Chemical Safety Headlines =46rom Google
Wednesday, December 14, 2011 7:27:23 AM
A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Table of Contents (13 articles)
ROTTEN ODOR AROUND HOWELL TIED TO CHEMICAL SPILL
Tags: us_MI, industrial, release, response, mercaptan
INCENSE FACTORY GOES UP IN SMOKE
Tags: India, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
SMALL MERCURY SPILL AT OREGON CLINIC CONTAINED
Tags: us_OH, public, release, response, mercury
STUDENTS EVACUATED FROM MIDDLE SCHOOL
Tags: us_VA, education, release, response, unknown_chemical
HAZMAT TEAM CALLED TO SUMNER BUSINESS AFTER EMPLOYEE GETS SICK
Tags: us_WA, industrial, release, injury, cleaners
COPS: NY TEENS THREW BOTTLE BOMB INTO APT. COMPLEX
Tags: us_NY, public, explosion, response, bomb
HIGH SCHOOL LAB SAFETY
Tags: us_MN, laboratory, explosion, injury, methanol, follow-up
MINN. SCHOOL SAFETY PROCEDURES
Tags: us_MN, laboratory, explosion, injury, flammables, follow-up
FIRE DESTROYS METAL PLATING BUSINESS, FIREFIGHTERS DECONTAMINATED
Tags: us_CO, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
'IRRITANT' SPRAY CLEARS CITY SCHOOL
Tags: us_NY, education, release, response, irritant
HAZMAT CLEANUP CONTINUES ON I-70
Tags: us_CO, transportation, release, environmental, unknown_chemical
FIREFIGHTERS CONTAIN CHEMICAL LEAK IN TENN.
Tags: us_TN, industrial, release, response, ammonia
UC BERKELEY CAMPUS BUILDING REOPENS AFTER DIESEL SPILL
Tags: us_CA, education, release, environmental, diesel
---------------------------------------------
ROTTEN ODOR AROUND HOWELL TIED TO CHEMICAL SPILL
Tags: us_MI, industrial, release, response, mercaptan
HOWELL, Mich.=97 Authorities in Howell say they've determined the source of a rotten odor in the area.
Radio station WHMI and the Livingston County Daily Press & Argus report the odor was from an ethyl mercaptan spill at a Howell recycling facility. The chemical's odor permeated the air starting Friday and was expected to fully dissipate soon.
Ethyl mercaptan is added to natural gas to give it an odor.
Regal Recycling spokeswoman Amanda Smith-Teutsch apologized on the company's behalf about the spill about 45 miles northwest of Detroit.
Howell Area Fire Department Chief Andy Pless said: "It only takes a drop to stink up the whole town, and there was more than a drop spilled."
Pless said the smell was reported as far away as New Hudson, about 18 miles from Howell.
---------------------------------------------
INCENSE FACTORY GOES UP IN SMOKE
Tags: India, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
BANGALORE: Little did those who moved into the new building on 12th cross in Kadirenahalli, South Bangalore know they were bang next to a ticking bomb. On Tuesday morning, when fire destroyed chemicals and other raw material used to manufacture incense sticks at Balaji Agarbathi Pvt Ltd, residents realized the folly of having a factory in a residential area.
It took 11 hours and 19 fire tenders making multiple trips to bring the fire under control. Fortunately, there were no casualties, but the three-storey factory was completely gutted and the loss is yet to be calculated. Fire service officers said the building neither had fire-fighting equipment nor a No-Objection Certificate from the department.
A group of cooks who came to cater for a function in a house opposite the factory sounded the first alarm at 4.30am. One of them saw fumes coming out of the ground floor but before they could figure out what was going on, the fire engulfed the building.
---------------------------------------------
SMALL MERCURY SPILL AT OREGON CLINIC CONTAINED
Tags: us_OH, public, release, response, mercury
OREGON, Ohio (WUPW) - Hazmat crews had to be brought in after a small mercury spill Monday at the Oregon Clinic on Navarre Avenue.
Oregon fire officials say that a blood pressure cuff fell off of a cart, onto the carpeting, and the mercury inside leaked out.
