From: Secretary ACS DCHAS <secretary**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] CHAS Tweets and Chemical Safety headlines (16 articles)
Date: Mon, 30 Jun 2014 07:21:57 -0400
Reply-To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Message-ID: 4F58CF68-88EE-431C-B85D-C61860B3A3DD**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


**At_Symbol_Here**ACSDCHAS and **At_Symbol_Here**LabSustain tweets and Chemical Safety Headlines
Links to the headlines below can be found at the http://www.dchas.org/newsflash

Table of Contents (16 articles)

OHIO THIRD IN HAZMAT INCIDENTS
Tags: us_OH, public, discovery, response

FIRE IN CHEMICALS WAREHOUSE CONTAINED
Tags: Saudi_Arabia, industrial, fire, environmental, unknown_chemical

FIRE BREAKS OUT IN ISTANBUL'S TUZLA CHEMICAL FACTORY
Tags: Turkey, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical

PROPANE EXPLOSION SENDS TWO TO HOSPITAL
Tags: us_ME, public, explosion, injury, propane

TWO WORKERS KILLED IN PEKIN INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENT
Tags: us_IL, transportation, release, death, carbon_monoxide

TAPAH R&R CLOSED DUE TO CHEMICAL SPILL NEAR ITS EXIT
Tags: United_Kingdom, transportation, release, response, other_chemical

WHY 28 YEARS HAVE PASSED SINCE THE EPA?S LAST CHEMICAL RISK REVIEW
Tags: public, discovery, environmental, cleaners, solvent

ALANG SHIP-BREAKING YARD EXPLOSION KILLS 5 WORKERS
Tags: India, transportation, explosion, death, natural_gas, waste

REPORT RELEASED ON NEW YORK HIGH SCHOOL FIRE
Tags: us_NY, laboratory, follow-up, injury, methanol

OWNER KILLED IN EXPLOSION AT PLASTIC SHEET FACTORY IN MP
Tags: India, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical

MENLO PARK: FIRE TEMPORARILY SHUTS DOWN SLAC LINEAR ACCELERATOR
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, fire, response, unknown_chemical

FIRE CREWS CLEARING RUBBLE AT JESSUP FIRE SCENE TONIGHT; CAUSE STILL UNDER INVESTIGATION
Tags: us_PA, industrial, explosion, response, carbon_monoxide, metals

CHEMICAL BLAZE RACKS UP HUGE BILL
Tags: Thailand, industrial, fire, injury, sulfur_dioxide

CHEMICAL LEAKING FROM PACKAGE SENDS POSTAL WORKERS TO HOSPITAL
Tags: us_WA, public, release, injury, unknown_chemical

CHEMICAL PLANT FIRE
Tags: us_NC, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical, sodium_carbonate

BEACON HIGH SCHOOL CHEMISTRY TEACHER MISHANDLED VOLATILE CHEMICALS, CREATING FIREBALL THAT BURNED STUDENT: PROBE
Tags: us_NY, laboratory, follow-up, injury, flammables, methanol


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OHIO THIRD IN HAZMAT INCIDENTS

Tags: us_OH, public, discovery, response

DAYTON, Ohio (AP) ? Ohio ranks third nationwide in the number of serious spills involving hazardous materials on roads, rail lines, waterways and in the air since 2005, the Dayton Daily News reported Sunday.
The state?s 256 serious incidents involving hazardous material releases rank behind only California and Texas.

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FIRE IN CHEMICALS WAREHOUSE CONTAINED

Tags: Saudi_Arabia, industrial, fire, environmental, unknown_chemical

DAMMAM ? Civil Defense teams were successful in containing a fire that had erupted in a chemicals warehouse on Saturday morning. Eastern Province Civil Defense spokesman Col. Ali Al-Qahtani said the warehouse occupied a 7,500 square meter area and contained raw materials for manufacturing polyester. He added 20 firefighting teams managed to contain the fire to a 400 square meter area and no injuries were reported.

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FIRE BREAKS OUT IN ISTANBUL'S TUZLA CHEMICAL FACTORY

Tags: Turkey, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical

ISTANBUL ? A fire broke out in a factory which is located in an industrial area of Istanbul's Tuzla district on Sunday afternoon.

