From: DCHAS Membership Chair <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (13 articles)
Date: Wed, 14 Feb 2018 08:07:44 -0500
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU>
Message-ID: FB6A6210-8AF7-4CD0-995D-82142E374BAB**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


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Table of Contents (13 articles)

DRIVER INJURED AS ACID-LADEN TRUCK SKIDS " BORNEOPOST ONLINE
Tags: Indonesia, transportation, release, injury, sulfuric_acid

MR SCANNER LEAKS HELIUM AT JFK DURING TRANSPORT
Tags: us_NY, transportation, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical

CIRCULAR QUAY FIRE: WORKER"S BLOWTORCH IDENTIFIED AS CAUSE OF BLAZE
Tags: Australia, industrial, explosion, response, acetylene

MANY AGENCIES INVESTIGATING BOTTLES RELATED TO POSSIBLE METH PRODUCTION
Tags: us_CO, public, discovery, response, clandestine_lab

CHEMICAL SMELL FORCED EVACUATION OF BROOKLAWN SCHOOL MONDAY
Tags: us_NJ, education, release, response, adhesives

OFFICIALS INVESTIGATING HAZMAT INCIDENT IN ROXBURY HIGH SCHOOL LAB
Tags: us_MA, laboratory, release, response, unknown_chemical

CHEMICAL LEAK RESPONSIBLE FOR EXPLOSION IN SHIPYARD: CMD
Tags: India, industrial, follow-up, death, acetylene, oxygen

STATE LEGISLATURES TACKLE TOXIC CHEMICALS AS PRUITT EPA FALTERS
Tags: us_OR, public, discovery, environmental, toxics

GLOBAL CANCER AGENCY"S FUNDING IN THE CROSSHAIRS
Tags: public, follow-up, environmental, ag_chems

MERGED LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST DUPONT AND CHEMOURS IN NORTH CAROLINA
Tags: us_NC, public, follow-up, response, other_chemical

TRUCK CARRYING HYDROGEN TANKS CATCHES FIRE, CAUSES EVACUATIONS IN DIAMOND BAR
Tags: us_ca, transportation, fire, response, hydrogen

MAJOR FIRE AT SCRAP MARKET IN MUMBAI, NONE INJURED
Tags: india, fire, industrial, response, unknown_chemical

STATE SENATE VOTES TO LARGELY PROHIBIT SALE OF FIREFIGHTING FOAM LINKED TO WATER POLLUTION IN WASHINGTON
Tags: us_wa, discovery, public, environmental, toxics


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DRIVER INJURED AS ACID-LADEN TRUCK SKIDS " BORNEOPOST ONLINE
https://www.theborneopost.com/2018/02/14/driver-injured-as-acid-laden-truck-skids/
Tags: Indonesia, transportation, release, injury, sulfuric_acid

BEAUFORT: A truck driver was slightly injured when he lost of control his vehicle while transporting sulphuric acid along Mile 2.5 Beaufort-Sipitang Road on Monday.

District police chief DSP Azmir Abd Razak said the 33-year-old driver was transporting 32 barrels of 800 liters of sulphuric acid from Sabah Forestry Industry (SFI) to Sepanggar Port in Kota Kinabalu when the 5.10pm incident happened.

"Investigation reveals the driver lost control of the wheel, causing the truck to skid on the road before landing on its side.

"This causes spillage of the liquid onto the road.

"Police were forced to close both ends of the road for safety purposes," he said, adding that the incident also caused two kilometres of traffic jam.

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MR SCANNER LEAKS HELIUM AT JFK DURING TRANSPORT
https://www.dotmed.com/news/story/41574
Tags: us_NY, transportation, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical

A team of hazmat professionals were called in at John F. Kennedy International Airport this weekend when a damaged MR machine began leaking hazardous gases.