There were about 20 people inside of the clinic and they had to be evacuated for a short time.
---------------------------------------------
STUDENTS EVACUATED FROM MIDDLE SCHOOL
Tags: us_VA, education, release, response, unknown_chemical
WILLIAMSBURG=97
Students are back in class after a HAZMAT scare at Berkeley Middle School Tuesday morning.
Up to 15 classrooms of students were evacuated around 10:30 a.m. after a suspicious liquid was discovered in a bathroom in the school.
A Williamsburg-James City Schools spokesman said someone smelled a strong odor coming from one of the bathrooms, and that it was emanating from a small amount of unidentified liquid that had spilled onto the floor. He explained the Williamsburg Fire Department was called as a precaution and the classrooms evacuated. An evacuation of the entire school never occurred.
Police and firefighters responded to the discovery, relocating affected students to the gymnasium. The remainder of the building was declared safe.
A blast phone message to Berkeley parents from the school division said hazardous materials experts took readings in the vicinity of the bathroom, and there was no hazard present. Williamsburg Fire spokesman Eric Stone said the fire department cleared the scene at about 12:15p.m.
"We have have not identified the substance," he said. "The only thing I can tell you is that it is a non-hazardous liquid."
Stone said the fire marshall had opened an investigation, but that authorities are satisfied with the determination that the liquid was not hazardous. No further action or investigation will be pursued.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT TEAM CALLED TO SUMNER BUSINESS AFTER EMPLOYEE GETS SICK
Tags: us_WA, industrial, release, injury, cleaners
An employee at a Sumner business was hospitalized today after inhaling possibly hazardous chemicals, fire officials said.
The Pierce County Hazardous Materials Incident Team was called to Northwest Health Care Linen at 3107 142nd Avenue East just before noon after a worker became ill while handling linens from a hospital.
The hazmat team evacuated nearby businesses as a precaution and investigated the scene.
East Pierce Fire & Rescue Chief Jim Jaques said the illness was likely caused by several mop heads coated with cleaning chemicals.
---------------------------------------------
COPS: NY TEENS THREW BOTTLE BOMB INTO APT. COMPLEX
Tags: us_NY, public, explosion, response, bomb
ONTARIO, N.Y. =97 Authorities have charged two teenagers with tossing an explosive chemical bottle bomb into a crowded senior citizens center in western New York.
The Wayne County Sheriff's Office says two 16-year-old boys went to the Brown Square Village in the town of Ontario and threw a plastic bottle containing noxious chemicals into the common area of the complex where residents gather to socialize.
Deputies say a resident kicked the bottle outside before it exploded.
The teens were charged with reckless endangerment and unlawfully possessing noxious material. They were released on appearance tickets.
Authorities say the bottle contained ingredients which when mixed can cause a chemical reaction resulting in an explosion.
---------------------------------------------
HIGH SCHOOL LAB SAFETY
Tags: us_MN, laboratory, explosion, injury, methanol, follow-up
AUSTIN, MN--After a dangerous accident early this month in a high school chemistry class, other teachers are talking safety.
Science teachers at Austin High School say most lab accidents can be prevented with basic safety equipment.
In maple grove, an explosion happened, burning students badly, when a teacher dropped a match in methanol.
But locally, the accident wouldn't happened because chemical experiments are done under a special hood, keeping fumes and fires away from students and teachers.
Science Teacher Mark Raymond says, "Demonstrations need to be done in a supervised manner in which the safety of all students and staff can be guaranteed. In this particular case there was a lapse in judgment".
Raymond says some experiments are declined locally if they are deemed unsafe and that every teacher should know the volatility of the materials they work with.
---------------------------------------------
MINN. SCHOOL SAFETY PROCEDURES
Tags: us_MN, laboratory, explosion, injury, flammables, follow-up
(ABC 6 NEWS) -- It's been nearly two weeks after a high school science experiment ended in a tragic accident.
In Maple Grove, four students were injured after their teacher mixed flammable liquids which then exploded.
Since then, schools across the state are reviewing their safety procedures.
Inside your everyday middle school science lab, you've got the basics, your fire extinguisher, your safety goggles. However, inside science teacher Corey Doranck's lab, a brand new safety feature is a little harder to see, they're tables.
