From: DCHAS Membership Chair <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (11 articles)
Date: Wed, 24 Apr 2019 08:24:39 -0400
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU>
Message-ID: ACBC1447-D4F9-4990-9BE9-9CD29E306A8C**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Wednesday, April 24, 2019 at 8:24:24 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)

GAS LEAK CLOSES 78 NEAR LOGANVILLE
Tags: us_GA, public, release, response, natural_gas

HAZMAT CREW RESPONDS TO LAB EXPLOSION IN MADISON
Tags: us_WI, laboratory, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical

WHY DID THE STATE OF TEXAS SUE ITC AND KMCO SO QUICKLY AFTER RECENT FIRES? ‰?? HOUSTON PUBLIC MEDIA
Tags: us_TX, public, follow-up, environmental

WHAT WE KNOW AND DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE FIRE AT AN APS BATTERY FACILITY
Tags: us_AZ, industrial, follow-up, injury, batteries

CHEMICAL REACTION CAUSES YELLOW CLOUD TO FORM IN PALM BEACH COUNTRY ESTATES
Tags: us_FL, public, explosion, response, hydrochloric_acid

BLAST AT INNER MONGOLIA CHEMICAL PLANT KILLS 3
Tags: China, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical

CHEMICAL CREWS DETECT VAPOR EMISSION AT BG ARMY DEPOT
Tags: us_KY, industrial, release, response, unknown_chemical

REP. SYLVIA GARCIA TO HOST ITC FIRE TOWN HALL
Tags: us_TX, public, follow-up, environmental, benzene

BEAR MACE CLEARS OUT OFFICE IN WARRICK COUNTY
Tags: us_IN, public, release, response, tear_gas

HAZMAT TRAINING OFFERED TO HELP IN CAMP FIRE RECOVERY
Tags: us_CA, industrial, follow-up, environmental

UNIVERSITY EMPLOYEES STEAL BUNDLES OF CAMPUS NEWSPAPER TO STOP ‰??BAD PUBLICITY‰?? ON WELCOME DAY
Tags: us_MA, public, follow-up, response, clandestine_lab


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GAS LEAK CLOSES 78 NEAR LOGANVILLE
http://www.waltontribune.com/article_7c0423de-6609-11e9-957d-778089002c6a.html
Tags: us_GA, public, release, response, natural_gas

GRAYSON, Ga. ‰?? A contractor hit two gas lines near a busy Gwinnett County intersection, snarling traffic between Loganville and Snellville during the afternoon rush hour.

Gwinnett firefighters responded at 2:27 p.m. Tuesday to a report of a gas leak at the intersection of Cooper Road and Athens Highway to a 911 call of a gas line struck while drilling.

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HAZMAT CREW RESPONDS TO LAB EXPLOSION IN MADISON
https://www.nbc15.com/content/news/Hazmat-crew-responds-to-lab-explosion-in-Madison-508956981.html
Tags: us_WI, laboratory, explosion, injury, unknown_chemical

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV)-- Several crews from the Madison Fire Department, including the Hazardous Materials Incident Team, responded to a lab explosion on Madison's East Side on Tuesday.

According to the Madison Fire Department, they responded to the lab on the 3500 block of Anderson Street around 12:20 p.m. When crews arrived, they learned there was an explosion in one of the lab's hoods.

A Madison Fire Department spokeswoman said one person was injured. As of 1:30 p.m. no one was taken to a hospital.

According to the Madison Fire Department, there is no danger to the public and there is no threat of a chemical or gas leak. Roads in the area were temporarily closed during the initial response.

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WHY DID THE STATE OF TEXAS SUE ITC AND KMCO SO QUICKLY AFTER RECENT FIRES? ‰?? HOUSTON PUBLIC MEDIA
https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/shows/houston-matters/2019/04/23/330336/why-did-the-state-of-texas-sue-itc-and-kmco-so-quickly-after-recent-fires/
Tags: us_TX, public, follow-up, environmental

After recent chemical fires at an ITC facility in Deer Park and another at a KMCO facility in Crosby, the State of Texas moved rather quickly to file suit against those companies.

