From: "Secretary, ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety" <secretary**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines from Google (13 articles)
Date: Wed, 10 Sep 2014 08:05:57 -0400
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Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Wednesday, September 10, 2014 at 8:05:45 AM

A service of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
All article summaries and tags are archived at http://pinboard.in/u:dchas

Table of Contents (13 articles)

HAZMAT CONCERN REPORTED AT SEVERAL WINCHESTER BUSINESSES
Tags: us_VA, public, release, response, flammables

MASSIVE EXPLOSION ROCKS GERMAN CHEMICAL PLANT (PHOTOS, VIDEO) ? RT NEWS
Tags: Germany, industrial, explosion, injury, paints

CHEMICAL PLUME RELEASED AT HAVILAND ENTERPRISES IN G.R.
Tags: us_MI, industrial, release, response, pool_chemicals

CHEMICAL SPILL LEAKS FROM STORE, ONTO LITTLE ITALY ROAD
Tags: us_CA, public, release, response, various_chemicals

EMPLOYEE PUT ON LEAVE AFTER RENO MUSEUM FLASH FIRE
Tags: us_NV, public, follow-up, injury

UNIVERSITY EMPHASIZES SAFETY DURING BIOSAFETY MONTH
Tags: us_TX, laboratory, discovery, response, biosafety

POLICE, PRP FIRE ASSIST LEVEL TWO HAZMAT LEAK AT LG&E'S MILL CRE
Tags: us_KY, industrial, release, response, corrosives

LEAK FROM TRUCK AT LOVE'S DRAWS HAZMAT
Tags: us_AZ, transportation, fire, injury, flammables

HAZMAT SITUATION PRODUCES VAPOR CLOUD ON CAPE COD
Tags: us_MA, transportation, release, response, waste

CHEMICAL SPILL AT KELOWNA GENERAL HOSPITAL
Tags: Canada, public, release, injury, cleaners

SEPTEMBER IS BIOSAFETY STEWARDSHIP MONTH AT ASU
Tags: us_AZ, laboratory, follow-up, environmental, biosafety

LANDFILL TAKING RADIOACTIVE WASTE HAS HISTORY OF VIOLATIONS, LEAKS, FIRES
Tags: us_MI, industrial, discovery, environmental, radiation, toxics, waste

33 FALL SICK IN AMMONIA GAS LEAK AT CHINA CHEMICAL PLANT
Tags: China, industrial, release, injury, ammonia


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HAZMAT CONCERN REPORTED AT SEVERAL WINCHESTER BUSINESSES
Tags: us_VA, public, release, response, flammables

WINCHESTER, Va. - Winchester Fire & Rescue officials responded to a Hazmat concern Tuesday morning involving several local businesses.

Officials said they were called to 2235-2239 Valor Drive in Winchester for a strong chemical smell reported inside numerous stores. Upon arrival, crews were able to determine that the smell originated from renovation work at DK Hair Studio.

They said the concern was quickly isolated and the building was ventilated. Four people complaining of dizziness and eye and throat irritation were evaluated by EMS. No one was taken to the hospital for further treatment.

Fire officials said the toxic smell was caused by a mop bucket containing highly-flammable floor stripping chemicals that was left uncovered overnight inside DK Hair Studio. The vapors were transported through the ductwork to three other businesses in the building, causing a high toxicity level in the air.

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MASSIVE EXPLOSION ROCKS GERMAN CHEMICAL PLANT (PHOTOS, VIDEO) ? RT NEWS
Tags: Germany, industrial, explosion, injury, paints

A powerful explosion heard from kilometers away has rocked a chemical plant near Bremen, in northern Germany. At least one person has reportedly been injured while the plant buildings sustained ?serious damage,? first responders say.

More than 300 firefighters have been called in to battle the explosion and massive fire at the Bergolin company plant in Ritterhude, a city north of Bremen with a population of 15,000. The plant reportedly produces primarily industrial coatings.

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CHEMICAL PLUME RELEASED AT HAVILAND ENTERPRISES IN G.R.
Tags: us_MI, industrial, release, response, pool_chemicals

GRAND RAPIDS (WZZM) -- Emergency crews are wrapping up on the scene of a hazardous materials situation at Haviland Enterprises in northwest Grand Rapids.

