Chemical Safety Headlines From Google
Friday, December 9, 2022 at 6:09:11 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 (14 articles)
GARBAGE TRUCK FIRE SHUTS DOWN ALL LANES OF I-285 IN DEKALB DURING MORNING COMMUTE
Tags: us_IL, transportation, fire, response, waste
EMA DISBANDS COUNTY HAZMAT TEAM
Tags: us_ME, public, discovery, environmental
WRISTBANDS SHOW FIREFIGHTERS ARE EXPOSED TO A LOT OF CANCER-CAUSING CHEMICALS -- EVEN WHEN THEY'RE NOT AT A FIRE SCENE
Tags: us_NC, industrial, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
NEW CSB SAFETY VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS 2017 ST. LOUIS EXPLOSION
Tags: us_MO, industrial, follow-up, environmental, unknown_chemical
U.S. CHEMICAL SAFETY BOARD
Tags: us_MO, industrial, follow-up, death, unknown_chemical
4, INCLUDING FIREFIGHTER, TAKEN TO HOSPITAL IN PROVINCE SWIMMING-POOL CHLORINE LEAK; 7 OTHERS TREATED
Tags: us_CA, public, release, injury, chlorine
BUS OVERTURNED ON RAILROAD TRACKS IN BALTIMORE, 2 PEOPLE TREATED FOR INJURIES
Tags: us_MD, transportation, release, injury, hydraulic_fluid
ALL-CLEAR GIVEN AFTER HAZMAT SITUATION IN WATERFORD NEIGHBORHOOD
Tags: us_NY, industrial, release, response, hydrochloric_acid, waste
TRUCKER KILLED WHEN SEMI SPILLS ON I-80 NEAR POTTER
Tags: us_IL, transportation, release, death, acetone, ammonia, ethanol, propanol
'OPERATION BAD CHEMISTRY' MASS CASUALTY DRILL HELD IN SOUTHAMPTON
Tags: us_NY, laboratory, discovery, environmental, unknown_chemical
UNDERSTUDIED CLASS OF PFAS FOUND IN HEALTHCARE FACILITIES
Tags: Canada, laboratory, discovery, environmental, other_chemical, dust, dye
LOS ALAMOS LAB EXPLOSION WORRIES RESIDENTS
Tags: us_NM, laboratory, explosion, environmental, unknown_chemical
PROPANE EXPLOSION FELT NEARLY 15 MILES AWAY; HOMEOWNER IN HOSPITAL, OFFICIALS SAY
Tags: us_SC, public, explosion, injury, other_chemical
ICHCA RE-EVALUATES AMMONIUM NITRATE ADVICE, POST-BEIRUT EXPLOSION
Tags: Australia, transportation, follow-up, environmental, ammonium_nitrate
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GARBAGE TRUCK FIRE SHUTS DOWN ALL LANES OF I-285 IN DEKALB DURING MORNING COMMUTE
https://sports.yahoo.com/garbage-truck-fire-shuts-down-182739106.html
Tags: us_IL, transportation, fire, response, waste
Firefighters extinguished a Waste Management truck fire on Interstate 285 NB and Northlake Parkway in Tucker on Thursday morning.
Just after 9 o’clock, firefighters arrived to find the cab of the truck completely engulfed in flames.
This particular truck was powered by compressed natural gas.
Crews were able to extinguish the flames before the natural gas ignited.
The driver of the truck was able to escape without injuries.
A hazmat unit assisted with any hazardous runoff from the vehicle.
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EMA DISBANDS COUNTY HAZMAT TEAM
https://www.boothbayregister.com/article/ema-disbands-county-hazmat-team/168511
Tags: us_ME, public, discovery, environmental
The Lincoln County HazMat team is no more. Emergency Management Agency Director Casey Stevens told county commissioners Dec. 6 the team was being discontinued. The team met twice per year for training sessions, but hadn’t responded to an incident in 3.5 years.
Stevens reported the county had administered a hazardous materials strike team since 2006. He notified local fire departments about the decision with a Nov. 23 letter. “Those members have given an enormous amount of time and effort supporting this team by responding to incidents, participating in training and exercises,” he wrote. “Unfortunately, our team is facing a decline in membership due to a lack of calls,” he wrote. “It is difficult to maintain a team for a call that may never come. The Lincoln County Decon Strike Team is dissolving effective Dec. 31.”
Stevens reported current, trained HazMat firefighters would continue training with their local departments and the county EMA would provide hazmat equipment and assist with local training.