The cause of the fire is still unknown and fire trucks from Kartal, Dudullu districts arrived to the scene to extinguish the fire before it spread to other parts of the factory areas.

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PROPANE EXPLOSION SENDS TWO TO HOSPITAL

Tags: us_ME, public, explosion, injury, propane

OGUNQUIT ? An explosion at Captain's Catch, 141 Main St., blew windows and glass into the street and sent two employees to the hospital with burns on Tuesday at 10:59 a.m.
....
The victims, a male and female, had burns on their lower extremities and, according to O'Brien, one was bending over at the time of the explosion, complicating their injuries.

Joel Davis, of the Maine Fire Marshal's office, said the cause of the explosion has yet to be determined but "it appears to be propane."

The power of the explosion pushed the windows out, sending debris across the street and parking lot, with a screen still sitting 30 yards away from the building hours afterwards.

Luckily, further injury was avoided as the restaurant was just being opened and no customers were on the glass-strewn patio. And, in a propane explosion, once the fuel is burned out the fire is over as long as nothing else catches, officials said.

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TWO WORKERS KILLED IN PEKIN INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENT

Tags: us_IL, transportation, release, death, carbon_monoxide

Two workers have died from carbon monoxide poisoning at an agricultural products plant in central Illinois.

Officials say the two workers were cleaning a rail tanker car at Agridyne LLC in Pekin, a company that manufactures and sells liquid feed.

Workers became overcome by carbon monoxide that had built up inside the car.

One worker fell into the rail tanker car before his colleague made an attempt to rescue him, but was overcome as well.

Crews are still investigating what led up to the accident.

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TAPAH R&R CLOSED DUE TO CHEMICAL SPILL NEAR ITS EXIT

Tags: United_Kingdom, transportation, release, response, other_chemical

A tanker lorry carrying the chemical ?Cuprum chloride solution? started leaking near the exit of the Tapah Rest and Recreation (R&R) area at Km332 of the North-South Expressway (south bound).
Perak Fire and Rescue Department director Yahaya Madis said the leakage was detected in one of the two tanker lorries.
?The leaking tanker has a capacity of eight tonnes and the solution was flowing into a drain nearby. Firefighters and PLUS workers have blocked the drain,? he said here today.
He said the valve on the tanker had been closed, but the solution was still leaking.

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WHY 28 YEARS HAVE PASSED SINCE THE EPA?S LAST CHEMICAL RISK REVIEW

Tags: public, discovery, environmental, cleaners, solvent

This week, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hit a major milestone that some people, including leaders at the agency itself, think shouldn?t be celebrated.

On Wednesday, the agency released a final risk assessment for trichloroethylene (TCE), an industrial solvent used by artists, car mechanics, dry cleaners and others. The EPA?s in-depth report, released after a two-year analysis, shows that long-term exposure to TCE can cause cancer and other health issues, and recommends that workers take serious precautions if they must use TCE.

But in its press release, the EPA acknowledged there was something wrong ? not with the risk assessment itself ? but with its timeline: It was the first final risk assessment for a chemical issued by the EPA since 1986.

?The American public shouldn?t have to wait 28 years between ... chemical risk assessments,? wrote Jim Jones, EPA assistant administrator of chemical safety and pollution prevention, in a blog post. ?As the old adage goes, you have to walk before you can run.?

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ALANG SHIP-BREAKING YARD EXPLOSION KILLS 5 WORKERS

Tags: India, transportation, explosion, death, natural_gas, waste

BHAVNAGAR Five people were killed and seven suffered injuries in a gas explosion on Saturday at Alang port, which is home to Asia's largest ship-breaking yard, police said. The accident occurred when a group of labourers was breaking up a scrap chemical tanker with gas cutters.

The injured were being treated at a government hospital in Bhavnagar, about 240 km from Ahmedabad, even as police said the exact cause of the gas leak was not yet known. Alang, which has been called the 'world's greatest graveyard of ships', recycles thousands of vessels every year.

"Five people have died following the explosion due to gas leakage in the ship on which they were working," Maninder Pratap Singh, a senior police officer from Bhavnagar district, told reporters. "Out of the five, two died on the spot while three succumbed to burn injuries in the hospital," Singh added.

