From: DCHAS Membership Chair <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (12 articles)
Date: Wed, 5 Aug 2020 07:21:20 -0400
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**Princeton.EDU>
Message-ID: 8E87AC9A-7EEC-4395-87C5-EE35872CC257**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Wednesday, August 5, 2020 at 7:20:53 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 (12 articles)

NEW BEDFORD FIRE AND STATE HAZMAT TEAM RESPOND TO AMMONIA LEAK AT NORTHERN WIND SEAFOOD
Tags: us_MA, industrial, release, response, ammonia

SPECIAL DRIVE TO ENSURE SAFETY OF INDUSTRIES IN ANDHRA PRADESH AFTER SERIES OF MISHAPS- THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS
Tags: India, industrial, discovery, environmental

BEIRUT EXPLOSION LIKELY A CATASTROPHIC ‰??ACCIDENT SIMILAR TO 2001 TOULOUSE FERTILIZER FACTORY BLAST,‰?? DETONATIONS EXPERT TELLS RT ‰?? RT WORLD NEWS
Tags: Lebanon, industrial, explosion, death, ag_chemicals

MPD RELEASES VIDEO ABOUT DEPARTMENT'S USE OF CHEMICAL IRRITANTS AS PART OF DIRECTIVE FROM FPC
Tags: us_WI, public, discovery, environmental, tear_gas

READ THIS BEFORE USING HAND SANITIZER AGAIN
Tags: public, discovery, environmental, ethanol, methanol

WORKERS' LAWSUIT OVER SUPERIOR REFINERY EXPLOSION MOVES FORWARD
Tags: us_WI, industrial, follow-up, environmental, unknown_chemical

BLAST IN A CHEMICAL UNIT IN DOMBIVLI, NO INJURIES
Tags: India, industrial, explosion, response, unknown_chemical

DEATH TOLL RISES TO 6 IN CHINA FACTORY BLAST
Tags: China, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical

HAZMAT TEAM CALLED FOR CLEAN-UP AFTER CHEMICAL SPILL FOLLOWS CRASH IN OTAGO
Tags: New_Zealand, transportation, release, injury, unknown_chemical

DECONTAMINATION OF VX WITH ACID-ACTIVATED CLAY
Tags: laboratory, discovery, environmental, mustard_gas

HAZMAT CREW RESPONDS TO REPORT OF AMMONIA LEAK AT FISH PACKING PLANT IN NEW BEDFORD ‰?? BOSTON NEWS, WEATHER, SPORTS
Tags: us_MA, industrial, release, response, ammonia

BLAZE AT CHEMICAL FACTORY IN HYDERABAD, NO CASUALTIES REPOTED
Tags: India, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical


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NEW BEDFORD FIRE AND STATE HAZMAT TEAM RESPOND TO AMMONIA LEAK AT NORTHERN WIND SEAFOOD
https://www.southcoasttoday.com/news/20200804/new-bedford-fire-and-state-hazmat-team-respond-to-ammonia-leak-at-northern-wind-seafood
Tags: us_MA, industrial, release, response, ammonia

NEW BEDFORD -- An ammonia leak at Northern Wind Seafood on Tuesday morning was quickly elevated to a Tier 2 hazardous response. The building was evacuated and there were no known injuries.

The New Bedford Fire Department posted on social media just after 9 a.m. that crews were on the scene at 75 MacArthur Drive and that the State Hazmat Team was called in to assist.

A fire dispatcher told the Standard-Times that alarms were going off in the building after an ammonia panel was activated.

The incident was elevated from a Tier I hazmat response to a Tier II , which activates the state hazmat team to respond, fire officials said.

This is the second ammonia leak this week.

Fire crews responded to Sea Watch International just before 1 a.m. Monday for an ammonia leak at the fish packing plant.

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SPECIAL DRIVE TO ENSURE SAFETY OF INDUSTRIES IN ANDHRA PRADESH AFTER SERIES OF MISHAPS- THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS
https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/andhra-pradesh/2020/aug/05/special-drive-to-ensure-safety-of-industries-in-andhra-pradesh-after-series-of-mishaps-2179328.html
Tags: India, industrial, discovery, environmental

VIJAYAWADA: Taking note of industrial mishaps in the State, Andhra Pradesh government will launch a special drive under the chairmanship of joint collector to ensure compliance of safety protocols and environmental norms by the industries.

The government issued orders to constitute District Joint Committee on Tuesday.

The government was forced to launch the special drive following a series of industrial mishaps in Vizag ever since the industries resumed operations after lockdown.