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WRISTBANDS SHOW FIREFIGHTERS ARE EXPOSED TO A LOT OF CANCER-CAUSING CHEMICALS -- EVEN WHEN THEY'RE NOT AT A FIRE SCENE
https://www.zmescience.com/science/wristbands-show-firefighters-are-exposed-to-a-lot-of-cancer-causing-chemicals-even-when-theyre-not-at-a-fire-scene/
Tags: us_NC, industrial, discovery, environmental, other_chemical
Firefighting involves working in environments where there may be high levels of smoke, chemicals, and other harmful substances, all of which can increase the risk of cancer. Research has shown that firefighters have an increased risk of developing certain types of cancer, such as lung cancer and mesothelioma.
But firefighters aren’t exposed to carcinogens only during emergency situations. In a new study, researchers at Duke University strapped silicone wristbands to 20 firefighters from the Durham Fire Department while they went about their usual six-day shift. These ordinary wristbands can absorb more than 134 different chemicals, including known carcinogens like phthalates, brominated flame retardants, organophosphate esters, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). That’s some pretty impressive chemical surveillance for a device that only costs $1 a pop.
When the researchers compared the chemical exposure recorded on duty versus off duty, they found a striking pattern. Levels of PAH, brominated flame retardants, and organophosphate esters were 0.5 to 8.5 times higher in the wristbands worn while on duty than in those worn while off duty.
“Seventy-one of these chemicals — including seven PFAS, which to our knowledge have never previously been detected using wristbands — were found in at least half of the bands,” said Jessica Levasseur, a Ph.D. student at Duke’s Nicholas School of the Environment, who led the study.
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NEW CSB SAFETY VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS 2017 ST. LOUIS EXPLOSION
https://www.kmov.com/2022/12/08/new-csb-safety-video-highlights-2017-st-louis-explosion/
Tags: us_MO, industrial, follow-up, environmental, unknown_chemical
ST. LOUIS (KMOV) -- A deadly boiler explosion in Soulard more than five years ago is now the focus of a new safety video.
A corroded pressure vessel at Loy-Lange Box Company failed in 2017, causing it to explode more than 500 feet into the air. It crashed through the roof of a neighboring building. Four people died in the incident.
The new safety video released by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board includes an animation of the sequence of events leading up to the explosion. The video highlights the warnings that were ignored, and ways to prevent it from happening again.
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U.S. CHEMICAL SAFETY BOARD
http://www.idevmail.net/message.aspx?d=86&m=2414&e=ralph**At_Symbol_Here**rstuartcih.org&r=17944122
Tags: us_MO, industrial, follow-up, death, unknown_chemical
Washington D.C., December 7, 2022 - Today, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) released a new safety video about the fatal explosion that occurred on April 3, 2017, at the Loy-Lange Box Company in St Louis, Missouri. The incident occurred when a severely corroded pressure vessel catastrophically failed, causing an explosion that launched the pressure vessel into a neighboring building. One worker and three members of the public were fatally injured.
The safety video includes an animation of the sequence of events leading to the incident, and interviews with both the CSB’s Interim Executive Steve Owens and Lead Investigator Drew Sahli.
During its investigation, the CSB found that over the course of many years, an area of the failed pressure vessel had thinned due to a known corrosion mechanism that was poorly controlled at Loy-Lange. And the CSB found that Loy-Lange repeatedly ignored clear warnings that corrosion was causing major problems within its operations. In fact, the CSB found that prior to its failure, Loy-Lange ran the pressure vessel normally despite knowing that it was leaking.
In the video, Interim Executive Owens summarizes the CSB findings: “The incident at Loy-Lange resulted from a tragic series of circumstances -- ineffective corrosion management, inadequate pressure vessel repair, a lack of inspections, and the absence of sound safety management systems. The result of those factors was that a severely corroded pressure vessel, which presented a serious safety hazard, was allowed to operate until it ultimately failed, resulting in the death of four people.”
The potential for corrosion was a well-known problem at Loy-Lange. During its time operating the pressure vessel that failed, Loy-Lange experienced at least three leaks due to corrosion. In response to a 2012 leak, a repair company removed most of the area of the pressure vessel where the failure occurred. The company patched it with new steel but left some of the original steel in place. The original steel, however, was also thinned from corrosion, and between 2012 and 2017, it continued to degrade. The CSB found that it was the unacceptably thin remaining material from that repair that failed, initiating the incident.
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4, INCLUDING FIREFIGHTER, TAKEN TO HOSPITAL IN PROVINCE SWIMMING-POOL CHLORINE LEAK; 7 OTHERS TREATED
https://www.inmaricopa.com/fire-units-respond-to-hazmat-situation-in-province/
Tags: us_CA, public, release, injury, chlorine
Four people, including a Maricopa firefighter, were transported to hospitals after a chlorine leak at an indoor swimming pool at Province Community Recreation Center prompted a hazmat response from the Fire and Medical Department on Wednesday morning.
