From: DCHAS Membership Chair <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (9 articles)
Date: Wed, 19 Dec 2018 07:20:22 -0500
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU>
Message-ID: 762014BC-9BBA-4B24-BD87-2F685BF1A583**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Wednesday, December 19, 2018 at 7:20:09 AM

A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
Connecting Chemistry and Safety at http://www.dchas.org
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Table of Contents (9 articles)

CHEMICAL SMELL PROMPTS TEMPORARY EVACUATION OF UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA BUILDING
Tags: Canada, education, release, response, unknown_chemical

HAZMAT SPILL SNARLS TRAFFIC AT I-270/255 AND I-55
Tags: us_MO, transportation, release, response, corrosives

LEAKING PROPANE TANK IGNITES SMALL FIRE ON MAUI
Tags: us_HI, public, fire, response, gas_cylinders, propane

RESIDENTS VOICE CONCERNS OVER SMOLDERING BELLA VISTA STUMP DUMP AT CITY COUNCIL MEETING
Tags: us_AR, public, fire, response, other_chemical

EXPENSIVE NORTH HAVEN FIRE GEAR TO BE REPLACED AFTER CHEMICAL CONTAMINATION
Tags: us_CT, industrial, follow-up, environmental, runoff

TWO TEENS INJURED, ONE CRITICALLY, AFTER A CHEMICAL HUFFING EXPLOSION
Tags: New_Zealand, public, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical

FOOD SAFE AFTER WAWA HAZMAT SPILL, OFFICIALS SAY
Tags: us_PA, industrial, release, response, cleaners

MAKING OUR LABORATORIES SAFER
Tags: India, laboratory, follow-up, environmental, gas_cylinders

LOCAL NEWS: CHEMICAL LEAK AT BAINBRIDGE UTILITIES PROMPTS EVACUATIONS (12/16/18)
Tags: us_IN, public, release, response, chlorine


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CHEMICAL SMELL PROMPTS TEMPORARY EVACUATION OF UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA BUILDING
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/university-manitoba-evacuation-smell-1.4951484
Tags: Canada, education, release, response, unknown_chemical

University of Manitoba students and staff were forced outside Tuesday morning after a chemical odour raised concerns and drew hazmat inspectors to the south Winnipeg campus.

The university's human ecology building was evacuated just before 11 a.m. after reports of an "unusual smell," said U of M spokesperson John Danakas.

The building was deemed safe to re-enter after firefighters and a hazardous materials team cleared the HVAC system, according to a City of Winnipeg spokesperson.

The cause of the smell was never determined, the city said.

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HAZMAT SPILL SNARLS TRAFFIC AT I-270/255 AND I-55
https://fox2now.com/2018/12/18/hazmat-spill-snarls-traffic-at-i-55-and-i-255/
Tags: us_MO, transportation, release, response, corrosives

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. ‰?? Hazmat crews responded to a hazardous material spill on the interstate in south St. Louis County.

According to the Missouri Department of Transportation, the spill occurred at Interstate 55 and I-255/270 interchange.

Ramps from northbound and southbound I-55 to I-270 were combined into one lane. Two lanes were closed on I-270.

The Mehlville fire chief said the spill was a mild corrosive and it would take several hours to clean up.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol said two lanes would likely remain closed through most of the evening rush hour.

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LEAKING PROPANE TANK IGNITES SMALL FIRE ON MAUI
http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2018/12/19/leaking-propane-tank-ignites-small-fire-maui/
Tags: us_HI, public, fire, response, gas_cylinders, propane

KIHEI (HawaiiNewsNow) - Firefighters on Maui were called out Monday night to what they initially thought was a Christmas tree fire.
Around 7 p.m., crews were dispatched to a second-floor unit at the Kihei Villages.
By the time they got there, residents had extinguished the fire, but upon investigation, fire officials found a leaking five-gallon propane tank which is believed to have started the fire. MFD added that no Christmas trees were burned in the small fire.
‰??The cylinder which was still actively leaking was moved to an area away from residents and structures where the remaining propane was transferred in to a functioning tank by Hazmat team personnel,‰?? MFD said in a news release.

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RESIDENTS VOICE CONCERNS OVER SMOLDERING BELLA VISTA STUMP DUMP AT CITY COUNCIL MEETING
https://5newsonline.com/2018/12/17/residents-voice-concerns-over-smoldering-bella-vista-stump-dump-at-city-council-meeting/
Tags: us_AR, public, fire, response, other_chemical

BELLA VISTA (KFSM) -- Residents living near a former dump stump site in Bella Vista are asking for a solution to a smoldering underground fire that's been burning since the summer, creating an unhealthy environment for those nearby. A city council meeting was held Monday (Dec. 17) night where locals voiced frustrations they are having with the cleanup process.

At the meeting, Bella Vista Mayor Peter Christie said the EPA has made three recommendations for putting out the fire; inserting an inert gas underground, a foam or chemical treatment, or the removal of the material that's on fire.

"From day one all of us, and when I say all of us I mean all the political people I've spoken to, have said let's get the plan and put it to action, and then we'll worry about the money," Christie said.

The Arkansas Department of Health said the air quality surrounding the former dump stump is unhealthy and residents should avoid prolonged exposure.