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BEIRUT EXPLOSION LIKELY A CATASTROPHIC ‰??ACCIDENT SIMILAR TO 2001 TOULOUSE FERTILIZER FACTORY BLAST,‰?? DETONATIONS EXPERT TELLS RT ‰?? RT WORLD NEWS
https://www.rt.com/news/497118-beirut-blast-accident-chemist/
Tags: Lebanon, industrial, explosion, death, ag_chemicals

The massive blast that shook Beirut was likely caused by a fatal mishandling of hazardous materials, mirroring an explosion that leveled a fertilizer plant in France some two decades ago, a chemist and detonations expert told RT.
Tuesday‰??s explosion tore through a port chemical depot and sent a towering fireball and mushroom cloud into the sky over Beirut, leaving more than 70 people dead and some 4,000 injured. Though US President Donald Trump has mused that the incident was an ‰??attack‰?? caused by ‰??some kind of bomb,‰?? Frolov ‰?? who heads the combustion and explosion department at the Semenov Institute of Chemical Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow ‰?? said he‰??s confident the blast was a catastrophic accident.

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MPD RELEASES VIDEO ABOUT DEPARTMENT'S USE OF CHEMICAL IRRITANTS AS PART OF DIRECTIVE FROM FPC
https://cbs58.com/news/mpd-releases-video-about-departments-use-of-chemical-irritants-as-part-of-directive-from-fpc
Tags: us_WI, public, discovery, environmental, tear_gas

"Over the course of the past several months, there have been at least 100 protests that have occurred," Chief Alfonso Morales said in a video released by the police department, "There have been six instances when MPD has had to use a chemical agent like O.C. spray to disperse an unruly crowd."

The department needed to release the information Tuesday as part of a directive handed down by the Fire and Police Commission.

As part of the directive, Chief Morales needed to "provide a full, public, and accurate explanation of the use of tear gas and large volumes of oleoresin capsicum spray during peaceful civil disturbances and the situations that warrant those tactics" by August 4.

The directive also states "The Chief shall work with the Board of the Fire and Police Commission in amending the proper SOP(s) to discontinue the use of chemicals mentioned above."

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READ THIS BEFORE USING HAND SANITIZER AGAIN
https://www.thelist.com/233005/read-this-before-using-hand-sanitizer-again/
Tags: public, discovery, environmental, ethanol, methanol

The difference between two commonly used alcohols, ethanol and methanol, involves more than semantics. Many of the cosmetics we use today are made with ethanol, from facial astringents, to lotion. Since it is so effective at killing germs like bacteria, viruses, and fungi, ethanol or ethyl alcohol, it is found in many hand sanitizers, which are widely used when soap and water aren't immediately handy (via Chemical Safety Facts).

Methanol, on the other hand, is primarily used as a solvent to make inks, resins, adhesives, and antifreeze (via Chemical Safety Facts). The other big difference: Methanol is poisonous. When it enters our body, it can cause nausea, difficulty breathing, and blindness (via USA Today). Unfortunately, some hand sanitizers, mostly from Mexico, may contain this very hazardous ingredient. Methanol's toxicity when it comes into contact with our bodies, either when it is absorbed by our skin or when it is ingested, is the reason the FDA has put hand sanitizers found to have been contaminated with this chemical on a "Do not use" list of dangerous products.

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WORKERS' LAWSUIT OVER SUPERIOR REFINERY EXPLOSION MOVES FORWARD
https://www.wpr.org/workers-lawsuit-over-superior-refinery-explosion-moves-forward
Tags: us_WI, industrial, follow-up, environmental, unknown_chemical

Contract workers who were injured in a 2018 explosion at Husky Energy's Superior refinery have made the case that the company was negligent when it ordered them back into the facility after alarms had sounded, a judge ruled.

The workers' civil lawsuit in state circuit court in Douglas County will move forward after the judge's Monday afternoon ruling against the company's motions to dismiss it.

The workers are seeking damages in excess of $10,000 for medical costs and lost wages as well as pain and suffering in the case. Judge Daniel Tolan ruled that the company could be liable for punitive damages in the case as well.

The workers say the company ordered them to go back into the refinery even after there were loud knocking sounds and alarms sounding that had caused the plant to be evacuated. The judge found that those accusations, if proven at trial, would constitute serious negligence by the company.

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BLAST IN A CHEMICAL UNIT IN DOMBIVLI, NO INJURIES
https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/blast-in-a-chemical-unit-in-dombivli-no-injuries/story-K7Xuh1g5lQnjQ9lZvncZDP.html
Tags: India, industrial, explosion, response, unknown_chemical

As per the Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC) fire department, the company was shut on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan.

‰??We got information about the blast and sent a fire tender to the spot. The noise of the blast led to panic among residents. No one was injured in the incident,‰?? said Dilip Gund, chief fire officer, KDMC.

The chemical unit is around 30 years old.