A Province swimming-pool chlorine leak prompted a hazmat response Wednesday in which four people, including a firefighter, were taken to a hospital. [Justin Griffin/InMaricopa]
The firefighter was treated and released. The three others who were transported are listed in stable condition.
In all, 11 people were treated near the pool, in the 20900 block of Province Parkway, after a call at about 10 a.m. that several people there were having difficulty breathing.
Upon arrival at the pool, firefighters noticed a distinct chlorine smell and upgraded the call to a hazardous-materials situation, according to city public information officer Monica Williams. Multiple agencies responded, including a Chandler Fire Department hazmat team.
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BUS OVERTURNED ON RAILROAD TRACKS IN BALTIMORE, 2 PEOPLE TREATED FOR INJURIES
https://foxbaltimore.com/news/local/bus-overturned-on-railroad-tracks-in-baltimore-2-people-treated-for-injuries
Tags: us_MD, transportation, release, injury, hydraulic_fluid
BALTIMORE (WBFF) — Emergency crews are at the scene of a bus that overturned on railroad tracks in Baltimore on Wednesday morning.
The Baltimore City Firefighters union, Baltimore Firefighters IAFF Local 734, tweeted that the bus went down an embankment and landed near railroad tracks.
A Hazmat team was called to the scene of W. McComas Street and S. Hanover Street due to hydraulic fluid leaking.
Two people are being treated for injuries, according to the fire union.
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ALL-CLEAR GIVEN AFTER HAZMAT SITUATION IN WATERFORD NEIGHBORHOOD
https://wnyt.com/top-stories/all-clear-given-after-hazmat-situation-in-waterford-neighborhood/
Tags: us_NY, industrial, release, response, hydrochloric_acid, waste
Everyone is back in their homes, after a hazmat situation at Momentive in Waterford caused an evacuation on Wednesday.
It happened at the waste treatment facility at Momentive’s Waterford site.
They tell NewsChannel 13 that employees saw hydrochloric acid vapor coming from a tank being cleaned at around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Four nearby homes were evacuated.
Less than an hour later, the source of the leak was secured, and the vapor was no longer visible.
No one was hurt, and the company says the incident shouldn’t impact manufacturing operations.
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TRUCKER KILLED WHEN SEMI SPILLS ON I-80 NEAR POTTER
https://chadronradio.com/trucker-killed-when-semi-spills-on-i-80-near-potter/
Tags: us_IL, transportation, release, death, acetone, ammonia, ethanol, propanol
A trucker from Illinois was killed Saturday night in a single-vehicle crash on Interstate 80 in the southern Panhandle not far from Sidney. A resulting chemical spill closed the freeway into Sunday.
Cheyenne County Attorney/Coroner Paul Schaub says 42-year old Mohammad Pirzad of Buffalo Grove was pronounced dead at the scene near Potter.
Cheyenne County Sheriff’s deputies responding to reports of the accident found the cab and trailer of a semi blocking both westbound lanes with Pirzad dead inside the cab.
Witnesses told deputies the truck was traveling about 70 mph when it drifted onto the grass shoulder, then continued on the shoulder for a distance before Pirzad turned sharply back onto the pavement.
That caused the tractor and trailer to tip onto the passenger side. The witnesses said they never saw the truck’s brake lights come on.
Another witness told deputies he went up to the windshield of the cab and saw Pirzad on the passenger door. He and another person then broke the windshield to get a better look, then concluded Pirzad was dead.
County Attorney Schaub says the truck was hauling a load of chemicals that spilled in the crash. Those chemicals included acetone, isopropanol alcohol, ethanol, and ammonia. Hazard mitigation and cleanup last well into Saturday.
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'OPERATION BAD CHEMISTRY' MASS CASUALTY DRILL HELD IN SOUTHAMPTON
https://patch.com/pennsylvania/lowersouthampton/operation-bad-chemistry-mass-casualty-drill-held-southampton
Tags: us_NY, laboratory, discovery, environmental, unknown_chemical
SOUTHAMPTON, NY — Communication and preparation are key in a mass casualty incident situation. To that end, the Southampton Fire Department hosted a multi-agency tabletop training, "Operation Bad Chemistry," to help first responders prepare for an actual life-threatening emergency in the village.
The training, hosted at the Southampton Fire Department Friday, tested current mass casualty plans in a controlled environment. The goal was to test local response plans and determine deficiencies that need to be addressed and improved upon, officials said.
"Operation Bad Chemistry" focused on what would happen should a complex fire in the chemistry lab break out in Southampton High School.
"The scenario was developed from an automatic fire alarm, to a hazardous material incident with affected students due to an incident in the chemistry lab during class," officials said.
