From: Secretary ACS DCHAS <secretary**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (14 articles)
Date: Fri, 28 Mar 2014 07:42:07 -0400
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Chemical Safety Headlines
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Table of Contents (14 articles)

CHEMICAL LEAK FORCES EVACUATION OF BUILDING AT WINNIPEG HOSPITAL
Tags: Canada, laboratory, release, injury, formaldehyde

LANDSLIDE DEBRIS FIELD HAS TO BE APPROACHED AS HAZMAT SCENE
Tags: us_WA, public, discovery, response, other_chemical

HAZMAT SITUATION AT UC SAN DIEGO, 3 HOSPITALIZED
Tags: us_CA, education, release, injury, unknown_chemical

COBB MAN INDICTED FOR MANUFACTURING PCP LEADING TO EXPLOSION
Tags: us_GA, public, follow-up, response, dust, meth_lab

OIL SPILL AT INDIANA BP REFINERY
Tags: us_IN, industrial, release, environmental, oils, petroleum

TESTS PLANNED FOR WORKERS AFTER MERCURY SPILL
Tags: us_MI, industrial, follow-up, environmental, mercury, water_treatment

NO INJURIES IN EXPLOSION AT WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT
Tags: us_IN, industrial, explosion, response, methane, water_treatment

CHEMICAL SPILL AT LEONIA COMPANY SENDS WORKER TO HOSPITAL
Tags: us_NJ, industrial, release, injury, other_chemical

UPDATE: OFFICIALS INVESTIGATING OIL RIG FIRE NEAR WATFORD CITY; 1 WORKER HURT
Tags: us_ND, industrial, explosion, injury, petroleum

WEST VIRGINIA CHEMICAL SPILL INTO ELK RIVER CONTAMINATING AIR AND WAT... ( IN THE MORE THAN TWO MONTHS SINCE TH...)
Tags: us_WV, education, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical

EPA SAYS OHIO OIL LEAK AT 20K GALLONS
Tags: us_OH, transportation, release, environmental, petroleum

BLAST AT TECUMSEH GRAIN ELEVATOR KILLS WORKER
Tags: us_NE, industrial, explosion, death, ammonia

HAZMAT FINISHES CLEANUP OF SPILLED MILK; NO CRYING REPORTED
Tags: us_TX, transportation, release, environmental, milk

CHEMICAL SPILL IN SHU CLASSROOM TRIGGERS HAZMAT RESPONSE
Tags: us_CT, laboratory, release, response, nitric_acid


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CHEMICAL LEAK FORCES EVACUATION OF BUILDING AT WINNIPEG HOSPITAL
http://www.mysask.com/portal/site/main/template.MAXIMIZE/?javax.portlet.tpst=59fea5a22cbb130bab9e3c1070315ae8_ws_MX&javax.portlet.prp_59fea5a22cbb130bab9e3c1070315ae8_viewID=story&javax.portlet.prp_59fea5a22cbb130bab9e3c1070315ae8_topic_display_name=Health%20News&javax.portlet.prp_59fea5a22cbb130bab9e3c1070315ae8_topic_name=Health&javax.portlet.prp_59fea5a22cbb130bab9e3c1070315ae8_news_item_id_key=27762891&javax.portlet.begCacheTok=com.vignette.cachetoken&javax.portlet.endCacheTok=com.vignette.cachetoken
Tags: Canada, laboratory, release, injury, formaldehyde

WINNIPEG - About 500 people had to be evacuated from a Winnipeg hospital due to a chemical spill.

Officials at the Health Sciences Centre say 50 gallons of formalin, a liquid similar to formaldehyde, spilled on the fourth floor of the Thorlakson building on Thursday.

The entire building was evacuated as a Hazmat team and other emergency crews arrived to contain the situation.

A construction worker accidentally broke a feeder pipe, which caused the leak.

He was the only person directly exposed to the formalin. He was treated, decontaminated and allowed to go home.

Several surgeries were cancelled although officials expect to have them rescheduled soon.

