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Liverpool, UK
http://www.clickliverpool.com/news/local-news/127170-two-injured-in-explos
ion-at-liverpool-university-chemistry-building.html
Two students injured in explosion at Liverpool University Chemistry
building
by Angela Johnson.
Two students have been injured in an explosion at Liverpool University's
Chemistry department.
Police were called to the building at the University campus on Crown St
at around 11.45am.
The students, believed to be one male and one female, suffered chemical
burns to the skin. They were taken to hospital by paramedics, it is not
yet clear how serious their injuries are.
The building has been evacuated as a precaution and has been secured for
investigation by the Health and Safety Executive.
A spokesman for Merseyside Police said: "Officers were called at around
11.45am with reports of an explosion.
"Two people were taken to hospital via ambulance for treatment.
"The building has been evacuated and secured for investigation by the
HSE."
A spokeswoman for Merseyside Ambulance Service said: "Two students were
taken via ambulance to the Royal Liverpool Hospital.
"They received burns to the skin. It remains unclear how serious
injuries caused by the chemicals involved may be."
===
Seabrook, TX
http://www.khou.com/news/Huge-explosion-rocks-plant-in-Seabrook-78865017.h
tml
Huge explosion rocks American Acryl plant near Seabrook
by Taylor Timmins / khou.com & Shern-Min Chow / 11 News
Posted on December 9, 2009 at 9:04 AM
SEABROOK, Texas=97A huge explosion rocked the American Acryl plant near
Seabrook Wednesday, shaking buildings and prompting a number of
shelter-in-place orders.
It happened around 8:45 a.m. in the 12100 block of Port Road at Highway
146 in Pasadena.
Two plant employees were taken to the hospital for observation. One has
since been released. Officials said the other is being treated for
possible inhalation injuries.
All other plant employees were accounted for Wednesday afternoon, and
there were no reports of any other injuries in the community.
A thick, black cloud of smoke was visible for miles over the area after
the explosion.
The smoke drifted to the south and east, prompting Clear Creek ISD,
Dickinson ISD, Kemah, Seabrook and League City to issue shelter-in-place
orders.
All of the orders were lifted a few hours after the blast.
(more at web site)
===
Texas
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory?id=9293385
Feds Urge Safety Changes at Citgo Refinery
Federal officials seek urgent safety changes after acid released at
Texas refinery this summer
By JOHN McFARLAND Associated Press Writer
Federal officials issued urgent new safety recommendations Wednesday for
a Texas oil refinery where 21 tons of deadly acid were released this
summer and said they are investigating the use of the chemical at
refineries nationwide.
The head of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board said the inquiry continues
into the July accident at Citgo's Corpus Christi refinery that seriously
injured a worker, and accidents involving hydrofluoric acid in Illinois
and Pennsylvania are also being investigated. In all, about a third of
the nation's 150 refineries use hydrofluoric acid, or HF, in the process
of making high-octane gas.
"We're looking industrywide at the HF use in refineries and the safety
of HF at the 51 refineries," CSB investigations supervisor Robert Hall
said.
The United Steel Workers union and the Sierra Club have been urging a
ban on the acid for months, saying it's too dangerous to workers and
people who live nearby. The highly corrosive acid can burn eyes, eat
away flesh at a rapid rate and is fatal after prolonged exposure.
At the Corpus Christi plant, a control valve failed July 19 and released
an HF vapor cloud. That cloud caught fire and started explosions that
released the additional 21 tons of acid vapor, about 2 tons of which
escaped into the sky. The injured worker got caught up in the cloud.
Winds helped carry the massive cloud into the ship channel and away from
people.
The CSB was critical of Citgo's lack of cooperation with investigators,
its objection to the public release of surveillance video of the
incident and its early reports to state regulators that only 30 pounds
of HF escaped into the sky.
"We believe the original release was at least 100 times larger than
Citgo had originally stated," said Hall.
Citgo, a Houston-based refiner and subsidiary of Venezuela's national
oil company, said in a statement that it is cooperating and has already
taken action on the recommendations.
===
Washington, DC
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elizabeth-grossman/fixing-our-broken-chemica
_b_381927.html
Fixing Our Broken Chemicals Policy
While Afghanistan, the economy, Copenhagen and health care grabbed
headlines this week, on December 2nd, Senators Frank Lautenberg and
Barbara Boxer, who chairs the Senate Environment & Public Works
committee, held a hearing on an issue that could significantly influence
three out of four of those big ticket items. That issue is chemicals -
the synthetic and industrial chemicals, largely petrochemical in origin
that permeate every aspect of our lives - and the inadequacies of TSCA
(Toxic Substances Control Act), the primary law aimed at protecting
Americans from chemical hazards
Also slipping in under the headlines was introduction of the Endocrine
Disruption Prevention Act of 2009 by Senator John Kerry and
Representative Jim Moran. Endocrine disruptors are synthetic chemicals
that can interfere with the body's own endocrine hormones that regulate
reproduction, metabolism, development, and other vital systems.
