From: "Secretary, ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety" <secretary**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines from Google (6 articles)
Date: October 24, 2012 7:25:29 AM EDT
Reply-To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Message-ID: <9CB763EF-B7E9-4E52-B9A9-F50C191224F3**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org>

Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Wednesday, October 24, 2012 7:25:08 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 (6 articles)

FLAMING AIRPORT PACKAGE WAS A BATTERY
Tags: Canada, public, fire, response, batteries

TECHNICIAN SUFFERS MINOR CHEMICAL BURNS IN WESTERN UNIVERSITY LAB EXPLOSION
Tags: Canada, laboratory, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical

CHEMICAL FACTORY GUTTED IN FIRE
Tags: India, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical

SCUBA EQUIPMENT CAUSES HAZMAT AT KIRKLAND POST OFFICE
Tags: us_WA, public, release, response, unknown_chemical

BANORA POINT MAN INJURED AFTER POOL CHEMICALS EXPLODE
Tags: Australia, public, explosion, injury, pool_chemicals

CHEMICALS USED HOURS APART CAUSED REACTION
Tags: us_WI, education, follow-up, injury, bleach, cleaners


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FLAMING AIRPORT PACKAGE WAS A BATTERY
http://www.thespec.com/news/crime/article/822442--hazmat-responds-to-airport-fire
Tags: Canada, public, fire, response, batteries

A package deemed suspicious after it burst into flames at the Hamilton airport turned out to be a battery.

The discovery of the package at the United Parcel Service operation Tuesday morning led to the building being evacuated, Hamilton police being called and the disruption of airport operations for a few hours.

The package was being examined by staff from the Canada Border Services Agency when it started smoking and caught fire at about 7 a.m.

Hamilton firefighters extinguished the fire on site. The HAZMAT unit was called in to make sure there was no threat of exposure to hazardous material, and the Halton police bomb squad was called in to remove it.

"The contents of the package have been identified as a battery," CBSA spokesperson Antonella Di Girolamo said in a release later in the day. "The fire was caused by a short-circuit within the battery."

No one was injured in the incident.

Girolamo said Hamilton police had

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TECHNICIAN SUFFERS MINOR CHEMICAL BURNS IN WESTERN UNIVERSITY LAB EXPLOSION
http://www.680news.com/news/local/article/414829--technician-suffers-minor-chemical-burns-in-western-university-lab-explosion
Tags: Canada, laboratory, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical

LONDON, Ont. - A staff member at Western University has been injured in a chemical explosion at one of the school's labs.

The university says a research technician sustained minor chemical burns Tuesday while working with the chemical agent rubidium in a lower-level lab at the Robarts Research Institute.

There are no other reported injuries.

The technician was treated at the scene by emergency officials before being taken to hospital.

The London fire department and the university's hazardous materials team are going through the building looking for any other areas affected by the explosion.

They say there are no problems with air quality in the research building.

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CHEMICAL FACTORY GUTTED IN FIRE
http://www.business-standard.com/generalnews/news/chemical-factory-gutted-in-fire/71770/
Tags: India, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical

A chemical factory was gutted in fire in the Pigdambar area here today, police said.

The fire erupted in Satyam Chemical Factory and soon spread in the entire premises where a large number of drums filled with chemicals were stored.

The firemen later managed to douse the blaze, police said adding that labourers staying in the premises managed to come out safely soon after the fire was noticed.

Short-circuit is suspected to be the cause of the fire, police said, adding that further investigation was on.

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SCUBA EQUIPMENT CAUSES HAZMAT AT KIRKLAND POST OFFICE
http://www.kirotv.com/news/news/scuba-equipment-causes-hazmat-kirkland-post-office/nSj8H/
Tags: us_WA, public, release, response, unknown_chemical

KIRKLAND, Wash. Ñ A package that was hissing and releasing gas at the Kirkland post office caused a hazmat response Monday morning.

A post office employee called 911 to report a suspicious package around 8:30 a.m.

The Kirkland and Bellevue fire departments responded to the report as a hazmat incident.

Police and fire quickly evacuated the post office and a nearby apartment complex.

As a precaution, all roads leading to the post office were closed during the incident.

The owner of the package was contacted and identified the contents as a leaking scuba tank. The contents were verified by a hazmat team and the post office was reopened.

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BANORA POINT MAN INJURED AFTER POOL CHEMICALS EXPLODE
http://www.mydailynews.com.au/news/banora-point-man-injured-after-pool-chemicals-expl/1591121/
Tags: Australia, public, explosion, injury, pool_chemicals

A DANGEROUS chemical explosion that blew up in a man's face yesterday has left him severely injured.

The Banora Point man was rushed to Tweed Hospital with deep lacerations to his chin and above the eyes.

He also suffered serious burns to his face and both eyes from the accident.

Tweed Heads Acting Inspector Jason Dowds said the 45-year-old man was on his driveway mixing chemicals for his pool about 5.45pm.

He shook the bucket which contained chlorine and water and put the lid on.

The lid exploded and made contact with his face causing the serious injuries.

Acting Insp Dowds said the man was not in a critical condition but was transported to a Brisbane burns unit from the Tweed Hospital.

Tweed Heads retained firefighter Mark Lewin said the man was looking after his neighbour's pool for them when the incident happened.

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CHEMICALS USED HOURS APART CAUSED REACTION
http://www.journaltimes.com/news/local/chemicals-used-hours-apart-caused-reaction/article_4b524c5e-1bf9-11e2-b75c-001a4bcf887a.html
Tags: us_WI, education, follow-up, injury, bleach, cleaners

BURLINGTON Ñ Two different cleaning solutions used hours apart at St. Mary's Grade School reportedly caused the chemical reaction that sent 12 people to the hospital Friday, according to City of Burlington Fire Chief Richard Lodle.

The Fire Department received a call from the school, 225 W. State St., at 10:21 a.m. after someone working in the cafeteria noticed a chemical reaction had turned a rag orange in color, Lodle said Sunday. The school was evacuated shortly after fire crews arrived on scene.

Response time was quick, less than two minutes, because the fire station is only about four blocks from St. Mary's.

According to Lodle, the reaction occurred when someone in the cafeteria used a solution of water, dish soap and a quarter of a cup of bleach to clean up residue left on a countertop from the night before.

It is believed that the residue was left by someone who had been mopping the floor either late Thursday night or early Friday morning, Lodle said.

After someone noticed the rag they were using was changing colors, they contacted the fire department who deemed the chemicals "incompatible," at which point Racine hazmat crews were called, Lodle said.

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Ralph Stuart
secretary**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Secretary
Division of Chemical Health and Safety
American Chemical Society

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