From: DCHAS Membership Chair <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (10 articles)
Date: Fri, 2 Mar 2018 07:24:19 -0500
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU>
Message-ID: 6BE91178-4C78-43A5-9592-90888C60558E**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


Article summaries are also available at http://pinboard.in/u:dchas

Table of Contents (10 articles)

MYSTERIOUS ODOR IN MIDTOWN SICKENS DOZENS OF SCHOOL GIRLS
Tags: us_TX, education, release, injury, unknown_chemical

RAMAPO HIGH SCHOOL EVACUATED FOLLOWING SCARE IN CHEMISTRY LAB
Tags: us_NY, laboratory, discovery, response, unknown_chemical

'HIGHLY TOXIC' CHEMICAL POSED SIGNIFICANT HEALTH RISK FOLLOWING BLOUNT COUNTY DERAILMENT, DOCTOR SAYS
Tags: us_TN, transportation, follow-up, injury, acrylonitrile

WACKER CITED FOR INCIDENT THAT LED TO CHEMICAL RELEASE
Tags: us_TN, industrial, follow-up, response, unknown_chemical

NOTRE DAME CLEARS BUILDING AFTER SMALL EXPLOSION IN LABORATORY
Tags: us_IN, laboratory, explosion, injury, acid

CANCER-CAUSING CHEMICAL FOUND IN SOME SANTA ROSA DRINKING WATER
Tags: us_CA, public, discovery, environmental, benzene

KANSAS MAN SUING AFTER E-CIG BATTERY CAUGHT FIRE IN POCKET
Tags: us_KS, public, explosion, injury, batteries

BUILDING EVACUATED AFTER CHEMICAL SPILLS IN LAB
Tags: us_GA, laboratory, release, response, other_chemical

CHEMICAL FIRE BURSTS IN CSULB ENGINEERING BUILDING, ONLY 1 INJURED
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, fire, injury, other_chemical

CHEMICAL RELEASE SENDS 11 OFFSET PAPERBACK WORKERS TO HOSPITAL AFTER EVACUATION
Tags: us_PA, industrial, release, injury, unknown_chemical


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

MYSTERIOUS ODOR IN MIDTOWN SICKENS DOZENS OF SCHOOL GIRLS
http://cw39.com/2018/03/01/mysterious-odor-in-midtown-sickens-dozens-of-school-girls/
Tags: us_TX, education, release, injury, unknown_chemical

HOUSTON - A mysterious odor at the Young Women's College Preparatory Academy near Midtown made dozens of students sick Thursday.

"A little bit before 10:30 a.m., some of students and staff started smelling an unusual odor," said HISD Spokesperson Tracy Clemons. "Some of our students reported feeling ill, and we evacuated the building as a precaution."

Students started to panic after seeing their friends faint.

"I saw a girl pass out," said one student. "I was freaking out."

"Some of my friends went to the hospital and I'm super scared right now," another student confessed.

In all, 51 students were taken to area hospitals with symptoms including dizziness, headache and nausea. As for what caused the putrid rotten egg smell, officials are stumped!

"At this point, HD hazmat has cleared the school," said HFD Spokesperson Sheldra Brigham. "We went in with meters, did the testing and didn't find any hazards."

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

RAMAPO HIGH SCHOOL EVACUATED FOLLOWING SCARE IN CHEMISTRY LAB
http://ramapo.dailyvoice.com/schools/ramapo-high-school-evacuated-following-scare-in-chemistry-lab/733664/
Tags: us_NY, laboratory, discovery, response, unknown_chemical

Ramapo High School students and staff received a scare on Thursday, after a chemical substance being removed from the chemistry lab forced an evacuation.

Officers from the Ramapo Police Department, local fire departments and a Rockland County Hazmat team were dispatched to the school on Thursday afternoon, when school officials called for an evacuation of the building due to the residue of an old chemical substance that was located when removing cabinets from the lab.

Officials said that the evacuation came about when a teacher discovered unlabeled chemicals, which had become crystallized. The bottles reportedly dated back decades.

The school was closed at approximately noon. No injuries were reported, though one staff member was hospitalized after breathing in the substance.

The incident is under investigation, police said. Motorists have been advised to avoid the area as crews continue investigating. This situation is ongoing, keep following Daily Voice for updates as they become available.

