From: Secretary ACS DCHAS <secretary**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] CHAS Tweets and Chemical Safety headlines (9 articles)
Date: Fri, 11 Jul 2014 07:19:11 -0400
Reply-To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Message-ID: 7A87F30D-19F4-410A-BFB7-860D36611BAD**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


**At_Symbol_Here**ACSDCHAS and **At_Symbol_Here**LabSustain tweets and Chemical Safety Headlines
Links to the headlines below can be found at the http://www.dchas.org/newsflash

Table of Contents (9 articles)

OFFICIALS: CHEMICAL IGNITES SMALL FIRE
Tags: us_VA, laboratory, fire, response, other_chemical

CHEMICAL FROM WATER CRISIS MAY HAVE BEEN MORE TOXIC THAN FIRST THOUGHT
Tags: us_WV, industrial, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical

HAZMAT PROMPTS EVACUATIONS IN PHILLIPSBURG, NEW JERSEY
Tags: us_NJ, public, fire, response, meth_lab

HAZMAT TEAM HANDLES AMMONIA LEAK WITHOUT INCIDENT
Tags: Canada, public, release, response, ammonia, gas_cylinders

WALGREENS IN NEW HAVEN REOPENS AFTER CHEMICAL SPILL; 4 EMPLOYEES HOSPITALIZED
Tags: us_CT, public, release, injury, phenol

HOUSEHOLD MIXTURE LEADS TO HAZMAT RESPONSE
Tags: us_WV, industrial, release, injury, waste

CHEMICAL LEAKED INTO ARKANSAS RIVER
Tags: us_KS, industrial, fire, environmental, water_treatment

HANFORD OFFICIALS SAY THOUSANDS OF AIR SAMPLES FIND NO SIGN OF CHEMICAL VAPORS
Tags: us_WA, industrial, release, injury, unknown_chemical

JFRD EXTINGUISHES WAREHOUSE FIRE SOUTH OF JAX AIRPORT
Tags: us_FL, industrial, fire, response, metals


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OFFICIALS: CHEMICAL IGNITES SMALL FIRE

Tags: us_VA, laboratory, fire, response, other_chemical

A chemical fire at Virdia, 228 Slayton Ave., brought 19 Danville firefighters out to put out the fire in the company?s laboratory ? and to figure out which chemical sparked the blaze at about 12:30 p.m. Thursday.
When firefighters arrived, they found smoke in the building and the fire being held in check by the building?s sprinkler system.
The fire itself was quickly put out with a portable extinguisher, but it became apparent that chemicals were involved in the fire and firefighters remained for about two-and-a-half hours to determine which chemicals were involved.
It was determined Hydonol ? a chemical used to in preparing agrochemicals ? was involved in igniting the fire, which also ignited nearby papers.
Firefighters also ventilated smoke from the building, monitored air qualify and helped remove water from the building, once it was safe to do so.
Virdia is located in the Sustainable Energy Technology Center (SENTEC) building at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research?s campus.

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CHEMICAL FROM WATER CRISIS MAY HAVE BEEN MORE TOXIC THAN FIRST THOUGHT

Tags: us_WV, industrial, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - A new study shows a chemical that spilled into West Virginia's biggest drinking water supply in January could be more toxic than a previous test indicated.

University of South Alabama researcher Andrew Whelton released findings Thursday from crude MCHM toxicity tests on freshwater fleas.

Results indicate it takes much less exposure for the chemical to be toxic to fleas than a 1998 study showed. Eastman Chemical, crude MCHM's manufacturer, conducted the older study.

Whelton unsuccessfully tried to replicate Eastman's results three times.

He said the tests are far removed from directly applying to human exposure.

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HAZMAT PROMPTS EVACUATIONS IN PHILLIPSBURG, NEW JERSEY

Tags: us_NJ, public, fire, response, meth_lab

A hazardous materials incident involving a chemical smell forced the evacuation of people from their homes in a Phillipsburg, New Jersey, neighborhood.

Emergency crews were dispatched around 2 p.m. Thursday to an apartment house in the 700 block of South Main Street in the Warren County town, according to Chief James Faulborn, Phillipsburg Police Department.

While the incident was reported to involve a suspected meth lab, Phillipsburg Police have issued a statement saying that the report was of a chemical smell coming from an apartment building.

Police say no hazardous materials were found inside the building.

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HAZMAT TEAM HANDLES AMMONIA LEAK WITHOUT INCIDENT

Tags: Canada, public, release, response, ammonia, gas_cylinders

WINSLOE ? Roads were closed and businesses were evacuated following a chemical leak Thursday at Armour Transportation.

Charlottetown Deputy Fire Chief Tim Mamye says members of Station 2 in Sherwood and the provincial Hazmat team were on scene for almost five hours.

