesperson Blair Adams.
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TEAM WILL BEGIN WORK TO CLEAN CHEMICAL SPILL THAT FOULED AIR AROUND COMPTON
https://lbpost.com/news/foul-smell-odor-chemical-spill-compton
Tags: us_CA, public, follow-up, environmental, thiols
A hazardous-materials team today will oversee the process of treating and neutralizing a small spill of a chemical used to ‰??odorize‰?? natural gas at an abandoned oil field in the Compton area.
The problem, involving the chemical ‰??mercaptan,‰?? was reported about 11:20 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 10, near Main Street and Rosecrans Avenue, and resulted in complaints of a foul smell from numerous residents.
The final step includes removing the empty tank that contained the chemical, scheduled for Friday, Sept. 18, according to the county fire department.
‰??While the minor spill has since been stopped, the initial pungent, rotten egg odor has lingered but is harmless and non-toxic,‰?? a county fire statement said. ‰??Please be assured the smell is not a gas leak and it poses no fire or health concern.‰??
Personnel from the South Coast Air Quality Management District havebeen on scene monitoring the removal process.
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FIRE CREWS TACKLE CHEMICAL SPILLAGE
https://www.warrington-worldwide.co.uk/2020/09/16/fire-crews-tackle-chemical-spillage-2/
Tags: United_Kingdom, transportation, release, response, sulfuric_acid
TWO fire crews were called out earlier today (Wednesday) following a chemical spillage involving a forklift truck in Warrington.
The incident was reported at 15:18 and two fire engines attended ‰?? one from Warrington and one from Penketh, following reports of a forklift truck leaking a chemical at the back of a unit on Sankey Street in Warrington.
The leak had come from the truck tipping over.
A cordon was placed around the leak which involved battery acid.
Crews wore a breathing apparatus and used a hose reel jet to apply small quantities of water to the battery acid.
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RUSSIAN MILITARY SAYS PREVENTING CHEMICAL LEAK FROM ABANDONED PLANT IN SIBERIA CRUCIAL
https://www.urdupoint.com/en/world/russian-military-says-preventing-chemical-lea-1031444.html
Tags: Russia, industrial, discovery, environmental, waste
USOLYE-SIBIRSKOYE (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 16th September, 2020) SIBIRSKOYE, Russia, September 16 (Sputnik) - The military needs to ensure that a hazardous waste cleanup and the dismantling of the defunct Usolyekhimprom chemical plant in the town of Usolye-Sibirskoye in Russia's Irkutsk region does not cause a major leak into the environment, a senior officer of the radiation and chemical safety department of the Directorate of the Chief of the Radiation, Chemical and Biological Protection (RCB) Troops, which is part of the Russian armed forces, told Sputnik on Wednesday.
"When carrying out the [cleanup] work itself, we have provided for many degrees of protection, we want to prevent the slightest unforeseen situations, the penetration of anything infected beyond the territory of the industrial site," Yevgeny Veber said.
The officer added that the RCB troops held numerous joint drills with the Russian Federal Biomedical Agency, Ministry of Emergency Situations and the National Guard on the territory of the plant.
"That is, everyone knows their role and place in the event of any emergency," Veber noted.
He went on to say that the dismantling of the chemical plant would be carried out under certain conditions.
"When dismantling the structures of the plant, the most important thing is to not create a dust cloud of toxic mercury vapors, because it will be similar to a radioactive cloud. That is why we will be constantly putting protective screens," Veber said.
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DMSO POSES DECOMPOSITION DANGER
https://cen.acs.org/safety/DMSO-poses-decomposition-danger/98/i36
Tags: Japan, laboratory, discovery, environmental, solvent
Chemists are once again raising safety concerns about dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), following research that has probed how the popular solvent decomposes when heated. DMSO decomposition has caused many industrial and laboratory explosions since the 1960s, according to accident reports. DMSO is widely used because it is so versatile: it can dissolve polar and nonpolar compounds alike and mixes well with water and organic solvents. It also has a low vapor pressure and low toxicity that make for easier use in the lab and in industrial processes.
But when DMSO is heated close to its boiling point of 189 ĺˇC, for example during distillation to recover the solvent, it can rapidly decompose. This generates more heat along with gases such as hydrogen, methane, and carbon dioxide. The decomposition process is also autocatalytic‰??in other words, molecules formed during decomposition act as catalysts for even more decomposition, triggering a runaway reaction that poses an explosion hazard.
A team led by Yoshikuni Deguchi at Kaneka Corporation has now identified some of the breakdown products of DMSO that are responsible for this autocatalytic behavior (Org. Process Res. Dev., DOI: 10.1021/acs.oprd.0c00113). The researchers hope that this finding will help to raise awareness of the hazards of DMSO.
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CAUSE OF KINGSVILLE GAS LEAK STILL A MYSTERY BUT OFFICIALS SAY IT POINTS TO A 'LARGER ISSUE'
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/kingsville-gas-leak-cause-under-investigation-1.5725199
Tags: Canada, public, follow-up, response, gasoline
A gas leak in Kingsville, which prompted town officials to declare a partial state of emergency, is causing headaches for residents and businesses.
