From: Ralph Stuart <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG>
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (9 articles)
Date: Fri, 31 Dec 2021 06:26:25 -0500
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**Princeton.EDU>
Message-ID: E71A7A08-5C7F-4E4F-AE78-7D5036033BAC**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org


Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, December 31, 2021 at 6:25:49 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 (9 articles)

WILDFIRE SEES 'HAZMAT EXPLOSION FEARS AT FACTORY WITH NITROGEN AS TESLA BURNS'
Tags: us_CO, industrial, fire, response, liquid_nitrogen

RESIDENTIAL EXPLOSION/GAS LEAK IN THE LAWNDALE / WAYSIDE AREA ‰?? CITY OF HOUSTON
Tags: us_TX, public, explosion, injury, methane, natural_gas

EASTBOUND I-90 CLOSED FOR MULTIPLE SPINOUTS
Tags: us_WA, transportation, release, response, sulfuric_acid

GREENBURGH SHOPPING CENTER DEMANDS $360,000 FROM TENANT FOR CHEMICAL CLEANUP
Tags: us_NY, public, follow-up, environmental, cleaners, pce, waste

BURNT PELLETS COMPLICATE IMPACT OF PLASTIC SPILL OFF SRI LANKA, STUDY FINDS
Tags: Sri_Lanka, public, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical

SAFE PIRANHAS: A REVIEW OF METHODS AND PROTOCOLS
Tags: Singapore, industrial, discovery, environmental, other_chemical, acids

A VEHICLE BURNED AT CANOO‰??S HEADQUARTERS AFTER A BATTERY TEST
Tags: us_CA, public, fire, response, batteries

HELP CALLED IN FOR CHEMICAL CLEANUP AT HIGHLAND FIRE
Tags: us_LA, public, fire, response, kerosene

GRPD BOMB SQUAD TO DISPOSE OF EXPLOSIVES, HAZARDOUS MATERIALS THIS WEEK
Tags: us_MI, industrial, explosion, environmental, explosives, waste


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WILDFIRE SEES 'HAZMAT EXPLOSION FEARS AT FACTORY WITH NITROGEN AS TESLA BURNS'
https://editorials24.com/2021/12/wildfire-sees-hazmat-explosion-fears-at-factory-with-nitrogen-as-tesla-burns/
Tags: us_CO, industrial, fire, response, liquid_nitrogen

The fire burning in Boulder County sparked worries of a hazmat emergency as flames were said to be approaching a property with liquid nitrogen tanks.

The fire torched hundreds of homes and businesses on Thursday, sparking massive evacuations as first responders continue to help people escape the blaze.

Up to 32,000 people living in the towns of Superior and Louisville were evacuated as the blaze, dubbed the Marshall Fire, spread to 1,600 acres

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RESIDENTIAL EXPLOSION/GAS LEAK IN THE LAWNDALE / WAYSIDE AREA ‰?? CITY OF HOUSTON
https://cityofhouston.news/residential-explosion-gas-leak-in-the-lawndale-wayside-area/
Tags: us_TX, public, explosion, injury, methane, natural_gas

WHAT: Residential explosion with gas leak

WHEN: December 28, 2021 at 8:59 a.m.

WHERE: 400 block of Forest Hill Blvd. 77011

INJURIES: One civilian transported to the hospital.

PROPERTY SAVED: $130 thousand in estimated property saved.

DAMAGE: $65 thousand in estimated damage.

CAUSE: Possible gas explosion with an ignition source in the first-floor kitchen.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Firefighters arrived on scene within four minutes to find a patient walking out of an residence with visible injuries and transported him to the hospital. There was no visible fire or smoke, however, crews could smell natural gas and requested HFD Hazmat and Heavy Rescue to shore up the structure to prevent further collapse. A primary search was conducted with no one found. The nearby structures and exposures were evacuated as a precaution and hazmat investigated a possible gas explosion with an ignition source in the first-floor kitchen. CenterPoint and the City‰??s Neighborhood and Engineering department were requested. Firefighters from Stations 20, 26, 17, 18, 23, 40, 30, Heavy Rescue 11 and Rescue 42 responded to this incident.

