From: DCHAS Membership Chair <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (9 articles)
Date: Wed, 7 Oct 2020 07:41:18 -0400
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**Princeton.EDU>
Message-ID: 13499C93-2E95-4380-9E19-A7F14D71844A**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Wednesday, October 7, 2020 at 7:41:05 AM

A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Connecting Chemistry and Safety at http://www.dchas.org
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Table of Contents (9 articles)

PATRICK AFB EXPLOSIVE EXPERTS, HAZMAT TEAM REMOVE OLD MILITARY ORDNANCE FROM IRC SHORELINE
Tags: us_fl, public, discovery, response, bomb

PALM BAY CHEMICAL PLANT FAILED TO NOTIFY PUBLIC, CONTAIN POLLUTION CAUSED BY EXPLOSION
Tags: us_fl, industrial, followup, environmental, illegal

GLASS FIRE FIREFIGHTERS EVALUATED FOR POSSIBLE CHEMICAL EXPOSURE
Tags: us_ca, fire, industrial, response, enviromental

ARKEMA ACQUITTED OVER HURRICANE FIRE EMISSIONS
Tags: us_tx, industrial, followup, enviromental

STATE REGULATORS PLAN TO FINE MANUFACTURER $115K FOR CHEMICAL FIRES, GAS CLOUDS
Tags: us_mi, industrial, release, followup, illegal

CHEMICAL LEAK BRIEFLY SHUTS DOWN MERKERT CENTER
Tags: us_ma, laboratory, release, response, hydrogen_sulfide, gas_cylinder

BEIRUT BLAST WAS ONE OF THE BIGGEST NON-NUCLEAR EXPLOSIONS EVER
Tags: lebanon, industrial, followup, enviromental, ammonia_nitrate

AVONMOUTH FIRE ANGER: 'WHY DIDN'T THE SIREN GO OFF?'
Tags: uk, industrial, fire, response, waste

FIRE MISHAP AT CHEMICAL UNIT IN ODISHA‰??S BERHAMPUR
Tags: india, industrial, release, injuries, hydrochloric_acid


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PATRICK AFB EXPLOSIVE EXPERTS, HAZMAT TEAM REMOVE OLD MILITARY ORDNANCE FROM IRC SHORELINE
https://www.tcpalm.com/story/news/local/indian-river-county/2020/10/06/patrick-afb-explosive-experts-hazmat-team-remove-old-military-ordnance-irc-shoreline/5898737002/
Tags: us_fl, public, discovery, response, bomb

INDIAN RIVER COUNTY ‰?? About 20 beachside residents were evacuated from their homes until 3 a.m. Tuesday, while Air Force explosive experts removed old military-grade ordnance found on shore near Ocean Ridge Circle, fire officials said.

Patrick Air Force Base sent an Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit from Brevard County to Ocean Ridge Circle, off State Road A1A, after the object was found around 5:30 p.m. Monday, according to an Indian River County Fire Rescue official.

Battalion Chief Kyle Kofke said it was about the size of an "oversized" 2-liter bottle, and appeared to be from the WWII-era, like the multiple pieces of practice ordnance that are uncovered along shoreline between Indian River and Martin counties each year.

Kofke said the ordnance was larger than most of the rusty, flattened, spherical practice landmines typically found along the coast.

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PALM BAY CHEMICAL PLANT FAILED TO NOTIFY PUBLIC, CONTAIN POLLUTION CAUSED BY EXPLOSION
https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2020/10/06/palm-bay-chemical-plant-failed-to-notify-public-contain-pollution-caused-by-explosion/
Tags: us_fl, industrial, followup, environmental, illegal

PALM BAY, Fla. ‰?? The Department of Environmental Protection investigation into the September explosion at FAR Chemical in Palm Bay is still underway but investigators have found possible violation of Florida law, according to a letter sent to the company by the Florida DEP.

On Sept. 8, a series of explosions rattled FAR Chemical that could be seen for miles, sent dark smoking bellowing into the sky and shut down U.S. 1. No one was injured in the explosion.

The DEP responded to assess potential environmental impacts following the release of hazardous materials. According to its website, FAR Chemical has been ‰??handling and processing complex and hazardous chemistries‰?? at its Palm Bay facility for the past 35 years. The chemicals manufactured at the site are used in pharmaceuticals, coatings, adhesives, sealants, composites, flavors and fragrances.

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GLASS FIRE FIREFIGHTERS EVALUATED FOR POSSIBLE CHEMICAL EXPOSURE
https://patch.com/california/petaluma/glass-fire-firefighters-evaluated-possible-chemical-exposure
Tags: us_ca, fire, industrial, response, enviromental

SONOMA COUNTY, CA ‰?? Sixteen firefighters assigned to the Glass Fire were medically evaluated Tuesday morning and one was hospitalized for possible carbon monoxide exposure, Cal Fire said.

The firefighters were evaluated by members of the Santa Rosa Fire Department in conjunction with medical personnel assigned to the Glass Fire incident.

One firefighter was transported to a local hospital for further evaluation, while the 15 others were released back to the fire line, officials said.

This marked the first known injury involving any first responders assigned to the Glass Fire, which has been burning since Sept. 27 in Napa and Sonoma counties.