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LANDSLIDE DEBRIS FIELD HAS TO BE APPROACHED AS HAZMAT SCENE
http://www.opb.org/news/article/npr-landslide-debris-field-has-to-be-approached-as-hazmat-scene/
Tags: us_WA, public, discovery, response, other_chemical

In a clearing on a hillside above one side of the mudflow, searchers in all sorts of uniforms and bright safety vests are picking through the crushed and barely recognizable remains of homes.

Even from a distance, you know it is dirty work.

But that?s not all. Battalion chief Steve Mason says the debris field is considered a hazmat scene. Searchers thoroughly hose off at the end of each day.

?Of course, because everybody?s septic system and other personal items are strewn throughout, we make sure they are well-cleaned. We don?t want them to take anything away with them.?

Something else Mason points out are big ?tinfoil? reflectors strung in some trees above where the landslide started. The battalion chief says searchers down below periodically look up to see if the shiny foil is in the same spot.

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HAZMAT SITUATION AT UC SAN DIEGO, 3 HOSPITALIZED
http://www.cbs8.com/story/25091971/hazmat-situation-on-uc-san-diego-campus-3-hospitalized
Tags: us_CA, education, release, injury, unknown_chemical

SAN DIEGO (CBS 8) - The Jacobs School of Engineering building at UC San Diego was evacuated Thursday morning after a contractor cut into a duct containing a gas line.

The contractor was updating the ventilation system when the incident happened at about 10:30 a.m.

The man was transported to Scripps La Jolla for treatment. Two other workers were also taken to the hospital to be monitored after reporting they felt light-headed.

Although sensors were not triggered, the building, which consists of labs and classrooms, was immediately evacuated. There was limited occupancy at this time because UC San Diego is on spring break.

Fire crews say the leak has been contained and crews have restarted the clean air ventilation system in the building.

As of early Thursday afternoon, a hazmat crew was planning to enter the building to take readings, but they did not expect to find anything harmful.

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COBB MAN INDICTED FOR MANUFACTURING PCP LEADING TO EXPLOSION
http://acworth.patch.com/groups/police-and-fire/p/cobb-man-indicted-for-manufacturing-pcp-leading-to-explosion
Tags: us_GA, public, follow-up, response, dust, meth_lab

An Atlanta man has been arraigned on federal charges relating to the manufacture of PCP that led to a dangerous south Fulton county house fire when the clandestine laboratory exploded in July 2013.
....
According to United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: On July 6, 2013, Fulton County Fire/Rescue responded to a citizen?s call about a house fire in a Fairburn neighborhood.

The house was destroyed after burning for almost two days. Further investigation revealed the presence of numerous barrels and canisters of chemicals suggesting the presence of a large, clandestine, PCP lab in the residence. No one other than the individuals involved in the manufacture of PCP was harmed in the fire.

?An entire neighborhood was put at risk by the explosion of this PCP lab,? said Yates in a news release. ?This type of drug also puts our entire community at risk. Thankfully, this lab is out of business and our citizens in that neighborhood are safe.?

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OIL SPILL AT INDIANA BP REFINERY
http://mymixfm.com/news/articles/2014/mar/26/oil-spill-at-indiana-bp-refinery/
Tags: us_IN, industrial, release, environmental, oils, petroleum

An oil spill at a north western Indiana refinery this week.

It happened at BP?s Whiting refinery.

Officials say that an undetermined amount of oil leaked into Lake Michigan.

It happened when oil had entered the refinery?s cooling water system, which discharges into the lake about 20 miles southeast of downtown Chicago.

Wind and oil booms have helped to keep the oil from spreading too far from shore and out into the lake.

Officials are still assessing the extent of the spill and damage to the environment.

It is believed that between 10 and 12 barrels, or around 500 gallons, of crude oil spilled into the lake.

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TESTS PLANNED FOR WORKERS AFTER MERCURY SPILL
http://www.wndu.com/news/michigan/headlines/Tests-planned-for-workers-after-mercury-spill-252214641.html
Tags: us_MI, industrial, follow-up, environmental, mercury, water_treatment

EAST LANSING, Mich. East Lansing has arranged for wastewater treatment plant employees to be tested for mercury poisoning after a November spill was disclosed last week.