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

'HIGHLY TOXIC' CHEMICAL POSED SIGNIFICANT HEALTH RISK FOLLOWING BLOUNT COUNTY DERAILMENT, DOCTOR SAYS
http://www.citizentribune.com/news/state/highly-toxic-chemical-posed-significant-health-risk-following-blount-county/article_5d7a4f32-e891-546c-90de-d4822deb2064.html
Tags: us_TN, transportation, follow-up, injury, acrylonitrile

A chemist and medical doctor to whom state and federal agencies have turned for his expertise in toxic substances said a train derailment and chemical fire in Blount County nearly three years ago posed a significant health risk to residents.

The testimony from George C. Rodgers came Thursday in Knoxville"s U.S. District Court on the fourth day of a civil trial over the July 2015 derailment. Six Blount County residents are suing Union Tank Car Co. (UTC), which owned and manufactured the derailed car. They seek over $5 million in property damage and nuisance claims.

Chemical "highly toxic"

Rodgers, who obtained a doctorate in chemistry from Yale University and later earned a medical degree from State University of New York (SUNY), said officials rightly established an evacuation zone after a tank car carrying nearly 25,000 gallons of acrylonitrile derailed and caught fire.

"I think clearly there needed to be an evacuation with this," Rodgers said. "Acrylonitrile is highly toxic."

When it burns " in this case all 24,710 gallons burned for what"s been indicated in reports as a little over 20 hours " it produces cyanide, carbon monoxide and an irritant called nitrogen dioxide, Rodgers said.

"Acrylonitrile itself, in very low concentrations, is an irritant," Rodgers said. "If you inhale it, it does damage to your lungs, which can be permanent."

Furthermore, when the liver metabolizes acrylonitrile, it turns to cyanide, which can be lethal, he said.

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

WACKER CITED FOR INCIDENT THAT LED TO CHEMICAL RELEASE
http://www.dailypostathenian.com/news/article_ab670c2c-1d62-11e8-a4d8-10604b9f0ff8.html
Tags: us_TN, industrial, follow-up, response, unknown_chemical

Citations have been issued against an area industrial firm over an issue discovered last year.

On Monday, WACKER-Charleston received from the Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration (TOSHA) two citations pertaining to the inadvertent and unexpected release of chemicals during maintenance of removed process equipment on Aug. 30, 2017.

These citations are unrelated to the incident on Sept. 7, 2017, which resulted in the temporary shutdown of the facility while repairs can be made. WACKER officials expect to receive separate findings from TOSHA regarding the Sept. 7, 2017 incident in the near future.

The citations issued by TOSHA relate primarily to protective clothing, procedures, and hazard analysis pertaining to the maintenance activities on certain process equipment. WACKER has been working in recent months to continuously improve its safety program.

According to officials, many of the concerns have already been or are in the process of being addressed. WACKER will carefully and diligently study and respond to the concerns raised by TOSHA.

WACKER official noted they take seriously the responsibility for the safety of its team members and community. That responsibility will continue to guide WACKER as it prepares to move forward, they continued.

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

NOTRE DAME CLEARS BUILDING AFTER SMALL EXPLOSION IN LABORATORY
http://cbs4indy.com/2018/02/26/notre-dame-clears-building-after-small-explosion-in-laboratory/
Tags: us_IN, laboratory, explosion, injury, acid

Authorities evacuated an academic building at the University of Notre Dame following a small chemical explosion in a laboratory.

University spokesman Dennis Brown says the explosion occurred Monday morning on the third floor of the Stinson-Remick Hall of Engineering.

He says "a staff member was working with some acidic solutions and there was a small explosion. The acid washed up onto her so she was treated immediately."

Brown says the unidentified staff member was transported to a hospital as a precaution.

The building was expected to reopen later Monday.

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

CANCER-CAUSING CHEMICAL FOUND IN SOME SANTA ROSA DRINKING WATER
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2018/02/27/cancer-causing-chemical-detected-in-fountaingrove-drinking-water/
Tags: us_CA, public, discovery, environmental, benzene

Some drinking water in Santa Rosa remains undrinkable months after the North Bay fires, and pressure is mounting on the city"s water department to locate and control the cause.

"The city is very interested to get people back and rebuilt into their homes, of course, as soon as possible," says Bennett Horenstein, the City of Santa Rosa"s Water Director.

"This contamination is certainly attributable to the fire."
Bennett Horenstein, Santa Rosa Water Department
Fire savaged the neighborhood around Fountaingrove parkway last October. Where more than 350 families once lived, 13 homes remain standing. In November, people returning to the neighborhood complained of foul smelling and tasting water.