Chemicals identified as endocrine disruptors (EDCs) are used in
countless consumer products. Evidence of their adverse health effects -
such chemicals have been linked to health disorders that include
diabetes, obesity, reproductive and neurological problems - has been
growing so steadily that the American Medical Association is urging
policies to reduce public exposure to these substances. This new bill
would increase research on EDCs with the aim of protecting public health
by restricting their use.
Chemicals identified as endocrine disruptors are among the 80,000-plus
chemicals now registered for commerce in the Untied States. While we
know a great deal about many o these chemicals, despite the many
environmental and consumer protection law on the books, the vast
majority of these chemicals' health effects remain unknown or
incompletely tested. And while our rivers no longer run with toxics that
catch fire and children no longer run behind DDT spray trucks, we have
not succeeded in keeping hazardous chemicals out of places they
shouldn't be - namely our bodies and those of our infants and children.
(more at web site)
===
Ukraine
http://www.abcnews.go.com/International/chewing-gum-explodes-killing-stude
nt-ukraine/story?id=9290557
Exploding Chewing Gum Kills Student
The Ukrainian Man Had a Habit of Dipping Gum in Citric Acid
By ALEXANDER MARQUARDT
MOSCOW, Dec. 9, 2009
A Ukrainian man's jaw was blown off after he laced his chewing gum with
an unknown substance, local authorities in the country's Sumy region
said of the man who died from his injuries.
The jaw of a 25-year-old Ukrainian man, Vladimir, was blown off after he
laced his chewing gum with an unknown substance, according to local
authorities.
A chemistry student at the Kiev Polytechnic Institute who was identified
only by his first name Vladimir liked to chew gum and dip it in citric
acid, his family said.
He was working on his home computer Saturday night in the town of
Konotop when his mother heard the sound of the explosion, according to
authorities. She turned around to find Vladimir, 25, on the floor with
his face bleeding and his jaw blown off.
Emergency services couldn't do anything to save him. A forensics test
revealed that the piece of gum was laced with an unidentified chemical,
possibly an explosive, according to Russian state-run news service RIA
Novosti.
Sumy police officials found an unidentified substance and citric acid
near Vladimir's body, saying in a statement that he may have confused
the two.
Friends and classmates told police that Vladimir was a quiet and
level-headed man who, from a young age, enjoyed math, physics and
chemistry. He made homemade firecrackers, they said, hoping to be a
scientist when he grew up.
He was home for the holidays after finishing this semester's exams,
spending most of his time on the computer and experimenting with various
chemicals.
The authorities are conducting more tests on the unknown substance.
===
UK
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/lancashire/8404129.stm
Firm fined after chemical explosion closed motorways
Drums flew into the air as the chemicals exploded causing a huge fire at
the Red Scar industrial estate in Ribbleton
An international waste management company has been fined =A3150,000
after a major chemical fire closed two motorways in Lancashire.
Drums of chemicals exploded at Veolia ES Cleanaway on the Red Scar
industrial estate in Ribbleton in July 2007.
Sections of the M55 and the M6 were closed during the morning rush hour
as 66 firefighters tackled the flames.
The firm admitted two health and safety breaches at Preston Crown Court.
It was also told to pay =A390,000 court costs.
A 15-month investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE)
revealed the company did not do enough to ensure dangerous chemicals on
its site in Ribbleton were stored safely, nor did it provide adequate
training for its staff.
=09
The fire at the waste site put lives in danger and caused gridlock on
local roads
Linda Murray, HSE principal inspector for Lancashire
It was prosecuted by the HSE for breaching two of the Dangerous
Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002.
The court heard the fire started just after 0600 BST on 2 July 2007 in
an open area of the site, which is used to store drums of chemicals.
Firefighters reported seeing drums rocketing into the air and off the
site after setting alight.
Emergency services closed the industrial estate and the motorways due to
fears that smoke and fumes would travel if the wind changed direction.
The fire was extinguished by mid-afternoon after more than 132,000
litres (29,000 gallons) of chemicals were set alight.
HSE inspectors believe it was caused by lithium batteries igniting
nearby waste materials.
Linda Murray, HSE principal inspector for Lancashire, said: "Any
businesses that have flammable substances on their premises need to take
appropriate measures to minimise the risk of fires or explosions.
"The fire at the waste site put lives in danger and caused gridlock on
local roads. I hope this case will make businesses think seriously about
what they need to do to prevent fires in the future."
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