This came as a surprise to many, particularly because Attorney General Ken Paxton filed suit against each company shortly after their fires broke out and well before the Texas Commission for Environmental Quality could even finish an investigation and refer a lawsuit to the state.

And, as noted by the Texas Tribune‰??s energy and environment reporter Kiah Collier, the state did not file suit over a similar ‰?? and deadlier ‰?? event in 2013 when a fertilizer plant in West caught fire and exploded, killing 15 people.

So, what is it about these two events that caught the state‰??s eye? Is it indicative of a shift in the way Texas will look at environmental regulations and violations?

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WHAT WE KNOW AND DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE FIRE AT AN APS BATTERY FACILITY
https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/what-we-know-and-dont-know-about-the-fire-at-an-aps-battery-facility#gs.7nlnax
Tags: us_AZ, industrial, follow-up, injury, batteries

No cause has been named for the fire at an Arizona battery facility that sent four firefighters to the hospital Friday.

Peoria Fire Department spokesperson Michael Selmer described "an explosion" when the responders tried to check on the battery enclosure, raising questions about whether the batteries or some other equipment triggered that event. Lithium-ion batteries have been involved in fires before, but only a handful of times in the U.S. grid infrastructure context.

Utility Arizona Public Service, which owns the site, and Fluence, which provided the battery system, have been investigating the cause of the conflagration since Saturday.

Four members of the Peoria Fire Department were hospitalized with chemical and chemical-inhalation burns, according to the department. The responders' conditions had stabilized by Saturday evening, local outlet AZ Central reported.

This calamity comes at a sensitive time for the fledgling storage industry, which is poised to double deployments this year and triple them in 2020, according to data from Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables.

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

CHEMICAL REACTION CAUSES YELLOW CLOUD TO FORM IN PALM BEACH COUNTRY ESTATES
https://cbs12.com/news/local/chemical-reaction-causes-yellow-cloud-to-form-near-jupiter-farms
Tags: us_FL, public, explosion, response, hydrochloric_acid

JUPITER, Fla. (CBS12) ‰?? Authorities converged on a remote area in Palm Beach Country Estates after reports of a yellow cloud and possible explosion Tuesday.

Palm Beach County Fire Rescue responded to an incident involving acid near the intersection of 154th Court North and 89th Avenue North.

Fire officials say workers were doing routine maintenance on a well owned by the Town of Jupiter in a vacant lot.

The head of the well failed and when the head failed, this caused hydrochloric acid and water to shoot up out of the well into the surrounding dirt.

Some hydrochloric acid also got into the nearby C-18 canal, but an official said it has dissipated and is not a concern and he said the drinking water supply is safe and was not affected.

No one was evacuated, nobody was injured.

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

BLAST AT INNER MONGOLIA CHEMICAL PLANT KILLS 3
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-blast-chemicals/blast-at-inner-mongolia-chemical-plant-kills-3-idUSKCN1S0076
Tags: China, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical

SHANGHAI/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Three people were killed in an explosion at a privately owned chemical plant in China‰??s Inner Mongolia region, the official Xinhua News Agency reported on Wednesday.

The blast happened in the early hours of the morning at Inner Mongolia Dongxing Chemicals, a company that produces a range of products from sodium hydroxide to PVC, a lightweight plastic.

The accident follows two deadly blasts in eastern Jiangsu province in March that killed 85 people, leading to increased scrutiny on how China monitors its sprawling chemicals industry.

Market regulators said earlier this month they would launch a nationwide inspection into the safety of industrial products like food packaging and hazardous chemicals in an effort to allay public concerns.

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CHEMICAL CREWS DETECT VAPOR EMISSION AT BG ARMY DEPOT
https://lex18.com/news/covering-kentucky/2019/04/23/chemical-crews-detect-vapor-emission-at-bg-army-depot/
Tags: us_KY, industrial, release, response, unknown_chemical

RICHMOND, Ky. ‰?? Chemical crews detected a vapor emission in a storage structure that contained sarin rockets during a routine inspection Tuesday.

A mobile monitoring laboratory detected the vapor during routine analysis of the atmosphere within the structure, known as an ‰??igloo.‰?? As a safety precaution, a powered filter was connected to the igloo to ensure the vapor does not enter the outside atmosphere.