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EASTBOUND I-90 CLOSED FOR MULTIPLE SPINOUTS
https://komonews.com/news/local/nearly-80-miles-of-i-90-shut-down-at-snoqualmie-pass
Tags: us_WA, transportation, release, response, sulfuric_acid

NORTH BEND, Wash. - Eastbound I-90 from North Bend is closed because of spinouts.

The closure comes less than an hour after the interstate reopened following a collision involving hazardous material.

The Washington Department of Transportation says an SUV crashed into a tanker carrying sulfuric acid Thursday afternoon on I-90 near Cle Elum. The SUV narrowly missed the drain valve for the tanker.

Crews were able to remove the car from under the truck by letting air out of the front tires. Washington State Patrol says no one was injured.

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GREENBURGH SHOPPING CENTER DEMANDS $360,000 FROM TENANT FOR CHEMICAL CLEANUP
https://westfaironline.com/143956/greenburgh-shopping-center-demands-360000-from-tenant-for-chemical-cleanup/
Tags: us_NY, public, follow-up, environmental, cleaners, pce, waste

A Greenburgh shopping center is demanding nearly $360,000 from a former dry cleaning tenant to cover the costs of an environmental cleanup caused by a hazardous chemical spill.

Greenburgh Shopping Center Associates is demanding that Youn Do Hwang, the operator of Deb-Rich Cleaners, be held responsible for the cleanup under the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, in a complaint filed Dec. 20 in U.S. District Court, White Plains.

Debrich Cleaners Inc. was formed in 1970 by Jacob Rabinowitz, according to a state corporations record. In 1992, Debrich assigned the Deb-Rich Cleaners lease for 91 Knollwood Road to Hwang.

The lease required Hwang to cover the costs of waste disposal and nonstructural maintenance and repairs, according to the complaint. He agreed to assume responsibility for any damages to the property and to obtain $500,000 in liability insurance.

Hwang decided to close the business last year, and he allegedly hired an unincorporated, unregistered, unlicensed and uninsured contractor ‰?? Marcelo, doing business as N.Y.C. Scrap Metal Pickup ‰?? to remove property from the store.

As the work was being done on Dec. 1, 2020, Perc spilled inside the store, the complaint states, and seeped below the floor and into the soil beneath the building.

Perc, also known as perchloroethylene or tetrachloroethylene, is classified as a hazardous chemical that can affect the central nervous system and other organs.

The landlord says it responded immediately when it learned of the spill, hiring CA Rich Consultants to assess the extent of the chemical exposure and begin the cleanup and Emergi-Clean Inc. to remove contaminated soil and water.

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BURNT PELLETS COMPLICATE IMPACT OF PLASTIC SPILL OFF SRI LANKA, STUDY FINDS
https://news.mongabay.com/2021/12/burnt-pellets-complicate-impact-of-plastic-spill-off-sri-lanka-study-finds/
Tags: Sri_Lanka, public, follow-up, environmental, other_chemical

Volunteers cleaning up after the sinking of the X-Press Pearl in Sri Lanka say they‰??ve encountered a lot of burnt nurdles, the basic building block of plastic products, during the initial stages of the cleanup operation.
A newly published paper highlights how burnt nurdles complicate the environmental challenges ‰?? making cleanup operations harder and much more complex, besides proving highly detrimental to marine life.
The Sri Lankan government has called on the international community to enact new regulations in shipping transportation, landing and loading in order to reduce the risk of accidents like the X-Press Pearl disaster.

