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Date: Fri, 30 Dec 2011 08:07:06 -0500
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From: Ralph Stuart <rstuartcih**At_Symbol_Here**ME.COM>
Subject: Chemical Safety headlines from Google (11 articles)
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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, December 30, 2011 8:04:13 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 (11 articles)
METH LAB BUST IN MCALESTER; EXPLOSION INVESTIGATION
Tags: us_OK, public, explosion, response, meth_lab
HIGHWAY 16 SHUTDOWN FOLLOWING TANKER ROLLOVER
Tags: Canada, transportation, release, environmental, petroleum
CHEMICAL EXPLOSION CAUSES MINOR DAMAGE AT LEXINGTON FACILITY
Tags: us_MA, industrial, explosion, response, silane
FUEL LEAK, BLASTS FORCE EVACUATIONS NEAR ALBANY
Tags: us_NY, public, explosion, response, gasoline
CALLS ABOUT EXPLOSIONS KEEPING WHITE CO. FIRE, LAW ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL BUSY
Tags: us_GA, public, explosion, response, ammonium_nitrate
1 DEAD, 95 SHUT DOWN AFTER MULTIPLE SEMIS COLLIDE CAUSING CHEMICAL SPILL, FIRE IN VOLUSIA CO.
Tags: us_FL, transportation, explosion, death, unknown_chemical
FIRE DESTROYS HOG BUILDING NEAR WOOLSTOCK
Tags: us_IA, industrial, fire, response, formaldehyde
SCHOOL EVACUATED AFTER CHEMICAL SPILLS
Tags: us_UT, education, release, response, unknown_chemical
FIREMEN KILLED IN EXPLOSIONS UNAWARE OF CHEMICALS
Tags: Myanmar, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical
CHEMICAL SPILL CLOSES I-70 (12/27/11)
Tags: us_IN, transportation, release, death, acetone
ADAMS PLATING: LESSONS LEARNED
Tags: us_MI, industrial, fire, response, waste, follow-up
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METH LAB BUST IN MCALESTER; EXPLOSION INVESTIGATION
http://mcalesternews.com/breakingnews/x191083049/Meth-lab-bust-in-McAlester-explosion-investigation
Tags: us_OK, public, explosion, response, meth_lab
McALESTER ˜ The McAlester Police Department, Pittsburg County Sheriff‚s Office and Pittsburg County District Attorney‚s Office joint task force took down a methamphetamine lab in McAlester early Thursday morning.
Late Wednesday evening, MPD received a call about an explosion, said MPD Assistant Chief Darrell Miller, and when officers arrived on the scene, they smelled a strong chemical smell and tracked it down to a specific home on Harrison Avenue.
When the District 18 Joint Task Force went to investigate, said Pittsburg Count Sheriff Joel Kerns, task force officers found a full-blown working meth lab and four people were arrested.
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HIGHWAY 16 SHUTDOWN FOLLOWING TANKER ROLLOVER
http://www.inews880.com/Channels/Reg/LocalNews/story.aspx?ID=1632512
Tags: Canada, transportation, release, environmental, petroleum
A major headache on the Yellowhead caused a major backlog Thursday afternoon.
A HAZMAT team had to be called out to the scene westbound on Highway 16 at Range Road 222, after an oil tanker rolled and spilled its load.
RCMP Cst. Wally Henry says if you're headed into town, you will be delayed.
"Alberta environment and clean up crews were called to the scene, and we're advising people to avoid the area if they can and if they do have to drive through, they'll encounter some delays."
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CHEMICAL EXPLOSION CAUSES MINOR DAMAGE AT LEXINGTON FACILITY
http://www.wickedlocal.com/lexington/news/x28913661/Chemical-explosion-causes-minor-damage-at-Lexington-facility#axzz1i1QzUpRW
Tags: us_MA, industrial, explosion, response, silane
Firefighters from Lexington and Hanscom Air Force Base responded to an industrial building on Hartwell Avenue on Thursday afternoon, Dec. 29, after a chemical explosion caused minor damage inside the facility, according to a Fire Department spokesperson.
No one was injured in the blast, which occurred just before 1 p.m. inside the building at 45 Hartwell Ave.
Fire Department Lt. Mark Ferreira said the explosion was caused by gas that leaked from a storage tank into ventilation ducts in the ceiling.