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EXPENSIVE NORTH HAVEN FIRE GEAR TO BE REPLACED AFTER CHEMICAL CONTAMINATION
https://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/Expensive-North-Haven-Fire-Gear-to-be-Replaced-After-Chemical-Contamination-502977121.html
Tags: us_CT, industrial, follow-up, environmental, runoff

The town of North Haven may have to spend up to $800,000 to replace North Haven Fire Department gear that was contaminated when firefighters responded to an industrial fire in November.
‰??This is the largest emergency purchase we‰??ve had to make,‰?? First Selectman Michael Freda (R-North Haven) said of his nine years in office.
In the early morning hours of Saturday Nov. 24, a North Haven police officer called in a fire after noticing smoke billowing from a business in the Defco Industrial Park.
‰??Had we not aggressively put that fire out when we did, it would have turned much worse,‰?? North Haven Fire Chief Paul Januszewski told NBC Connecticut.
But since that fire ‰??everything has been taken out of service‰?? because of exposure to chemicals from the Parker-Hannifin Corporation where the fire originated, Januszewski said.
‰??We were able to look at a lot of the runoff from the water and visualize inside of the building where the fire was actually taking place and noticed a chemical substance,‰?? Januszewski explained.
More than 40 North Haven firefighters need new helmets, boots, gloves and protective gear.

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TWO TEENS INJURED, ONE CRITICALLY, AFTER A CHEMICAL HUFFING EXPLOSION
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12178573
Tags: New_Zealand, public, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical

Two teenagers have been injured, one critically, after a chemical huffing explosion at an South Auckland apartment block this morning.

A police spokesperson said they were called to a house fire on Clayton Ave, in Otara about 2.50am, to assist the Fire Service.

A male was in a critical condition and a female was in a serious condition, a St John spokesperson said.

The patients, both 16, have been transported to Middlemore Hospital.

A Fire and Emergency spokesperson said the explosion caused a small house fire which was put out quickly. There was damage to the floor above the location and a window blew out.

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FOOD SAFE AFTER WAWA HAZMAT SPILL, OFFICIALS SAY
https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/Food-Safe-After-Wawa-Hazmat-Spill-502915021.html
Tags: us_PA, industrial, release, response, cleaners

A hazardous material spill at a Wawa dairy plant in Delaware County did not contaminate any food products, officials said.
The spill happened around 2:30 a.m. at a Middletown Township plant on the 1300 block of West Baltimore Pike and involved cleaning chemicals spilling into a containment unit, Rocky Run Fire Company Chief Bill Cairns said.
"There are no hazards to any of the foods or any contamination at all," Cairns said. "This is just simply a cleaning chemical that is used to sanitize all the containers that they process the milk through."
There spill caused no injuries and forced no evacuations, though the Delaware County hazmat team was on the scene containing the leak, Cairns added.

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MAKING OUR LABORATORIES SAFER
https://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/op-ed/making-our-laboratories-safer/306375.html
Tags: India, laboratory, follow-up, environmental, gas_cylinders

A few days ago I received a message in one of my WhatsApp groups from a researcher friend at Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, insisting us to be extremely cautious while performing experiments in our labs. Rightly so, the explosion, suspected to be caused by a leak in hydrogen cylinder in the Laboratory for Hypersonic and Shock Wave Research in IISc created shivers in the whole research community; it resulted in the instant death of one young engineer and injured three others, while also damaging the equipment in the laboratory. The accident is not unique of its kind, there have been many other accidents that have occurred in the laboratories of academic institutions. For example, in June, 2009, extremely inflammable hydrogen gas, having the potential of forming explosive mixtures with air, leaked during an experiment and resulted in an explosion injuring four research scholars at the University of Missouri biochemistry research lab in Columbia.

The extent and the severity of the damage caused by such accidents calls for an imperative need to take pro-active safety measures to enhance safety at the academic workplace. The need is further stressed upon by the fact that academic institutions are relatively less regulated by the government in terms of following safety protocols. The pro-active measures must begin from within and must start with creating extensive safety awareness among the individuals involved, by rigorously discussing the various accidents that have occurred in academia or in other related fields (to take home important safety lessons), and finally religious implementation of the same.

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LOCAL NEWS: CHEMICAL LEAK AT BAINBRIDGE UTILITIES PROMPTS EVACUATIONS (12/16/18)
https://www.bannergraphic.com/story/2574123.html
Tags: us_IN, public, release, response, chlorine

A serious chemical leak that recently occurred in Bainbridge is now being assessed as town officials and first responders continue to address the situation.

At about 1:39 p.m. Sunday afternoon, the Bainbridge Fire Department was toned out to a Hazmat call from municipal utilities employees, who reported that a chlorine leak had occurred near Bainbridge Town Hall.

According to Putnam County Emergency Management Director Tom Helmer, Bainbridge units quickly arrived on the scene to find that three employees had been exposed to the chemical.

Hazmat teams from Greencastle arrived on the scene at approximately 3 p.m. after the leak had been controlled shortly before. The Banner Graphic arrived shortly thereafter to acquire information on the situation.

Helmer related that about 150 to 200 people east of the Dollar General on Pat Rady Way, north of U.S. Highway 36 and along 200 East to 800 North were evacuated from their homes and businesses to the Bainbridge Fire Department to be checked out.

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