Detecting, isolating, and mitigating vapor emissions are a normal part of the safe and secure chemical storage operations at Blue Grass Chemical Activity.

There is no danger or risk to Madison County citizens or surrounding counties. The Madison County Emergency Management Agency and the Commonwealth of Kentucky EMA were notified of the vapor emission.

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REP. SYLVIA GARCIA TO HOST ITC FIRE TOWN HALL
https://www.click2houston.com/news/rep-sylvia-garcia-to-host-itc-fire-town-hall
Tags: us_TX, public, follow-up, environmental, benzene

HOUSTON - U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston, will hold a town hall Wednesday about the recent fire at the ITC plant in Deer Park.

The meeting will be held from 7 to 8 p.m. at the Milby High School Auditorium at 1601 Broadway St.

According to a press release about the event, Gacia will be joined by representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the Chemical Safety Board, Harris County Public Health and the Harris County Fire Marshal‰??s Office.

The discussion will focus on the impacts of the chemical facility fire that burned for nearly a week and released benzene into the surrounding area, according to the press release.

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BEAR MACE CLEARS OUT OFFICE IN WARRICK COUNTY
https://www.tristatehomepage.com/news/local-news/bear-mace-clears-out-office-in-warrick-county/1945373187
Tags: us_IN, public, release, response, tear_gas

Bear mace clears out an office in Warrick County.

It happened at an OBGYN office on Rosebud Lane, near Alldredge Dental Care.

The office was evacuated while hazmat crews checked out the scene.

It's unclear how the bear mace got sprayed into the office.

But we're told everyone was allowed back into the office a short time later.

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HAZMAT TRAINING OFFERED TO HELP IN CAMP FIRE RECOVERY
https://www.actionnewsnow.com/content/news/Hazmat-training-offered-to-help-in-Camp-Fire-recovery-508913741.html
Tags: us_CA, industrial, follow-up, environmental

BUTTE COUNTY, Calif. - There is still a lot to be done in the Camp Fire recovery process, so contractors need workers now more than ever.

That's why many are enrolling in a special "HAZWOPER" course.

"This is day one of the classes," I ask, "Are you nervous?"

"It scares the heck out of me but I'm writing down notes and I have a lot of family support plus I want to motivate my grandkids to get into good positions," said Rick, a Camp Fire Survivor who is soon to be a hazardous waste worker.

"We're working hard to help everybody rebuild, it's an important process for this whole area," said Rick.

Hazmat trainer Derek Dawson trains debris removal workers through Butte College as part of a special "Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response" program, or "HAZWOPER".

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UNIVERSITY EMPLOYEES STEAL BUNDLES OF CAMPUS NEWSPAPER TO STOP ‰??BAD PUBLICITY‰?? ON WELCOME DAY
https://www.thecollegefix.com/university-employees-steal-bundles-of-campus-newspaper-to-stop-bad-publicity-on-welcome-day/
Tags: us_MA, public, follow-up, response, clandestine_lab

Admissions staffers at the University of Massachusetts-Boston won‰??t face legal penalties for stealing student newspapers from campus newsstands in order to prevent embarrassment to the university.

The only consequences they will face is a ‰??mandatory staff training‰?? about the First Amendment rights of The Mass Media newspaper, Editor-in-Chief Kelsey Hale told The College Fix, sharing her conversations with a campus official.

The newspaper became a target of the admissions department because of a front-page article that was still on newsstands during ‰??Welcome Day‰?? on April 6, when students accepted as freshmen and their guests visit the campus.

The Mass Media reported on a ‰??Level 2 hazmat situation‰?? in a campus dorm that drew two fire trucks, four police vehicles and an ambulance. A student mixed together enamel and varnish in an apparent attempt to create ‰??a substance similar to bath salts,‰?? the newspaper said.

The Office of Housing and Residential Life didn‰??t send an email to dorm residents until 19 hours after the incident, claiming there was ‰??no danger‰?? from the ‰??over-the-counter chemicals‰?? that staff found in the dorm.

The Mass Media emphasized that the email didn‰??t mention that a student had been carried out of the scene on a stretcher and taken to the hospital, having ‰??supposedly fainted due to an adverse chemical reaction.‰?? It also didn‰??t mention the student‰??s apparent intent.

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