Ferreira said the tank was filled with silane gas, which can become flammable when it comes in contact with air. He said workers were replacing the tank today before the blast.
Ferreira said one worker was in the area when the chemical exploded, but was not injured. He said damage was contained to the ventilation ducts, and the fire did not spread through the building.
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FUEL LEAK, BLASTS FORCE EVACUATIONS NEAR ALBANY
http://www.whec.com/news/stories/S2430612.shtml
Tags: us_NY, public, explosion, response, gasoline
Hundreds of residents have been allowed to return to their homes in an upstate village after being evacuated by a gasoline leak at a convenience store that caused explosions in the sewer system.
The Post-Star of Glens Falls reports that loud blasts began blowing manhole covers off roadways in Fort Edward around 8 p.m. last night.
The newspaper reports Washington County used its reverse 911 system and sent firefighters door-to-door to evacuate between 300 and 400 residents of the village, 45 miles north of Albany.
School buses took people to Fort Edward High School. They began returning home overnight after roads in Fort Edward and neighboring Hudson Falls reopened.
Authorities say the underground explosions were caused by gasoline that flowed into the sewers after leaking from a pump at a convenience store in Hudson Falls
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CALLS ABOUT EXPLOSIONS KEEPING WHITE CO. FIRE, LAW ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL BUSY
http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=244622
Tags: us_GA, public, explosion, response, ammonium_nitrate
CLEVELAND - Fire and law enforcement personnel in White County have been kept busy since Sunday because apparently Santa Claus brought some people Exploding Targets, targets that explode when hit with a bullet from a rifle or other gun.
Law enforcement and fire department volunteers have responded to several calls since Christmas to reports of loud explosions.
White County Fire Department spokeswoman Ana Newberry said "They (the targets) are a binary explosive that is composed of two chemical compounds, Ammonium Nitrate and Flash Aluminum. The Ammonium Nitrate what provides the explosive charge power. The Flash Aluminum is known as a sensitizer, it is what allows the Ammonium Nitrate to combust."
Newberry says the devices are completely legal and can be purchased locally.
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1 DEAD, 95 SHUT DOWN AFTER MULTIPLE SEMIS COLLIDE CAUSING CHEMICAL SPILL, FIRE IN VOLUSIA CO.
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/article/233235/94/1-Dead-95-Shut-Down-After-Multiple-Semis-Collide-Causing-Chemical-Spill-Fire-in-Volusia-Co
Tags: us_FL, transportation, explosion, death, unknown_chemical
VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. -- A truck driver was killed and I-95 was shut down in Volusia County following a wreck involving multiple semis that sparked a brush fire and caused a chemical spill in Volusia County.
The crash happened around 3:30 a.m. just south of I-4, according to the Volusia County Sheriff's Office, when officials say a passenger vehicle, an empty logging truck, a mail truck and a truck carrying a chemical crashed near mile marker 257 in Port Orange.
According to WESH in Orlando, neighbors in the area reported hearing explosions. No evacuations were ordered but hazmat crews are still on the scene. The collision sparked a brush fire that fire crews have since been able to put out.
The driver of the truck carrying some kind of chemical was killed in the crash and several others were injured.
---------------------------------------------
FIRE DESTROYS HOG BUILDING NEAR WOOLSTOCK
http://www.webstercitynews.com/page/content.detail/id/517503/Fire-destroys-hog-building-near-Woolstock.html?nav=5006
Tags: us_IA, industrial, fire, response, formaldehyde
WOOLSTOCK - A hog facility south of Woolstock was declared a complete loss Wednesday night after a fire burned the structure to the ground. Complicating matters for firefighters was the potential for hazardous chemicals inside the building which were used to fumigate the structure earlier in the day.
The Woolstock Fire Department arrived at the scene, 1929 Stagecoach Road, at about 3:30 p.m. and found a fire smoldering.
"When I got here, there was a bunch of black smoke," said Ethan Anderson, Woolstock fire chief. "We were told the building had been fumigated and it was filled with formaldehyde so we couldn't get into the building."
The hazardous materials team from the Fort Dodge Fire Department was called in to assess the danger. Firefighters were advised not to go inside the structure or use any water until Hazmat arrived, Anderson said.