The incident occurred around 7 p.m. Saturday, February 10 at building 23, a cargo facility for Asiana Airlines. The machine in question "was being transported, fell, and was punctured" and began "leaking helium refrigerated liquid," Joe Pentangelo, senior police public information officer at JFK, told HCB News.

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CIRCULAR QUAY FIRE: WORKER"S BLOWTORCH IDENTIFIED AS CAUSE OF BLAZE
http://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/news/blowtorch-identified-as-the-cause-of-huge-sydney-blaze/news-story/2964a3cbf805966ae6a2966bce385b4a
Tags: Australia, industrial, explosion, response, acetylene

A WORKER"S blowtorch caused a dramatic construction site blaze in Sydney"s CBD yesterday which forced the evacuation of thousands of workers as gas bottles exploded.
The Circular Quay inferno, which sent plumes of toxic black smoke and caused "fireballs" to fall from the sky, raged through a 10-storey building on a demolition site at about 8.45am. Fire & Rescue NSW extinguished the fire just before 12pm, but it still caused huge delays all day for CBD commuters.
Now, fire investigators have tracked the cause of the blaze to one of the construction workers" oxyacetylene blowtorches, according to a Fire and Rescue NSW spokesman.
The fire is thought to have erupted on a lower level caused by stray embers from a blow torch cutting through steel. The flames quickly spread up the plastic mesh screening surrounding the scaffolding.

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MANY AGENCIES INVESTIGATING BOTTLES RELATED TO POSSIBLE METH PRODUCTION
https://www.aspendailynews.com/news/many-agencies-investigating-bottles-related-to-possible-meth-production/article_10452ff6-113e-11e8-a21b-b72cba46ec3e.html
Tags: us_CO, public, discovery, response, clandestine_lab

Federal authorities are now part of the investigation into mysterious bottles found in the Roaring Fork River and on its banks between Basalt and Carbondale, containers a Basalt police officer said are likely the result of the production of methamphetamine.

Since Jan. 24, Basalt police have confiscated or been alerted to the discovery of over 50 bottles, 35 of which were turned over to a U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency disposal team, said Basalt Sgt. Joe Gasper. The Garfield County Sheriff"s Office sent out a press release Tuesday warning the public to not open the containers, as the contents "are hazardous to human health."

But what those contents are remained unclear Tuesday, and Gasper said the DEA, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the Colorado Bureau of Investigations are trying to solve that issue through testing.

The bottles are heavily duct-taped, though there is, on most of the vessels, an open space through which the contents can be viewed, he said.

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CHEMICAL SMELL FORCED EVACUATION OF BROOKLAWN SCHOOL MONDAY
https://patch.com/new-jersey/parsippany/chemical-smell-forced-evacuation-brooklawn-school-monday
Tags: us_NJ, education, release, response, adhesives

PARSIPPANY, NJ " Brooklawn Middle School was evacuated Monday afternoon after a chemical smell was detected, Parsippany Police told Patch.

A "noxious odor" was found coming from the ventilation system around 3:15 p.m., police said. Students and staff had already already evacuated for pick-up by the time first responders arrived.

After an investigation, police found the cause of the smell: a roofing adhesive used during repairs earlier into the day had cause the HVAC system to smell. The school was ventilated and deemed safe.

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OFFICIALS INVESTIGATING HAZMAT INCIDENT IN ROXBURY HIGH SCHOOL LAB
https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2018/02/13/officials-investigating-hazmat-incident-roxbury-high-school-lab/QZL1HZF1qM6tUf41oh2hzL/story.html
Tags: us_MA, laboratory, release, response, unknown_chemical

A Roxbury high school classroom was evacuated after a small chemical accident Tuesday morning, a fire official said.

A "very minimal amount" of chemicals was spilled in a Madison Park Technical Vocational High School lab around 11 a.m., Boston Fire Department spokesman Marc Sanders said. Officials have yet to determine the substance, but it does not appear to be toxic, he said.

"It doesn"t seem to be a major incident," he said. "We were notified as a precautionary measure."