The call came in at 9:35 a.m. about an ammonia leak in a 35.4 kilogram cylinder.

"Once we arrived on scene we immediately evacuated and isolated the area ?Hazmat 100 metres in all directions,'' Mamye said, referring to standard procedure as set out in the emergency response guidebook for a small ammonia leak.

"Once we have that isolated and evacuated it was more of support and we continued to evaluate the incident until we have the Hazmat team set up and appropriately dressed for entry.''

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WALGREENS IN NEW HAVEN REOPENS AFTER CHEMICAL SPILL; 4 EMPLOYEES HOSPITALIZED

Tags: us_CT, public, release, injury, phenol

NEW HAVEN >> A chemical spill at the Walgreens on York Street Wednesday sent four employees to the hospital and prompted an evacuation of the store.
....
Fire Chief Allyn Wright said the four employees became light-headed and experienced dizziness, nausea and vomiting. He said the spill started inside the store, but employees brought the chemicals outside.

No customers were harmed, Wright said.

Just before 2 p.m. Wright said three of the affected employees remained at the hospital. About the same time, he said that the area has been deemed ?not hazardous.?
....
City spokesman Laurence Grotheer said the substances were phenol, eucalyptus and liquid aspirin.

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HOUSEHOLD MIXTURE LEADS TO HAZMAT RESPONSE

Tags: us_WV, industrial, release, injury, waste

HUNTINGTON ?Emergency crews have left the scene and roads have been reopened after responding to a potential hazardous material situation in the southeast hills section of Huntington.

Cabell County 911 received word of the incident at 11:40 a.m. Wednesday of two workers in the city's sanitation department becoming ill after exposure to a gas emitted from some of the trash that had been compacted in the garbage truck. They were treated and were not hospitalized.

Meanwhile, Holswade Drive and Cherry Avenue were closed while the Huntington Fire Department investigated the area, concluding that a resident likely threw out both bleach and ammonia in the trash, which were combined after being compacted in the truck. The combination of the two emitted dangerous fumes, said Bryan Chambers, spokesman for the city of Huntington.

Residents are urged not to throw out potent household chemicals without heavily diluting them with water, he said.

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CHEMICAL LEAKED INTO ARKANSAS RIVER

Tags: us_KS, industrial, fire, environmental, water_treatment

WICHITA, Kan. -
The City of Wichita says a chemical used in the water treatment process leaked into the Arkansas River early Wednesday morning. It happened near downtown.

City officials say the chemical, known as ferric sulfate, leaked through a corroded drain pipe at the treatment plant. Ferric sulfate is used to settle out particles in untreated water as it flows into the plant.

The Kansas Department of Health & Environment was contacted and said the leak does not pose a threat to the public.

The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks & Tourism was also contacted due to a fish kill that resulted due to the leak.

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HANFORD OFFICIALS SAY THOUSANDS OF AIR SAMPLES FIND NO SIGN OF CHEMICAL VAPORS

Tags: us_WA, industrial, release, injury, unknown_chemical

RICHLAND, Wash. ? About 12,000 air samples taken on the Hanford Nuclear Reservation this year after more than three dozen workers reported being sickened by chemical vapors have failed to find a cause for the problem, Hanford officials said Wednesday.

But Hanford officials said that doesn't mean that workers aren't getting sick.

"Our workers are not exposed to vapors, but they are having symptoms," said Tom Fletcher of the U.S. Department of Energy, which manages Hanford. "The question is: 'Why?' "

"This isn't something we are taking lightly," Fletcher said.

None of the 12,000 air samples taken this year showed chemical levels above occupational-exposure limits, Fletcher said. In fact, more than 50,000 air samples dating back to 2007 found no chemical exposure above the allowable limits, he said.

Hanford officials are hoping an investigation being conducted by the Savannah River National Laboratory might shed light on what is causing the illnesses. A draft of that report is due by October.

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JFRD EXTINGUISHES WAREHOUSE FIRE SOUTH OF JAX AIRPORT

Tags: us_FL, industrial, fire, response, metals

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. ? The Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department on Wednesday night extinguished a fire at a warehouse off of Duval Road southeast of Jacksonville International Airport.

Firefighters say a hopper full of aluminum caught fire and the flames spread into the warehouse of Enkei Florida, located at 1401 Wheels Road. A hazmat team responded to the scene.

Employees called for help around 9:20 p.m. and evacuated the building. No injuries were reported as a result of the fire.

Firefighters said the fire is all metal, so it was difficult to extinguish and was spreading at one point. JFRD had to call for metal-x extinguishers for metal-specific fires. Crews were flowing water into the machinery to lower the temperature.

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