Cal Fire said the possible exposure did not happen within the fire's perimeter but "at a location off-site out of the fire area."

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ARKEMA ACQUITTED OVER HURRICANE FIRE EMISSIONS
https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/arkema-acquitted-over-hurricane-fire-emissions/4012537.article
Tags: us_tx, industrial, followup, enviromental

US Judge rules there is insufficient evidence to bring criminal charges relating to peroxide fire caused by flooding in 2017

A Texas judge has dismissed the criminal charges case against French chemical giant Arkema, the chief executive of the company‰??s North America division, and one of its plant managers, all related to emissions of hazardous chemicals during hurricane Harvey in August 2017. The storm caused flooding that knocked out power to the plant, which led to the organic peroxides stored there igniting once refrigerators, generators and backup cooling methods failed. The resulting fires forced 200 residents to evacuate and sent 21 first responders to hospital.

Flooding overcame refrigeration systems at Arkema‰??s plant in Crosby, leading organic peroxides to ignite

The US Chemical Safety Board‰??s concluded in its May 2018 final report that Arkema didn‰??t consider it a ‰??credible risk‰?? that flooding could overwhelm its electrical and safety systems. The agency urged the chemical industry to better prepare for extreme weather events.

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STATE REGULATORS PLAN TO FINE MANUFACTURER $115K FOR CHEMICAL FIRES, GAS CLOUDS
https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/2020/10/state-regulators-plan-to-fine-manufacturer-115k-for-chemical-fires-gas-clouds.html
Tags: us_mi, industrial, release, followup, illegal

BELDING, MI -- State regulators will likely fine a manufacturer that caused multiple toxic chlorine gas releases in a residential area $115,000 and forbid the company from using the chemical which caused the releases.

Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy officials announced Monday morning, Oct. 5, the proposed measures against Kassouni Manufacturing Inc. as part of a settlement order. The settlement order, as proposed, will remain in effect for at least two years.

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CHEMICAL LEAK BRIEFLY SHUTS DOWN MERKERT CENTER
https://www.bc.edu/content/bc-web/bcnews/campus-community/announcements/merkert-update.html
Tags: us_ma, laboratory, release, response, hydrogen_sulfide, gas_cylinder

A leaking cylinder inside of a lab in the Eugene F. Merkert Chemistry Center caused a small chemical release today that forced an evacuation of the building at 12:46 p.m.

Following protocol, lab researchers placed the cylinder inside of a fume hood, which quickly contained the release.

Boston Fire Department metered the lab and the building and reported no findings. The building was reoccupied at 1:50 p.m.

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BEIRUT BLAST WAS ONE OF THE BIGGEST NON-NUCLEAR EXPLOSIONS EVER
https://www.livescience.com/beirut-explosion-biggest-non-nuclear.html
Tags: lebanon, industrial, followup, enviromental, ammonia_nitrate

On Aug. 4, a series of massive explosions rocked the port of Beirut in Lebanon, and the biggest was one of the most powerful blasts in history that was not produced by a nuclear bomb, according to a new analysis.

Never before had such a large explosion been so well-documented. Many witnesses recorded the moment of the detonation and the subsequent blast wave on video, sharing the terrifying scenes on social media.

Recently, engineers at the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom analyzed 16 such videos that were captured from different locations around the explosion and had an unobstructed view of the event and its aftermath. From this visual evidence, the researchers were then able to estimate the strength of the explosion, they reported in a new study.

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AVONMOUTH FIRE ANGER: 'WHY DIDN'T THE SIREN GO OFF?'
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/avonmouth-fire-anger-why-didnt-4577861
Tags: uk, industrial, fire, response, waste

People living near Avonmouth Docks in Bristol have expressed their concerns and frustrations after waking to find a huge plume of smoke rising near their homes.

Residents in Avonmouth Village closest to the Sims Metal Management site were advised to keep their doors and windows closed on Monday morning, but some have questioned why they were not warned sooner than mid-morning.

By then, the fire in the pile of 20,000 tonnes of scrap metal had been burning for 12 hours already, with people living nearby unaware until first light. It is believed it could be burning for days to come.

Unless they were out after 10pm on Sunday night, the first most people in Avonmouth Village knew about the fire was when they left their homes to go to work, or go on the school run.

It's not the first time there have been fires and explosions at the site, but local councillors say they've been working with the owners to improve it.

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FIRE MISHAP AT CHEMICAL UNIT IN ODISHA‰??S BERHAMPUR
https://sambadenglish.com/fire-breaks-out-at-berhampurs-chemicals-firm-4-critical/
Tags: india, industrial, release, injuries, hydrochloric_acid

Berhampur: Four workers of the chemical unit of Grasim Industries here were critically injured after they came in contact with a live electric wire while they were working in hydrochloric acid plant on the company premises this morning.

Sources said the workers were engaged in water boiling work at the hydrochloric acid plant when they accidentally came in contact with the electric wire at around 9.30 AM.

Soon after the mishap, the four critically-injured including engineer Abhisek Pal and operators Shankar Roul, Benupani Roul and S Shankar were rushed to MKCG Medical College and Hospital here for treatment.

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