A staff member who was in the classroom during the spill reported dizziness and lightheadedness, said Daniel O"Brien, Boston Public Schools spokesman, but the person was quickly evaluated by Boston EMS services and seems to be fine.

The classroom was an active scene as of 12 p.m. Officials are investigating the incident

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CHEMICAL LEAK RESPONSIBLE FOR EXPLOSION IN SHIPYARD: CMD
http://www.uniindia.com/chemical-leak-responsible-for-explosion-in-shipyard-cmd/states/news/1137325.html
Tags: India, industrial, follow-up, death, acetylene, oxygen

Kochi, Feb 13 (UNI) Chemical leak was the reason behind the explosion in the shipyard in which five labourers were killed and 11 injured, Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) Chairman and Managing Director Madhu S Nair said on Tuesday.

Informing this at a media conference here, he said the CSL has announced a compensation of Rs ten lakh each to those who lost their lives in the explosion.

"'The explosion took place while changing the steel plates in the tank.
Acetylene and oxygen were used to cut through the metallic parts of the tank, and every day we make sure that there is no trace of these chemicals in the tank.
Even today, we made sure that there was no trace of these chemicals in the tank before changing the plates.

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STATE LEGISLATURES TACKLE TOXIC CHEMICALS AS PRUITT EPA FALTERS
http://saferchemicals.org/newsroom/state-legislatures-tackle-toxic-chemicals-as-pruitt-epa-falters/
Tags: us_OR, public, discovery, environmental, toxics

(Portland, OR) " State legislatures across the country are stepping up to protect public health from harmful chemicals in an effort to fill gaps in chemical protections due to inaction by the US EPA, according to an analysis of state policies by Safer States. The analysis found that at least 23 states will consider 112 policies to limit exposures to toxic chemicals, including bans on nonstick PFAS chemicals and toxic flame retardants. The analysis, including a searchable state toxics policy database, is available online at saferstates.com/bill-tracker/.

Despite an overhaul to the nation"s primary chemical safety law in 2016 that was intended to fix the broken chemical regulatory system, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has largely failed to take meaningful action to restrict toxic chemicals. For example, in the last year, the EPA rewrote a rule to make it more difficult to track the health impacts of PFOA, a chemical linked to cancer and other health effects, despite its presence in the drinking water of over 6 million Americans. The agency has also shelved plans to regulate a deadly chemical in some paint strippers despite increasing reports of fatalities associated with the use of the chemical.

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GLOBAL CANCER AGENCY"S FUNDING IN THE CROSSHAIRS
https://cen.acs.org/articles/96/i7/Global-cancer-agencys-funding-crosshairs.html
Tags: public, follow-up, environmental, ag_chems

Republican leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives are threatening to withhold funding from the World Health Organization"s cancer research arm, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). The U.S. provides about $2.0 million, or about 7.4% of IARC"s annual budget.
At issue is a 2015 IARC assessment that classifies the widely used herbicide glyphosate as a probable carcinogen. Glyphosate is the active ingredient in Monsanto"s Roundup and many other generic herbicide formulations. IARC"s assessment led to lawsuits against Monsanto and an uproar last year in the European Union over whether to continue allowing use of the herbicide.
The agrochemical industry and its allies in Congress are intensifying an attack on IARC and its glyphosate assessment. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas), chair of the House Science Committee, held a hearing on Feb. 6 to examine what he says are "serious problems with the science underlying IARC"s assessment of glyphosate." The director of IARC, Christopher Wild, declined the committee"s invitation to provide a witness for the hearing

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MERGED LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST DUPONT AND CHEMOURS IN NORTH CAROLINA
https://cen.acs.org/articles/96/i7/Merged-lawsuit-filed-against-DuPont.html
Tags: us_NC, public, follow-up, response, other_chemical

