From: "Secretary, ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety" <secretary**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines from Google (10 articles)
Date: Mon, 15 Jul 2013 07:41:09 -0400
Reply-To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Message-ID: 4AA66ADA-7CE2-4D6A-8618-45E33037D127**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Monday, July 15, 2013 7:40:53 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 (10 articles)

TENANTS FRUSTRATED WITH HAZMAT INCIDENT
Tags: us_WI, public, release, response, sulfur_dioxide

WA MINING LAB FIRE, WORKERS EVACUATED
Tags: Australia, laboratory, fire, response

TANKER OVERTURNS SPILLING THOUSANDS OF GALLONS OF FUEL
Tags: us_VA, transportation, release, environmental, petroleum

CSB RELEASES PRELIMINARY FINDINGS FROM WEST, TX INVESTIGATION
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, death, ag_chems, ammonium_nitrate

2 CHEMICAL PLANT EMPLOYEES, 3 FIREFIGHTERS HURT IN MEMPHIS BLAZE
Tags: us_TN, industrial, fire, injury, flammables

HAZMAT INVESTIGATION FOR MEDICAL WASTE FOUND IN ROSSLYN
Tags: us_NJ, public, discovery, response, illegal, waste

HAZMAT INCIDENT IN DOWNTOWN KCMO
Tags: us_MO, public, release, response, chlorine

HAZMAT CREWS RESPOND TO CHEMICAL SPILL IN SANTA FE SPRINGS
Tags: us_CA, transportation, release, response, irritant

OFFICIAL: FLAWED TANKERS IN FATAL TRAIN DERAILMENT
Tags: Canada, transportation, follow-up, death

SKY NEWS: THREE IN HOSPITAL AFTER MAJOR FUEL SPILL
Tags: Australia, transportation, release, injury, petroleum


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TENANTS FRUSTRATED WITH HAZMAT INCIDENT
http://www.todaystmj4.com/news/local/215300021.html
Tags: us_WI, public, release, response, sulfur_dioxide

MILWAUKEE - Hazmat crews came running to an apartment complex when a sulfur dioxide leak was discovered. Inspectors say it's now safe for tenants to stay there, but that isn't easing any of their frustrations.

?My main concern was there was just no communication,? explains tenant Elizabeth Fincher. ?There was no communication from anybody it seemed.?

Elizabeth Fincher tells TODAY?S TMJ4 her landlord at first told her he thought it was safe to go back in the building. But after she asked him again later if it was safe, he said he didn?t know.

?Just not feeling safe, you can?t trade that,? shares Fincher.

She lives across the hall that had the leak and could smell it in her kitchen.

Friday, inspectors announced that tenants could come back inside. They stated they did air monitoring, and that everything was fine.

---------------------------------------------

WA MINING LAB FIRE, WORKERS EVACUATED
http://www.safetowork.com.au/news/wa-mining-lab-fire-workers-evacuated
Tags: Australia, laboratory, fire, response

A fire in an extraction filter at a commercial laboratory in Maddington has prompted the evacuation of about 50 workers.

The Fire Department and Emergency Services attended the fire at the Genalysis mineral analysis lab yesterday morning.

A company spokesperson told Safe to Work the fire was caused by a spark being sucked into the extraction system and that the company is looking at the filter design.

The fire took about half-an-hour to be extinguished and the spokesperson said it was a great response from the fire department and staff during the evacuation.

The fire caused minimal damage and the laboratory is back up and running ?business as usual? today.

The facility tests exploration samples of about 80 different elements including iron ore, zinc, and gold.

---------------------------------------------

TANKER OVERTURNS SPILLING THOUSANDS OF GALLONS OF FUEL
http://potomaclocal.com/2013/07/12/tanker-overturns-spilling-thousands-of-gallons-of-fuel/
Tags: us_VA, transportation, release, environmental, petroleum

BRISTOW, Va. ? With its left turn signal still flashing, an overturned tanker truck laid on its side in the intersection of Sudley Manor Road and Braemar Village Plaza in Bristow late Thursday night.

The truck overturned about 11 p.m. sending 8,500 gallons of motor fuel into the streets. The shopping center, anchored by a Safeway grocery store with a gas station, was evacuated. Prince William County officials also opened nearby Marsteller Middle School as a temporary shelter for residents who wanted to get away from the scene.

The truck appeared to be making a left turn into the shopping center when it overturned. Officials on the scene said the truck was occupied only by the driver, and that he was not seriously injured in the crash.

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CSB RELEASES PRELIMINARY FINDINGS FROM WEST, TX INVESTIGATION
http://www.aiha.org/publications-and-resources/TheSynergist/Industry%20News/Pages/CSB-Releases-Preliminary-Findings-from-West,-TX-Investigation.aspx
Tags: us_TX, industrial, follow-up, death, ag_chems, ammonium_nitrate

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has determined that the April 17 explosion at the West Fertilizer plant in Texas "resulted from an intense fire in a wooden warehouse building that led to the detonation of approximately 30 tons of [ammonium nitrate] stored inside in wooden bins." CSB reported that the building also contained significant amounts of combustible seeds, which likely contributed to the fire's intensity. These and other preliminary findings from CSB's investigation were recently released and are available on the agency's investigation page for the West, Texas, explosion.

The West Fertilizer explosion is "[a tragedy] of the kind that should be prevented," U.S. Chemical Safety Board Chairperson Rafael Moure-Eraso said during testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works last Thursday. The massive explosion and fire at the plant fatally injured 15 people and caused hundreds of other injuries.