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REPORT RELEASED ON NEW YORK HIGH SCHOOL FIRE

Tags: us_NY, laboratory, follow-up, injury, methanol

The New York Special Commissioner of Investigation yesterday released its report regarding the Beacon High School fire last January. The fire was widely reported to involve the ?rainbow? flame test experiment.

And indeed it did. And, as many suspected, this is what happened:

Pool continued that, as she lit each Petri dish, a different color flame appeared. When the flames died out, the students asked Poole to conduct the experiment again. Poole explained that, this time, after she added the nitrates to the Petri dish, she reached for the one gallon container of methanol to add to the Petri dish and, all of a sudden, a fire ball?like a blowtorch?erupted and shot across the room. Poole did not hear anything, but saw a white flame shoot across the room, adn then Studnet A was on fire.

I truly do not understand why so many teachers decide to pour an alcohol from a large container around open flames.

For a safer way to do the experiment, soak wooden sticks in chloride solutions, then burn them in a Bunsen burner, as recommended by the National Science Teachers Association. People at the University of California, Davis, chemistry department have experimented with this as well to find an optimal procedure to produce vibrant colors. Their results aren?t published yet, but contact Debbie Decker for more information.

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OWNER KILLED IN EXPLOSION AT PLASTIC SHEET FACTORY IN MP

Tags: India, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical

Bhopal: A factory owner was killed and two others were injured following a blast in a plastic sheet manufacturing unit in Govindpura industrial area here, police said on Saturday.

The incident occured last evening when the unit owner identified as Devendra Gupta (40) accidentally mixed a chemical with another resulting in an explosion causing grievous injuries to him and two labourers, Ashoka Garden police station in-charge, Rupesh Dubey told reporters here.

Gupta later succumbed to his injuries while the two labourers are undergoing treatment in a hospital.

A case has been registered in this regard and further investigations are on.

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

MENLO PARK: FIRE TEMPORARILY SHUTS DOWN SLAC LINEAR ACCELERATOR

Tags: us_CA, laboratory, fire, response, unknown_chemical

The linear accelerator at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in Menlo Park has been shut down after a June 25 fire that damaged an electrical cabinet and its interior equipment that serve the accelerator.

The shut-down has temporarily shut off the source of high-intensity X-rays for the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) and FACET, the Facility for Advanced Accelerator Experimental Tests.

Both were idle on Friday, June 27, SLAC spokesman Andrew Gordon told the Almanac.

It was still uncertain when the accelerator might restart, Mr. Gordon said.

The fire

On Wednesday night, a 911 call came in at about 9:45 p.m. When firefighters arrived on the scene, all they could see was smoke, Division Chief Frank Fraone of the Menlo Park Fire Protection District told the Almanac.

Thick smoke hid the section of the two-mile long building that passes under Interstate 280.

The two-alarm fire was quickly contained. Had it not been, firefighters were prepared to request that the California Highway Patrol close the freeway. "That was our next call," Mr. Fraone said.

The fire was contained by 10:30 p.m. and there were no injuries, Fire Chief Harold Schapelhouman said.

The fire damaged supporting equipment, but not the accelerator itself, Mr. Fraone said.

In fighting the fire, firefighters worked with accelerator staff to determine the source of the smoke, de-energize the accelerator and shut down equipment as needed to allow safe access. In addition, they closed smoke-control doors to isolate the affected area, Chief Schapelhouman said.

The smoke diminished after accelerator staff shut off the electricity to the switch box believed to be at the center of the fire, Mr. Fraone said. The switch box, which measures 8 feet by 10 feet by 3 feet, carried "extremely high voltage" and had high-technology equipment inside it, he said.

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FIRE CREWS CLEARING RUBBLE AT JESSUP FIRE SCENE TONIGHT; CAUSE STILL UNDER INVESTIGATION

Tags: us_PA, industrial, explosion, response, carbon_monoxide, metals

JESSUP ? The largest fire in the borough since the 1960s destroyed a factory in the industrial park Friday, with exploding metal barrels sending shrapnel flying more than 100 feet from the building.

No one was injured in the fire at Scranton Cooperage Inc., 1264 Mid Valley Drive, Jessup Fire Chief Steve Pitoniak said. Several factory workers were able to escape unharmed. By 9:30 p.m., crews were clearing rubble from the scene after the blaze was extinguished.