Engineers for Santa Rosa"s water department isolated water service for Fountaingrove, in an aim to prevent wider contamination. The department ordered residents not to drink or boil the water there. Then its tests found benzene, a chemical that can cause cancer.

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

KANSAS MAN SUING AFTER E-CIG BATTERY CAUGHT FIRE IN POCKET
http://www.kansas.com/news/local/crime/article202246854.html
Tags: us_KS, public, explosion, injury, batteries

A Derby man is suing a Wichita vaping shop after he says a spare battery for his e-cigarette exploded in the front pocket of his pants.

Daniel Anderson suffered chemical and thermal burns to his left leg and hands caused by fire and heat that rolled out of the lithium ion battery, which he bought from Big E"s Vapor Shop, according to a lawsuit filed Feb. 6 in Sedgwick County District Court.

"It was like a flame thrower. It just ignited and was a big ball of fire," said Wichita attorney Dustin DeVaughn, who is representing Anderson in the case.

Anderson was carrying the spare battery, his car keys and coins in his left front pocket of his pants the morning of Feb. 29, 2016, while he was at work. When the metal items touched, it caused a short to the outside of the battery.

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

BUILDING EVACUATED AFTER CHEMICAL SPILLS IN LAB
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/cobb-county/lab-evacuated-after-possible-chemical-reaction-causes-fire-officials-say/708158681
Tags: us_GA, laboratory, release, response, other_chemical

COBB COUNTY, Ga. - A laboratory in Cobb County was evacuated after a spill.

Investigators say Chemlink Laboratory on Royal Drive in Kennesaw reported spoke in the building Tuesday afternoon.

The lab manufactures high-performance adhesives, sealants, coatings and related products.

The Cobb County fire Department said sodium percarbonate, a product similar to that used to clean front loader washing machines, spilled. Something then caused the sprinklers to go off, which caused the diluted product to run.

The entire building was evacuated and Hazmat was called to the scene.

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

CHEMICAL FIRE BURSTS IN CSULB ENGINEERING BUILDING, ONLY 1 INJURED
http://www.signaltribunenewspaper.com/?p=36866
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, fire, injury, other_chemical

A chemical fire erupted in the Engineering and Computer Sciences (ECS) Building of California State University, Long Beach on Tuesday, Feb. 27, resulting in one injury and an evacuation, according to Jake Heflin, the public information officer for the Long Beach Fire Department (LBFD).

Heflin said the call was received at approximately 1:23pm.

Firefighters identified chemicals" lithium hydroxide and lithium in a solid state" inside of an unknown container. He said it is not clear as to why those chemicals were in the classroom, but he believes it was part of a school project or experiment.

"There was a reaction and a subsequent fire," Heflin said. Firefighters extinguished the fire at 1:50pm. The fire did not spread from inside the classroom where it started, however. Heflin said the room suffered from smoke damage and the sprinkler system was activated.

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

CHEMICAL RELEASE SENDS 11 OFFSET PAPERBACK WORKERS TO HOSPITAL AFTER EVACUATION
http://citizensvoice.com/news/chemical-release-sends-11-offset-paperback-workers-to-hospital-after-evacuation-1.2307135
Tags: us_PA, industrial, release, injury, unknown_chemical

DALLAS TWP. - Federal and state officials are investigating this morning"s chemical release at Offset Paperback Manufacturing that sent 11 employees to the hospital, a deputy fire chief who responded said Tuesday afternoon.

The facility along Memorial Highway was evacuated around 7:30 a.m. when employees fell ill from the release of a chemical commonly used in the printing industry, said Deputy Chief John Wilkes, of the Back Mountain Regional Fire and EMS.

Officials used a school bus to transport 11 employees to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital for non-life-threatening injuries, Wilkes said.

"Most were complaining of headaches and itchy skin," Wilkes said.

Members of Dallas Township and Luzerne County"s emergency management agencies responded to the scene.

A hazardous materials response team from Datom Products in Dunmore was called in to decontaminate the site.

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

---
For more information about the DCHAS-L e-mail list, contact the Divisional membership chair at membership**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Follow us on Twitter **At_Symbol_Here**acsdchas

Previous post   |  Top of Page   |   Next post



The content of this page reflects the personal opinion(s) of the author(s) only, not the American Chemical Society, ILPI, Safety Emporium, or any other party. Use of any information on this page is at the reader's own risk. Unauthorized reproduction of these materials is prohibited. Send questions/comments about the archive to secretary@dchas.org.
The maintenance and hosting of the DCHAS-L archive is provided through the generous support of Safety Emporium.