"We got called for a chemical reaction from a fumigation process that was giving off vapors," said Capt. Steve Hergenreter with the Fort Dodge Fire Department. He explained that the fumigation process involves mixing two chemicals together which produces heat and a toxic gas - formaldyhyde - and is also flammable.
"It made it hazardous to enter the building," he said.
A few nearby homes were evacuated as a precaution, Anderson said. Stagecoach Road was closed for a short time to protect motorists from any potential hazardous fumes, according to Hergenreter.
"The amount of chemicals were not enough to affect the town of Woolstock," he said.
---------------------------------------------
SCHOOL EVACUATED AFTER CHEMICAL SPILLS
http://www.abc4.com/content/news/state/story/School-evacuated-after-chemical-spills/gSPq1_RIUEWbbnVd0NFCsg.cspx
Tags: us_UT, education, release, response, unknown_chemical
Holladay, Utah(ABC 4 News)- The Jordan Valley school was evacuated early this morning as hazmat crews cleaned a chemical spill.
A custodian came into work at 6am and discovered a strong chemical smell near the schools pool area. The worker called the fire department in and they decided to evacuate the building.
Canyons school district spokeswoman Jennifer Toomer-Cook tells ABC4 that the staff was allowed to go home as the crews cleaned the spill up. The school is not in session today as it is the kids holiday break.
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FIREMEN KILLED IN EXPLOSIONS UNAWARE OF CHEMICALS
http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/6335-firemen-killed-in-explosions-unaware-of-chemicals.html
Tags: Myanmar, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical
(Mizzima) ˆ Five firemen who died in explosions at a state-owned chemical storage warehouse in Mingalar Taungnyunt Township in Rangoon on Thursday were apparently unaware of hazardous chemicals in the warehouses.
...
Authorities said the death toll now numbers more than 20 dead and 91 people injured. According to figures compiled at 5 p.m. on Thursday, the 91 people injured in the disaster included 31 firemen, six reserve firemen and 54 civilians.
An official with the Rangoon Region Central Fire Department told Mizzima: „To prevent the fire from spreading to other areas, the firemen only devoted their attention to extinguishing the fire and then the chemical materials exploded. We did not know that they [the chemical material] were in the warehouses.‰
The guards at the warehouses were killed in the explosions, he said.
Four of the dead firemen were from the Mingalar Taungnyunt Fire Department, and one was from the Rangoon Region Central Fire Department. The funerals of the five firemen were held on Thursday evening at Yayway Cemetery.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL SPILL CLOSES I-70 (12/27/11)
http://www.thebraziltimes.com/story/1798503.html
Tags: us_IN, transportation, release, death, acetone
PUTNAMVILLE -- A one-vehicle accident Monday afternoon claimed the life of a tanker truck driver and created a hazardous materials spill on Interstate-70 near the Putnam-Clay county line.
At approximately 4:15 p.m., Monday, a tanker truck, reportedly carrying the industrial solvent acetone, left the roadway for an unknown reason, striking a cement bridge support near County Road 775 West, just east of the 30-mile marker in the westbound lanes of I-70.
No other vehicles were involved.
Upon impact, the tanker trailer overturned and nearly broke in half, releasing approximately 6,000 gallons of highly flammable hazardous industrial solvent.
---------------------------------------------
ADAMS PLATING: LESSONS LEARNED
http://www.wilx.com/news/headlines/Adam_136284633.html?ref=633
Tags: us_MI, industrial, fire, response, waste, follow-up
A year after Adams Plating went up in flames, there's nothing left but lessons learned.
"First thing we would do is contact agencies like the EPA sooner than we did," said Sgt. Robert Ott, Ingham County Emergency Manager. "We were kind of at a loss for a day or so what to do."
Ingham County has had its eye on the EPA superfund site for decades, but hindsight's 20/20.
"We had a plan in place as to what we were going to do in case there was an incident, a hazmat incident, but add 40,000 gallons of water from putting the fire out, and it causes some issues we weren't necessarily prepared to...I shouldn't say prepared to handle, but something we were not expecting at the time," Ott said.
County hazmat teams contained hazardous waste to the site. Then the EPA removed the waste, demolished the building, and dug up contaminated ground water and soil.
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From: LISTSERV**At_Symbol_Here**listserv.med.cornell.edu
Subject: File: "DCHAS-L LOG1111"
Date: January 16, 2012 7:47:45 AM EST
To: Ralph Stuart
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