Grand Rapids Fire Department battalion chief Dan Stoddard told WZZM 13 pool chemicals, known as oxiders, got wet, creating a chlorine plume at the chemical plant located at Ann Street and Turner Avenue NW.

Firefighters evacuated businesses along Turner where the plume was strongest. Residents living north of the area were advised to stay inside because the gas release could create breathing discomfort.

Crews closed several roads in the area including: Ann Street between Alpine and Monroe; the U.S. 131 exits to Ann Street; and Turner Avenue. The chemical leak also forced a CSX train to idle north of Ann. Authorities say traffic has returned to normal.

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CHEMICAL SPILL LEAKS FROM STORE, ONTO LITTLE ITALY ROAD
Tags: us_CA, public, release, response, various_chemicals

A chemical spill at a cleaning supply company sent Hazmat crews rushing to Little Italy and one dog owner rushing to a veterinarian.
San Diego Fire officials say various chemicals spilled and mixed inside the store near India and Grape streets around 5:45 p.m. The company sells cleaning supplies to restaurants.
The chemicals leaked out of the building, into the roadway, so Hazmat crews were called to monitor the cleanup and make sure the problem did not pose an environmental hazard.
Three people and a dog wandered through the chemicals. The people were deemed fine, but the dog?s owners are taking it to the vet to be checked out.
A few cars parked along the road may need to be towed since the chemical splashed all over them, fire officials say.

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EMPLOYEE PUT ON LEAVE AFTER RENO MUSEUM FLASH FIRE
Tags: us_NV, public, follow-up, injury

RENO, Nev. ? An employee at a Reno science museum has been placed on leave after firefighters concluded her error during a demonstration led to a flash fire that injured 13 people, including at least eight children.

Officials at the Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum said Thursday the unidentified employee will be off the job until a full investigation is completed.

Reno fire officials said a three- to five-second blaze erupted Wednesday after the employee poured alcohol on a cotton ball that had been dusted with boric acid and partially ignited.

Officials say the alcohol is supposed to be applied before the boric acid and the flame.

The demonstration is designed to create a small green fire tornado.

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

UNIVERSITY EMPHASIZES SAFETY DURING BIOSAFETY MONTH
Tags: us_TX, laboratory, discovery, response, biosafety

September is National Biosafety Stewardship Month, according to the National Institutes of Health, and Texas Tech is taking part in the month by conducting various safety-learning activities.
Alice Young, associate vice president of research, said Tech and other colleges around the country are participating in this Stewardship Month and are funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Over the summer, NIH laboratories found small, undisturbed vials of dangerous organisms in one of the cold rooms, according to a news release from the NIH.
As a result of this, NIH is now asking all universities and NIH scientists to look at biological inventories and check what is in the cold storage, Young said.
?NIH went through their freezers and found some dangerous compounds that weren?t being used and weren?t being stored properly,? she said. ?There was no suggestion that anything was going to be used poorly, it just could?ve been forgotten.?

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POLICE, PRP FIRE ASSIST LEVEL TWO HAZMAT LEAK AT LG&E'S MILL CRE
Tags: us_KY, industrial, release, response, corrosives

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Police and PRP Fire are responding to a level two hazmat situation at LG&E's Mill Creek Plant, according to MetroSafe.
The incident was reported to Louisville Metro officials just before 4:30 p.m. Monday.

MetroSafe says there is about 100 gallons of Potassium Hydroxide leaking from 3 drums in the facility.

There have been no evacuations and they say the situation is contained.

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LEAK FROM TRUCK AT LOVE'S DRAWS HAZMAT
Tags: us_AZ, transportation, fire, injury, flammables

A barrel inside a truck at the Love?s Truck Stop near the Highway 95 and I-40 interchange Sunday afternoon leaked about 10 gallons of a hazardous substance, sending two people to the hospital.
The Desert Hills Fire District responded to the truck stop shortly before 2 p.m., securing the site and beginning to treat patients. Lake Havasu City fire responded with its special hazardous materials unit and vehicle.
The HAZMAT team discovered a truck inside of a tire repair garage with barrels containing Acetophenone, a material used in fuels and cosmetics that can be flammable and dangerous if breathed.
One of the barrels was leaking out of the truck onto the garage floor, Havasu Fire Battalion Chief James Whitt said.
The Desert Hills team treated eight patients total, sending two to Havasu Regional Medical Center, Chief Bill Weber said. Their crews were on scene for nearly seven hours.