Mahesh Sawant, 35, a resident of Thakurli, said, ‰??There was a loud noise in the area. When I called up some of the residents, I came to know that there was a blast.‰??

Devendra Soni, president of Kalyan Ambernath Manufacturers Association, said, ‰??There was a loud noise from the unit. However, since it was an off day for workers there were no injuries. The incident led to panic among the residents, but fire officials brought the situation is under control soon.‰??

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DEATH TOLL RISES TO 6 IN CHINA FACTORY BLAST
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2020-08/04/c_139263523.htm
Tags: China, industrial, explosion, death, unknown_chemical

WUHAN, Aug. 4 (Xinhua) -- The death toll has risen to six as of 7 a.m. Tuesday after a flash explosion at a chemical plant on Monday in central China's Hubei Province, local authorities said.

Four others were wounded, with their injuries not considered life-threatening.

The accident happened at around 5:30 p.m. Monday in a workshop of an organic silicon company in the city of Xiantao.

The fire was put out at 7 p.m. Monday, according to the city's publicity department.

The company has stopped production for an overhaul, and investigation is under way. Enditem

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HAZMAT TEAM CALLED FOR CLEAN-UP AFTER CHEMICAL SPILL FOLLOWS CRASH IN OTAGO
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/422735/hazmat-team-called-for-clean-up-after-chemical-spill-follows-crash-in-otago
Tags: New_Zealand, transportation, release, injury, unknown_chemical

The truck came off State Highway 90 about 2km south of Edievale, shortly after midday.

A spokesperson for St John Ambulance said a man had been taken to Gore Hospital with moderate injuries.

Fire and Emergency said there were chemicals on board the truck, which had all been been identified and separated to ensure there was no serious risk.

Drivers were being diverted around the spillage where the two fire crews and the hazmat team were expected to remain for some time.

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DECONTAMINATION OF VX WITH ACID-ACTIVATED CLAY
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.chas.0c00058
Tags: laboratory, discovery, environmental, mustard_gas

The decontamination ability of montmorillonite-based acid-activated clay (AACL) toward the chemical warfare agents (CWAs) mustard gas (HD), soman (GD), and venomous agent X (VX) is evaluated using gas chromatography‰??flame ionization detection (GC-FID) with internal standard calibration. Unlike HD and GD, VX rapidly reacts with AACL; 99.6% of VX is chemically decontaminated within 10 min. Further investigation into the interaction of AACL with VX revealed that the initial rate of the reaction depends on the concentration of acid on the surface of AACL (the measured pH), suggesting that the formation of a protonated VX intermediate is involved. This reaction occurs in a stoichiometric manner, and surface-bound degradation products are identified and estimated using gas chromatography‰??mass spectrometry (GC-MS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM-EDS). The optimized weight ratio of AACL to VX is 40:1 when the reacti!
on time is fixed at 10 min. AACL also shows good adsorption capacity for CWAs, with more than 96% of CWAs physically removed by adsorption. These results not only suggest an essential design strategy for the development of reactive sorbents for VX but also indicate that AACL, which can be mass-produced at low cost, can be regarded as a promising material for immediate decontamination of CWAs.

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HAZMAT CREW RESPONDS TO REPORT OF AMMONIA LEAK AT FISH PACKING PLANT IN NEW BEDFORD ‰?? BOSTON NEWS, WEATHER, SPORTS
https://whdh.com/news/hazmat-crew-responds-to-report-of-ammonia-leak-at-fish-packing-plant-in-new-bedford/
Tags: us_MA, industrial, release, response, ammonia

NEW BEDFORD, MASS. (WHDH) - A hazardous materials crew responded to a fish packing plant in New Bedford early Monday morning for a report of an ammonia leak.

Crew members in protective suits could be seen walking around the building at 15 Antonio Costa Ave.

The New Bedford Fire Department says they do not believe anyone was hurt.

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

BLAZE AT CHEMICAL FACTORY IN HYDERABAD, NO CASUALTIES REPOTED
https://telanganatoday.com/blaze-at-chemical-factory-in-hyderabad-no-casualties-repoted
Tags: India, industrial, fire, response, unknown_chemical

Hyderabad: A fire broke out in a chemical company at the industrial area in Mallapur on the city outskirts in Nacharam here on Sunday evening. No casualties were reported in the fire which is suspected to have been caused by a short circuit.

According to the police, locals in the nearby residential area noticed the huge fire and thick smoke emanating from the unit and alerted the fire department and the police personnel.

Fire caught the plastic containers which were filled with the chemicals. Due to the presence of chemicals, there was dark and thick smoke covering the surroundings.

The Nacharam police along with the fire department officials with the help of four fire engines doused the fire in about two hours. The management is yet to lodge a complaint and give out an estimation of the damaged property. The Nacharam police are investigating the matter.

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