---------------------------------------------

2 CHEMICAL PLANT EMPLOYEES, 3 FIREFIGHTERS HURT IN MEMPHIS BLAZE
http://www.tennessean.com/viewart/20130712/NEWS/307120104/2-chemical-plant-employees-3-firefighters-hurt-Memphis-blaze
Tags: us_TN, industrial, fire, injury, flammables

MEMPHIS ? Three firefighters and two employees of a Shelby County chemical plant were taken to hospitals after a fire at the plant.

Shelby County government spokesman Steve Shular said two members of the county fire department and one firefighter from the Memphis fire department were treated in the emergency room at Methodist North Hospital and released.

The plant employees were still under treatment Thursday night at the Regional Medical Center. One of them was airlifted from the plant.

Officials of Pollution Control Industries reported at about 4:30 p.m. Thursday that a fire had broken out in an area where flammable chemicals were stored.

---------------------------------------------

HAZMAT INVESTIGATION FOR MEDICAL WASTE FOUND IN ROSSLYN
http://www.arlnow.com/2013/07/11/hazmat-investigation-for-medical-waste-found-in-rosslyn/
Tags: us_NJ, public, discovery, response, illegal, waste

Authorities are trying to figure out why a box of old medical waste was left outside a hotel in Rosslyn this afternoon.
Police were first called around 3:00 p.m. to investigate a suspicious package, found next to a trash can outside Le Me´ridien hotel at 1121 19th Street N. Upon looking through the contents of the worn cardboard box, police discovered what was reported to be human waste.
Firefighters were then dispatched to the scene to conduct a hazardous materials investigation. They discovered sealed medical waste with labels indicating it was from 1985, according to Battalion Chief Daniel Fitch. Among the contents were blood and various needles.
?There was no leakage, no threatening note,? he said. ?I guess whoever dropped it off wanted it to be someone else?s problem.?
A duty fire marshal is remaining on scene to ensure that the waste is disposed of by a qualified contractor. So far, there?s no word of any suspects or criminal charges related to the incident.

---------------------------------------------

HAZMAT INCIDENT IN DOWNTOWN KCMO
http://www.kshb.com/dpp/traffic/police-called-to-possible-hazmat-incident-in-downtown-kcmo
Tags: us_MO, public, release, response, chlorine

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Police were called to a report of a hazmat incident at 712 Broadway in downtown Kansas City, Mo., Tuesday evening.

Authorities say a contractor working to install Google Fiber lines hit an underground chlorine storage unit to a hot tub where chlorine and other chemicals are stored.

A Google Fiber spokeswoman said contractors working on a sidewalk adjacent to a building caused a portion of the sidewalk to break apart, falling on top of pool cleaning supplies in a basement room of the building, which caused the leak.

The building was evacuated and officers shut down Broadway from 6th St. to 9th St.

Kansas City Fire Department crews removed four to five buckets of chlorine and fans were brought in to air out the building.

---------------------------------------------

HAZMAT CREWS RESPOND TO CHEMICAL SPILL IN SANTA FE SPRINGS
http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2013/07/11/hazmat-crews-respond-to-chemical-spill-in-santa-fe-springs/
Tags: us_CA, transportation, release, response, irritant

SANTA FE SPRINGS (CBSLA.com) ? HazMat crews Thursday investigated a chemical spill in Santa Fe Springs.

Fire officials were called to a trucking company in the 12000 block of Clark Street at 6:50 a.m., officials said.

A chemical spill inside a truck at a loading dock caused an irritant, which dissipates as it moves, to be released into the air, officials said.

The chemical can affect eyes, but was not considered deadly, according to authorities.

Local residents were asked to stay indoors, and businesses volunteered to keep employees inside while fire officials and HazMat crews worked on the situation.

---------------------------------------------

OFFICIAL: FLAWED TANKERS IN FATAL TRAIN DERAILMENT
http://www.chem.info/news/2013/07/official-flawed-tankers-fatal-train-derailment#.Ud_tXtIce5L
Tags: Canada, transportation, follow-up, death

TORONTO (AP) ? The lead Transportation Safety Board investigator says the rail tankers involved in a derailment and explosions that wiped out the heart of a small town in Quebec have a history of puncturing during accidents.

TSB investigator Donald Ross told The Associated Press in a telephone interview on Monday that the train that derailed in Lac-Megantic early Saturday killing at least 13 people had the DOT-111 tanker cars.

Ross says the Canada's TSB has gone on record that it would like to see improvements on these tankers. He says it's too early to say whether a different or modified tanker would have avoided this weekend's tragedy.

The DOT-111 is a staple of the American freight rail fleet. But its flaws have been noted as far back as a 1991 safety study.

---------------------------------------------

SKY NEWS: THREE IN HOSPITAL AFTER MAJOR FUEL SPILL
http://www.skynews.com.au/national/article.aspx?id=887254&vId=4052566
Tags: Australia, transportation, release, injury, petroleum

Three people are in hospital, including a firefighter, after 130,000 litres of fuel gushed from a tank at a Caltex terminal in Sydney.

Two Caltex workers were doused with fuel during routine maintenance on a valve about 1.30am (AEST) on Friday at the fuel terminal at Banksmeadow, in Sydney's south.

The pair was forced to flee the area before firefighters stepped in and turned off the valve, a NSW Fire and Rescue spokesman told AAP.

The fuel spill also injured a firefighter who was overcome with fumes. All three people were taken to hospital.

A major fire and environmental disaster were avoided since the fuel spilled into a 50m x 25m contained area next to the tank.

Hazmat crews applied a blanket of foam to the fuel and a 500m exclusion zone has been established until Caltex workers devise a plan to pump the fuel back into the tank.

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Ralph Stuart
secretary**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Secretary
Division of Chemical Health and Safety
American Chemical Society

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