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HAZMAT SITUATION PRODUCES VAPOR CLOUD ON CAPE COD
Tags: us_MA, transportation, release, response, waste

No one was injured in a hazmat situation after a container burst open, creating a vapor cloud on Cape Cod.
Falmouth Fire confirms that a recycling truck was near the fire station at 419 Woods Hole Road when the incident occurred.
The container was carrying muriatric acid.
The hazmat team is working to unload the contents of the truck at the town's landfill, which is in a secured area.

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CHEMICAL SPILL AT KELOWNA GENERAL HOSPITAL
Tags: Canada, public, release, injury, cleaners

Two Kelowna General Hospital staff members were sent for observation after being exposed to gas from a potentially harmful combination of chemicals.
The Kelowna Fire Department hazmat team was called to the hospital Monday morning after chemicals were accidentally spilled. Combined, the chemicals produce a hazardous gas.
KFD Deputy Chief Larry Hollier said fire crews were initially called to the hospital at 8:30 a.m. to deal with small smoldering fire in an ashtray, but they were then alerted to the chemical threat.
Hollier said chlorine and muriatic acid (also known as hydrochloric acid) were spilled in the rehab area ? which has a small pool - creating a noxious gas. Muriatic acid has a number of uses, including a cleaning agent.

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SEPTEMBER IS BIOSAFETY STEWARDSHIP MONTH AT ASU
Tags: us_AZ, laboratory, follow-up, environmental, biosafety

In the wake of widely publicized news over the threat of infectious diseases, the National Institutes of Health is among those urging all U.S. laboratories working with biohazardous materials to assess and strengthen their biosafety standards and practices this September, as part of National Biosafety Stewardship Month.

Demonstrating a commitment to the responsible and safe conduct of research at Arizona State University, Environmental Health and Safety and the Institutional Biosafety Committee are working together to raise awareness this month about issues related to biosafety, and increase resources available to the research community.

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

LANDFILL TAKING RADIOACTIVE WASTE HAS HISTORY OF VIOLATIONS, LEAKS, FIRES
Tags: us_MI, industrial, discovery, environmental, radiation, toxics, waste

Despite assurances that a Belleville landfill and its partner facility in Van Buren Township that accept radioactive fracking waste are safe, they have been cited for at least 15 violations in the last decade and fined more than $471,000, a Free Press review of state and federal records shows.
Wayne Disposal?s owner, USEcology, which also owns neighboring Michigan Disposal, on just under 600 acres between Willow Run Airport and I-94, cited its record of ?safe, secure and compliant disposal? as a reason why it?s an appropriate site for out-of-state, radioactive fracking waste.
But violations cited by regulators from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, revealed incidents including a leak in the hazardous waste landfill?s primary protective liner; toxic leachate spills into surface water; improper venting and monitoring of stored underground hazardous waste; disposing of hazardous waste in nonhazardous landfill locations, and failing to control chemical reactions during processing that caused fires on-site. DEQ records show at least nine fires have started in Michigan Disposal?s processing facility in the past nine years as a result of toxic chemicals reacting with each other during treatment.

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33 FALL SICK IN AMMONIA GAS LEAK AT CHINA CHEMICAL PLANT
Tags: China, industrial, release, injury, ammonia

BEIJING: At least 33 people fell sick after an ammonia gas leak at a chemical plant in northwest China.

The accident took place on Saturday in the Jiemeifengyou Chemical Plant in Ningdong Energy and Chemical production base located in Yichuan provincial capital of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Most of the victims showed minor poisoning symptoms. Four people who were seriously poisoned are out of danger after overnight emergency medical treatment.

Witnesses say ammonia gas and highly concentrated ammonia liquids spurted out from a flare piping in the southeast corner of the plant.

The company kept spraying water in the polluted areas to dilute the gas in the air.

Currently, the air quality around the periphery of the plant has met the safety standards, the report said.

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