Since early Sunday morning, the Kingsville Fire Department has been at the scene of a convenience store and gas bar at Essex County roads 20 and 23, along with the Ontario Provincial Police and the Windsor Fire and Rescue Service HAZMAT team ‰?? but they've hit some snags in their cleanup effort, and it's unclear when the intersection will reopen.
"There's a larger issue than we they originally thought," said Andrew Plancke, Kingsville's director of municipal services, one day after homes and businesses within 500 metres of the scene were evacuated.
Town officials said they thought the leak would be a quick cleanup but it's turned into a bit of a mystery. Fuel is leeching into the ground and they are not sure where it is coming from.
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NASA MONITORS CARBON MONOXIDE FROM CALIFORNIA AND OREGON FIRES, FINDS 10X TYPICAL CO EMISSIONS / BOING BOING
https://boingboing.net/2020/09/15/nasa-monitors-carbon-monoxide.html
Tags: us_CA, public, discovery, environmental, carbon_monoxide
‰?˘ NASA's Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), aboard the Aqua satellite, captured carbon monoxide plumes coming from California wildfires last week.
‰?˘ The observations from Earth orbit show high-altitude concentrations of the gas that are more than 10 times typical amounts.
---------------------------------------------
ROCKDALE FIREFIGHTERS KEEPING WATCH AT SCENE OF BIOLAB CHEMICAL FIRE
https://www.rockdalenewtoncitizen.com/news/rockdale-firefighters-keeping-watch-at-scene-of-biolab-chemical-fire/article_171e47cc-f6bf-11ea-9387-9fdbf76070b6.html
Tags: us_GA, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
CONYERS ‰?? Rockdale Fire and Rescue firefighters were expected to keep watch at the scene of a BioLab chemical fire throughout the day Tuesday after fire broke out in a warehouse early Monday morning.
Fire Chief Dan Morgan said firefighters were called to the scene shortly before 6 a.m. Monday. Although the chemical that caught fire was stabilized by mid-afternoon, Morgan said firefighters continued to work the scene until about 6 p.m.
‰??It was very stabilized with very few fumes coming out at that point,‰?? said Morgan. ‰??We had the (Environmental Protection Division) all around the area monitoring the air, and they were getting very low readings, if any, so we felt good about that.‰??
Morgan said a couple of crews and an engine were stationed at BioLab overnight Monday to watch for any further chemical reactions.
No serious injuries were reported as a result of the fire, although Morgan said nine firefighters were taken to the hospital emergency room for treatment of chemical inhalation. He said they were treated and released by 5:30 Monday evening. Morgan explained that a brief rain storm Monday afternoon caused a wind shift, which pushed a plume of chemical smoke across an area where firefighters were resting or changing out their gear.
‰??From actual firefighting and being in the building and in contact with the chemical, we had no injuries,‰?? said Morgan ‰?? ‰?| Just as a precaution we sent them to the ER to have them checked out.‰??
Morgan said the cause of the chemical fire is not known at this time. He said when firefighters arrived at BioLab early Monday morning, several pallets of the dry chemical were on fire. He said the fire was ‰??popping from pallet to pallet as they got hot enough to ignite.‰??
---------------------------------------------
'FOREVER CHEMICAL' RESEARCH DELAYED DUE TO COVID-19, PENTAGON SAYS
https://www.newsweek.com/forever-chemical-research-delayed-due-covid-19-pentagon-says-1532112
Tags: public, discovery, environmental
Research into a new safer firefighting chemical for the U.S. military has been delayed by the coronavirus pandemic, said a high ranking member of the Department of Defense (DOD) on Tuesday at a hearing before the House Armed Services Committee's Subcommittee on Readiness.
The U.S. military has been using a fire retardant foam which includes chemicals called PFAS, which have been linked with causing cancer in humans. Other items that include PFAS include some non-stick cookware, cleaning products and water repellents. PFAS are known as "forever chemicals" because when they enter the human body, they are not expelled. Many areas, especially around military bases, have found PFAS in their water supply. The DOD has been attempting to develop PFAS-free firefighting foam but when the new technology will be available for widespread usage is still unknown.
"It's too early to answer that question," said Herb Nelson, Director of the Defense Department's Strategic Environment Research and Development Program. "We're just getting started. Normally, on this day, I could give you some early indicators, but like everyone else on this Earth, they've really taken a delay because of the COVID situation."
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CHEMICAL EXPLOSION AT ARIZONA STATE RESEARCH LAB INJURES 3 PEOPLE
https://ktar.com/story/3566784/chemical-explosion-at-arizona-state-research-lab-injures-3-people/
Tags: us_AZ, laboratory, explosion, injury, chlorine_dioxide
PHOENIX ‰?? Three people were injured by a chemical explosion at a research lab at Arizona State University in Tempe on Tuesday.
Tempe Fire Department Assistant Chief Andrea Glass told KTAR News 92.3 FM that the explosion was caused by chlorine dioxide, which resulted in a workbox becoming overpressurized.
A third-party contractor was conducting a routine cleaning of the Biodesign Institute lab at the time.
‰??This was a standard procedure that they utilize to prepare a research lab for the next project that was coming in,‰?? Glass said.
Three people were treated at the scene with skin lacerations and punctures from the incident. Two of victims, a 50-year-old male and a 27-year-old male, were transported to the hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
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