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UNDERSTUDIED CLASS OF PFAS FOUND IN HEALTHCARE FACILITIES
https://cen.acs.org/environment/persistent-pollutants/Understudied-class-PFAS-found-healthcare/100/web/2022/12
Tags: Canada, laboratory, discovery, environmental, other_chemical, dust, dye
Researchers have detected an understudied class of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), known as fluorotelomer ethoxylates (FTEOs), in indoor dust and industrial wastewater samples collected across two provinces in Canada. They found the highest concentrations of FTEOs in dust found in healthcare settings, such as a hospital, a pharmacy, and a medical school, and in effluent produced at a healthcare linen cleaning facility (Environ. Int. 2022, DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2022.107634).
According to the study’s lead author Karl Jobst, an environmental chemist at Memorial University of Newfoundland, investigating the prevalence of FTEOs in healthcare facilities complements previous work done by other groups, which have identified these potentially persistent fluorinated compounds in fabric stain repellents and anti-fogging agents (Anal. Bioanal. Chem. 2014, DOI: 10.1007/s00216-014-7862-0). “We certainly hypothesized that these compounds could be widespread,” says Nicholas Herkert, an environmental scientist at Duke University who detected FTEOs in anti-fog sprays earlier this year (Environ. Sci. Technol. 2022, DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c06990). “But so little research has been done on FTEOs to date, we were ultimately uncertain.”
Jobst’s study is the first to confirm Herkert’s suspicions. To measure FTEOs in the dust and wastewater samples, Jobst and his colleagues attached a mass spectrometer to a gas chromatograph using an atmospheric pressure chemical ionization source. According to Jobst, this analytical setup can detect FTEOs more easily than liquid chromatography, the primary method for detecting PFAS in environmental samples. He suspects that the prevalence of liquid chromatography in PFAS analysis prevented scientists from detecting FTEOs in the environment prior to this study.
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LOS ALAMOS LAB EXPLOSION WORRIES RESIDENTS
http://www.riograndesun.com/news/los-alamos-lab-explosion-worries-residents/article_67f1e2fc-75cb-11ed-bd42-1f29673cd8af.html
Tags: us_NM, laboratory, explosion, environmental, unknown_chemical
An explosion conducted by Los Alamos National Laboratory last week alarmed residents across the Española Valley, some of who called law enforcement to report the blast, officials said.
The explosion happened around 12:15 p.m. on Nov. 30, according to the Los Alamos County Police Department.
The agency “received numerous calls about a loud explosion” and confirmed the laboratory “conducted a routine detonation,” police said in a Facebook post.
According to a laboratory spokesperson, the facility “conducted a high explosive shot as part of a training exercise.”
The sound from the shot, helped along by atmospheric conditions and wind direction, carried toward Los Alamos neighborhoods—and beyond.
“All operational parameters for the exercise were within specified limits,” the spokesperson said.
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PROPANE EXPLOSION FELT NEARLY 15 MILES AWAY; HOMEOWNER IN HOSPITAL, OFFICIALS SAY
https://www.kplctv.com/2022/12/06/propane-explosion-felt-nearly-15-miles-away-homeowner-hospital-officials-say/
Tags: us_SC, public, explosion, injury, other_chemical
SMOAKS, S.C. (WCSC/Gray News) - A homeowner in South Carolina has been taken to a hospital for burns after an explosion at his house.
WCSC reports first responders were called to a house fire in Colleton County on Monday around 8 p.m.
Colleton County Fire-Rescue Deputy Chief David Greene said a person was in the home at the time of the explosion and was working on a gas line before it exploded.
The man was taken to the hospital with stable vital signs.
Authorities said the explosion was felt nearly 15 miles away and left a large debris field that closed roads in the area.
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ICHCA RE-EVALUATES AMMONIUM NITRATE ADVICE, POST-BEIRUT EXPLOSION
https://theloadstar.com/ichca-re-evaluates-ammonium-nitrate-advice-post-beirut-explosion/
Tags: Australia, transportation, follow-up, environmental, ammonium_nitrate
The international Cargo Handling Coordination Association (ICHCA) has issued new guidelines on the safe handling of ammonium nitrate, the combustible substance that exploded in the port of Beirut in August 2020.
The carriage and storage of ammonium nitrate is an ongoing issue, with the requirement to understand the properties of the various types of the chemical available and used.
ICHCA CEO Richard Steele told The Loadstar: “The latest guidance from ICHCA is about mitigating risk in the event of an emergency aboard ship, it’s about clarifying and re-emphasising how ammonium nitrate should be handled.”
Ammonium nitrate under normal circumstances is considered benign, but under some conditions that changes, and it is important to understand what those conditions are and to avoid them, warns Mr Steele, adding that storing ammonium nitrate away from heat sources is critical.
It is clear that labelling of chemicals with the potential for catastrophic consequences requires clarity.
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