The Lansing State Journal reports the city is investigating how the spill occurred and why it wasn't reported for four months. Public Works Director Todd Sneathen says he interviewed workers Monday and arranged for tests for as many as 16 of them.

The state Department of Environmental Quality says at least 1.5 pounds of mercury spilled.

Sneathen says the city learned of the spill on Thursday when a group of plant workers came forward and requested a meeting.

Sneathen says workers used a vacuum to clean up the spill.

Jim Wilson, Ingham County's environmental health director, says officials found high levels of mercury inside the vacuum.

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NO INJURIES IN EXPLOSION AT WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT
http://www.abc57.com/news/local/No-injuries-in-explosion-at-wastewater-treatment-plant-252027171.html
Tags: us_IN, industrial, explosion, response, methane, water_treatment

GOSHEN, Ind. -- There was an explosion at Goshen's wastewater treatment plan around 5 a.m. Monday. It happened about an hour before most employees were scheduled for work.

Jim Kerzeman, the superintendent of the wastewater treatment plant, says methane gas produced by sludge seeped over from the digester to the thickener building, ignited, then blew the walls out.
He says if anyone had been working in the offices at the time, they could have been killed.

The gas traveled through the sewer system underground to the building.

Kerzeman has worked in this business for over 33 years and he says it's the worst explosion of this type he's ever seen.

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CHEMICAL SPILL AT LEONIA COMPANY SENDS WORKER TO HOSPITAL
http://www.nj.com/bergen/index.ssf/2014/03/chemical_spill_at_leonia_company_sends_worker_to_hospital.html
Tags: us_NJ, industrial, release, injury, other_chemical

LEONIA ? An employee at a Leonia company was hospitalized Wednesday morning after suffering burns and cuts from a chemical spill, according to officials.

A container of liquid potassium hydroxide broke at Kulite Semiconductor Products Inc., a semiconductor manufacturing company on 1 Willow Tree Road, said Jeanne Baratta, the Bergen County Executive?s Office Chief of Staff. A worker, who Baratta was unable to identify, was transported to the hospital for burns and cuts. The Bergen County Hazardous Materials Unit is still onsite cleaning up the spill, Baratta said.

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UPDATE: OFFICIALS INVESTIGATING OIL RIG FIRE NEAR WATFORD CITY; 1 WORKER HURT
http://www.wday.com/event/article/id/95086/group/News/
Tags: us_ND, industrial, explosion, injury, petroleum

WATFORD CITY, N.D. ? Inspectors are investigating an oil drilling rig fire that occurred near here Tuesday afternoon that resulted in one worker?s injury, officials said Wednesday.

Authorities responded to a report of a rig explosion at 4:16 p.m. Tuesday at a Nabors Drilling rig on a Whiting Petroleum location, the McKenzie County Sheriff?s Office said.

When responders arrived, all workers were clear from the area and one man, identified as Brian Busby, suffered burns to his hands and head that were not life-threatening, the sheriff?s office said. Busby was transported to the McKenzie County Hospital in Watford City for treatment.

As the fire died down in intensity, fire crews were able to apply foam to the fire to put it out. The initial cause of the fire is believed to be a pressure build-up that caused material to escape and ignite, the sheriff?s office said.

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WEST VIRGINIA CHEMICAL SPILL INTO ELK RIVER CONTAMINATING AIR AND WAT... ( IN THE MORE THAN TWO MONTHS SINCE TH...)
http://www.bio-medicine.org/biology-news-1/West-Virginia-chemical-spill-into-Elk-River-contaminating-air-and-water-quality-34810-1/
Tags: us_WV, education, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical

In the more than two months since the Jan. 9 chemical spill into West Virginia's Elk River, new findings reveal the nature of the chemicals that were released into the water and then into the air in residents' houses.

"Based on our increasing understanding of the chemicals involved in the water crisis, the complexities and implications of the spill keep growing," said Andrea Dietrich, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech. "People are still afraid to drink the water; odors persist in schools, residences, and businesses; data are still lacking for the properties of the mixture of chemicals in the crude MCHM that spilled."