The fire began just after 3 p.m. As firefighters used water hoses from three points to pummel the blaze, a river of purple liquid flowed out of the building. The facility?s management indicated it was likely ink, said Rich Barbolish, director of Lackawanna County Emergency Management.

The chemical stench in the air persuaded many of the approximately 150 responders to cover their faces with paper masks. An air quality test conducted by the State Department of Environmental Protection to check for toxic emissions, such as carbon monoxide and hydrogen cyanide, was negative, Mr. Barbolish said.

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

CHEMICAL BLAZE RACKS UP HUGE BILL

Tags: Thailand, industrial, fire, injury, sulfur_dioxide

A chemical warehouse at the Bang Pu Industrial Estate has been declared a dangerous and off-limits zone as a massive fire continued to rage there yesterday despite a major fire-fighting effort.

The damage is estimated at well over Bt1 billion.

As of press time, the level of sulphur dioxide was still a little above the safe limit.

Two people have been hospitalised due to exposure to toxic fumes. One of them, 65-year-old Samlee Onnomdee, is in the intensive care unit of a local hospital. The other, Nitta Chimnok, was sent to the same hospital with a throat irritation, vomiting and nausea. She works at a firm some 500m from the fire.

The fire started yesterday morning in the 19-rai compound of Bang Pu Intermodal Systems Co Ltd and quickly engulfed the whole facility.

According to witnesses, the fire seemed to have started at the cold-storage zone.

"At first we tried to extinguish the fire ourselves but soon found out that wasn't possible," Sombat Khummee, one of the firm's employees, said. "So we quickly alerted relevant officials."

Lieutenant Nipon Kongpoon of Bang Pu Police Station said he received the report on the fire at around 9.30am yesterday.

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CHEMICAL LEAKING FROM PACKAGE SENDS POSTAL WORKERS TO HOSPITAL

Tags: us_WA, public, release, injury, unknown_chemical

KENT ? Two postal workers were taken to the hospital after coming into contact with a leaking package at a Kent distribution center.

Officials said the workers started coughing early Friday morning. They had come into contact with liquid on the outside of a package.

Firefighters and the Hazardous Material Response Team were called to the postal facility on the 248000 block of Meeker Street.

The team discovered the leaking chemical came from a different package and located it.

Officials say it will take some time to analyze the material. They did say it was not explosive or radioactive.

The contaminated packages were sealed and turned over to postal investigators to track the source.

The two workers are being treated for breathing problems.

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

CHEMICAL PLANT FIRE

Tags: us_NC, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical, sodium_carbonate

Some residents and businesses near a Greenville chemical plant were evacuated after a fire at the plant Friday morning.

The fire broke out at New Life Chemicals, off of Mauldin Road around 5:30 a.m. A chemical cloud was released during the fire, prompting the evacuation. It was a voluntary evacuation, but fire officials say it was necessary.

"We know that we inconvenienced a lot of people this morning, but at the end of the day we had no injuries, nobody hurt, everybody went home safe and what could have been pretty significant was maintained as a very small incident," says Chief Jay Mitchell with Gantt Fire Department.

The fire was put out several hours later. Since it was a chemical fire, crews had to use soda ash to smother it, instead of water. Again, everyone who was evacuated is okay to return home and all roads are back open.

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BEACON HIGH SCHOOL CHEMISTRY TEACHER MISHANDLED VOLATILE CHEMICALS, CREATING FIREBALL THAT BURNED STUDENT: PROBE

Tags: us_NY, laboratory, follow-up, injury, flammables, methanol

A careless New York City chemistry teacher recklessly handled a jug of combustible chemicals, creating a fireball that ?melted? a student?s ear, an investigation has found.

The probe into the chemistry demonstration gone horribly awry at Beacon High School on Jan. 2 determined that teacher Anna Poole poured methanol from a one-gallon bottle into four separate Petri dishes containing nitrates that had been aflame only moments prior, according to a report released Thursday by the Education Department?s investigative arm.

The flammable liquid immediately erupted, flying across the classroom at the elite Upper West Side school.

?A fireball ? like a blow torch ? erupted and shot across the room. Poole did not hear anything, but saw a white flame shoot across the room, and then Student A was on fire,? the Special Commissioner of Investigation report said.

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