"It'll be safe now to have the cords plugged in here," Corey Doranck said.
Before these tables, cords were plugged in at wall outlets clogging walkways for students.
Not only do these tables alleviate that problem, but since they're smaller, they create more space.
Experts say not having enough space to safely conduct experiments is the leading cause of science lab accidents.
---------------------------------------------
FIRE DESTROYS METAL PLATING BUSINESS, FIREFIGHTERS DECONTAMINATED
Tags: us_CO, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical
LONGMONT - It could be quite some time before authorities know what started a fire at a metal plating business on Monday morning.
Firefighters from seven different agencies fought the blaze near Nelson Road in the 9800 block of 65th Street. The building is home to Colorado Precision Plating - which is a company that puts chrome on metal. Authorities say there were large amounts of chemicals inside, making for a very dangerous situation.
The fire started around 7 a.m., and as of 5 p.m. on Monday, there was still smoke and occasional flames coming from the building. Firefighters say the building is still very hot, and no one has been cleared to go inside.
---------------------------------------------
'IRRITANT' SPRAY CLEARS CITY SCHOOL
Tags: us_NY, education, release, response, irritant
SCHENECTADY =97 Mont Pleasant Middle School was evacuated Monday afternoon when someone unleashed what the fire chief described as a "respiratory irritant" in a first-floor hallway, according to police and school officials. The incident occurred at 2:45 p.m. after school had already been dismissed, officials said.
Even though a staff member reported the substance to be pepper spray, the chief said the fire department's HAZMAT team couldn't confirm that the gas was the foul-smelling substance after conducting tests.
"We cannot prove it was pepper spray but it may have been something similar to it," Schenectady Fire Chief Michael Della Rocco said. "We haven't been able to determine what the substance was but it did dissipate."
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT CLEANUP CONTINUES ON I-70
Tags: us_CO, transportation, release, environmental, unknown_chemical
PALISADE, Colo. -- Drivers on I-70 should expect delays as environmental crews clean up a three-mile long spill near Palisade.
We're told the fracking fluid was leaked by a Baker Hughes truck sometime last week. We have tried to get in contact with the company about what chemical was spilled and when, but our inquiries have gone unanswered.
During the day as crews clean up, the right hand lane of westbound traffic will be closed along that stretch. CDOT is not sure how long the delays will last, but it hopes to have a better idea Tuesday.
---------------------------------------------
FIREFIGHTERS CONTAIN CHEMICAL LEAK IN TENN.
Tags: us_TN, industrial, release, response, ammonia
MILLINGTON, Tenn. =97 A leaky valve connecting two ammonia tanks at Osmose, a wood-preservation plant on Fite Road, brought more than 20 Shelby County firefighters to the Millington-area plant after neighbors complained of breathing difficulties Thursday.
Shelby County Fire Department public information officer Brent Perkins said there were no injuries, and those who had noticed the ammonia odor at about 6:10 p.m. were monitored for blood pressure, heart rate and other vital signs. No one required treatment, Perkins said.
The leak was not significant enough to evacuate either the plant at 3450 Fite Road or any surrounding areas, Perkins said. Fire department personnel then used sensors to evaluate the area surrounding Fite and Woodstock roads .
---------------------------------------------
UC BERKELEY CAMPUS BUILDING REOPENS AFTER DIESEL SPILL
Tags: us_CA, education, release, environmental, diesel
BERKELEY, Calif. (KGO) -- Stanley Hall on the UC Berkeley campus has reopened after it was the source of a massive diesel fuel spill that reached all the way to the Bay over the weekend.
The emergency was caused by some sort of malfunction with a tank feeding fuel to the emergency generator basement. The diesel then made it out of Stanley Hall due to the pumps in the basement that remove natural water that often collects. About 100 students were immediately evacuated from the building. Crews quickly started siphoning the fuel from the basement with large pumping trucks.
"The agencies are telling us that it was a very small fraction that made its way into the bay, unfortunately," said Mark Freiberg with the Office of Environmental Health and Safety.
---------------------------------------------