The lack of data motivated Dietrich and her research team to take on essential odor-related research that went beyond their National Science Foundation Rapid Response Research grant to better understand the properties of the chemical mixture called crude 4-methylcyclohexane methanol, the major component in the crude mix of the spilled chemicals into the Elk River. It is used in the separation and cleaning of coal products.

Rapid Response

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EPA SAYS OHIO OIL LEAK AT 20K GALLONS
http://www.myfox28columbus.com/shared/news/features/top-stories/stories/wsyx_epa-says-ohio-oil-leak-at-20k-gallons-30112.shtml
Tags: us_OH, transportation, release, environmental, petroleum

CINCINNATI (AP) -- Federal environmental officials now estimate more than 20,000 gallons of crude oil -- double the initial estimates -- leaked from a pipeline into a nature preserve in southwest Ohio.

Meanwhile, Sunoco Logistics said Monday that the pipeline has been repaired and re-opened. Sunoco shut off the stretch of Mid-Valley Pipeline from Hebron, Ky., to Lima, Ohio, early March 18 after a leak was confirmed.

Sunoco spokesman Jeff Shields said under a federally approved plan, a specially engineered clamp was placed on the 20-inch diameter pipeline, which had a 5-inch crack that leaked oil. The clamp was tested before oil flow resumed Sunday evening.

Shields declined to say how much of the oil supply was disrupted in the last week in a system that runs about 1,000 miles from Texas to Michigan. He said the information is considered internal company business.

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

BLAST AT TECUMSEH GRAIN ELEVATOR KILLS WORKER
http://www.wahoo-ashland-waverly.com/waverly/news/local/blast-at-tecumseh-grain-elevator-kills-worker/article_65f4ab74-b45a-11e3-a9ad-001a4bcf887a.html
Tags: us_NE, industrial, explosion, death, ammonia

TECUMSEH ? A employee of Midwest Farmers Co-Op was killed Thursday evening from an anhydrous ammonia explosion at the Tecumseh grain elevator.
Killed was John Bennett, 63, of rural Greenwood. Bennett died at the Johnson County Hospital about 10:45 p.m. Thursday. The blast had been reported at 6 p.m.
Tecumseh Fire and Rescue took Bennett and another employee to the hospital.
...
Two other people were treated for injuries that were not considered life-threatening. One was a Johnson County sheriff's deputy.

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HAZMAT FINISHES CLEANUP OF SPILLED MILK; NO CRYING REPORTED
http://www.fox19.com/story/25067688/hazmat-finishes-cleanup-of-spilled-milk-no-crying-reported
Tags: us_TX, transportation, release, environmental, milk

TYLER, TX (KLTV) - The Tyler Fire Department has been on the scene for most of Tuesday of an overturned milk truck on the 900 Block of Palace and West Erwin, and a crew from Southland Environmental Hazmat Response team joined them in cleaning up spilled milk, a large task which is now finished.

Witnesses said that they heard a boom as the truck, headed south bound on Palace, detached from the trailer early Tuesday.

Palace was shut down between Erwin and the railroad tracks while an additional Borden 18-wheeler came to the scene to load the milk that was able to be saved.

Milk containers were damaged during the accident and milk could be seen running along the curb that edges the roadway. The hazmat crew arrived on scene to stop the milk from running into the storm drain, which Tyler police said is not good for the water supply.

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CHEMICAL SPILL IN SHU CLASSROOM TRIGGERS HAZMAT RESPONSE
http://www.fairfieldcitizenonline.com/news/article/Chemical-spill-in-SHU-classroom-triggers-hazmat-5351369.php
Tags: us_CT, laboratory, release, response, nitric_acid

A lab at Sacred Heart University's science building had to be evacuated Wednesday afternoon after less than a gallon of sulfuric and nitric acid was spilled.

Firefighters dispatched to the Park Avenue campus reported the spill of toxic chemicals was confined to one classroom, and no one was injured.

Fire officials said the incident, reported shortly before 2:50 p.m. Wednesday, initially indicated there had been a minor chemical reaction from the mix of sulfuric and nitric acids that spilled in a classroom.

There were two students in the first-floor chemistry lab at the time who had been working with a small amount of nitric acid when a foaming reaction occurred, according to the fire report. They were not harmed by the reaction, firefighters said.

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