Lawyers have filed a new class-action lawsuit against DuPont and Chemours claiming that a plant run by the two firms contaminated the Cape Fear River in North Carolina with fluorosurfactants. The river is a source of drinking water for much of the southeast part of the state (see page 28).
The filing, made late last month, consolidates and updates three class-action suits filed since October by lawyers representing thousands of people who claim they are ill or could get ill because they drank water from the Cape Fear River and from wells surrounding the plant, now run by DuPont spin-off Chemours. A judge in the U.S. federal district court in Wilmington, N.C., ordered the consolidation in early January to streamline the effort to try claims.
The consolidated suit charges that DuPont dumped potentially toxic fluorosurfactants from the Fayetteville, N.C., plant starting in the 1980s. It also claims that DuPont knew as far back as the 1960s that some of those compounds, such as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), had toxic effects on laboratory animals.

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TRUCK CARRYING HYDROGEN TANKS CATCHES FIRE, CAUSES EVACUATIONS IN DIAMOND BAR
https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Truck-Carrying-Hydrogen-Tanks-Catches-Fire-Causes-Evacuations-in-Diamond-Bar-473746073.html
Tags: us_ca, transportation, fire, response, hydrogen

A fire in a truck carrying compressed hydrogen tanks caused the evacuation of people initially in a one-mile radius area of suburban Diamond Bar Sunday, and a county HazMat team was sent to the scene because of the danger of an explosion.
The fire broke out on the truck at about 1:20 p.m. at the intersection of South Brea Canyon Road and Golden Springs Drive, according to a Los Angeles County Fire Department dispatcher. That location is just south of the Riverside (60) Freeway and west of the Orange (57) Freeway, but traffic on that freeway was not impeded.
The CHP reported witnesses heard a small explosion.
County fire then dispatched a HazMat team to the site because of the possibility of an explosion, the dispatcher said. The truck was carrying about 20 tanks of hydrogen.

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MAJOR FIRE AT SCRAP MARKET IN MUMBAI, NONE INJURED
http://gkmen.com/2018/02/11/major-fire-at-scrap-market-in-mumbai-none-injured/
Tags: india, fire, industrial, response, unknown_chemical

A fire broke out near a scrapyard in Mumbai's Mankhurd area on Sunday morning, The Times of India reported. Latest reports suggest that the flames have spread to nearby godowns. The photos, taken from the site show large plumes of black smoke rising into the sky, but no casualties have been reported as yet.
The cause of the fire has not been ascertained.
Earlier on Saturday, a blaze erupted in the Rustomjee Seasons, an under-construction building in Bandra East.
Mumbai Police said, "All Officer and Staff of Fire Brigade and Police officials of Mankhurd Police Station are on spot for further support". Another incident happened at the third floor of the sessions court building.

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STATE SENATE VOTES TO LARGELY PROHIBIT SALE OF FIREFIGHTING FOAM LINKED TO WATER POLLUTION IN WASHINGTON
http://tdn.com/news/state-and-regional/state-senate-votes-to-largely-prohibit-sale-of-firefighting-foam/article_10fd4712-375b-5e6d-be1b-29a01dfac2bc.html
Tags: us_wa, discovery, public, environmental, toxics

The state Senate passed legislation Saturday to sharply restrict the sale of a class of firefighting foams linked to water pollution in Washington and elsewhere in the nation.

State Senate Bill 6413, approved 39-8, would largely prohibit " as of 2020 " the sale of firefighting foams containing polyfluoroalkyl and perfluoroalkyl chemicals " known as PFAS.

Those chemicals have been in found in some drinking-water wells on Whidbey Island, Issaquah, Joint Base Lewis-McChord and Airway Heights near Fairchild Air Force Base.

"Hopefully, with this bill passing, we will limit future contamination," said Sen. Kevin Van De Wege, a Sequim Democrat who sponsored the bill.

If the bill passes both chambers, Washington would become the first state to restrict the sale of firefighting foams with PFAS, said Ivy Sager-Rosenthal of Toxic-Free Future, a group that advocated for the bill.

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