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SAFE PIRANHAS: A REVIEW OF METHODS AND PROTOCOLS
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.chas.1c00094
Tags: Singapore, industrial, discovery, environmental, other_chemical, acids

Piranha solution is a dangerous and useful substance used throughout academia and industry. However, there is little peer-reviewed work on its safe use, and institutional protocols are limited in their applicability beyond their institute of origin. Here, we review institutional safety protocols for Piranha use to develop a consensus on the best safe practices and try to fill any gaps and resolve any ambiguities with reference to the related safety literature.

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A VEHICLE BURNED AT CANOO‰??S HEADQUARTERS AFTER A BATTERY TEST
https://newsconcerns.com/a-vehicle-burned-at-canoos-headquarters-after-a-battery-test/
Tags: us_CA, public, fire, response, batteries

A vehicle at EV startup Canoo burned on August 24th after lithium-ion batteries left inside the car started a fire. The local fire department was able to extinguish the blaze and no one was injured, according to an incident report obtained by The Verge.

The fire happened in the parking lot outside Canoo‰??s Torrance, California corporate office, which was once the startup‰??s headquarters ‰?? before it started calling Bentonville, Arkansas home in November.

Canoo‰??s VP of communications Agnes Gomes-Koizumi confirmed the fire occurred after The Verge requested comment. ‰??A small fire occurred several hours after the intentionally destructive testing of a battery module,‰?? Gomes said in an e-mailed statement, noting the module passed the test and did not ignite. The fire happened because ‰??someone inappropriately placed the module in a sealed container,‰?? she wrote. ‰??The box the module was placed in became pressurized and resulted in the incident.‰??

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HELP CALLED IN FOR CHEMICAL CLEANUP AT HIGHLAND FIRE
https://www.arklatexhomepage.com/news/local-news/help-called-in-for-chemical-cleanup-at-highland-fire/
Tags: us_LA, public, fire, response, kerosene

SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) ‰?? A fire in a Shreveport home Wednesday afternoon caused a scare when it was discovered chemicals were being stored in the burning garage.

Around 1:30 in the afternoon firefighters were called to a house fire on Egan St. in Shreveport‰??s Highland neighborhood. While they were getting the fire under control they noticed potentially dangerous storage containers in the garage. There was a moment when they were concerned about the situation.

‰??Started to get the fire knocked down and noticed we had a couple of drums of an unknown substance. Found out it was kerosene. One can did breach and we had a small leak, but we‰??ve got all of that contained.‰??

It took 15 minutes to get the fire out and a sand truck was called in to help contain the chemicals. State police have been called in to help with the cleanup while they make sure nothing from the site enters the storm drains.

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GRPD BOMB SQUAD TO DISPOSE OF EXPLOSIVES, HAZARDOUS MATERIALS THIS WEEK
https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/grand-rapids/grpd-bomb-squad-to-dispose-of-explosives-hazardous-materials-this-week
Tags: us_MI, industrial, explosion, environmental, explosives, waste

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. ‰?? The Grand Rapids Police Department‰??s bomb squad will be safely disposing of explosives and other hazardous materials that were seized during investigations or are expiring.

It‰??ll be done between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Dec. 30 at the Grand Rapids Compost and Yard Waste site located at 2001 Butterworth St. SW, a news release said Tuesday.

To safely and properly dispose of these items, the bomb squad will need to set off intermittent controlled detonations.

People using the Fred Meijer Millennium Trail or those who live in the area ‰?? specifically those on Butterworth Street SW, O'Brien Road SW, Covell Avenue SW and Maynard Avenue SW ‰?? may hear the detonations.

Pets sensitive to loud noises may also be affected.

Grand Rapids‰?? 911 Communications Center is aware of this event.

The area being used at the Grand Rapids Compost and Yard Waste site is only on a small section of the property, so officials say services will be open to the public as usual.

‰??We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause to residents in the area; however, this is needed to safely dispose of these materials,‰?? said Captain Michael Maycroft, commander of GRPD‰??s bomb squad operations.

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