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Table of Contents (16 articles)
TESORO BARS FEDERAL SAFETY AGENCY FROM EAST BAY REFINERY
Tags: us_CA, industrial, follow-up, injury, sulfuric_acid
UPDATE: CHEMICAL LEAK AT KENDALVILLE BUSINESS CONTAINED
Tags: us_IN, public, release, injury, ammonia
FIRE DEPARTMENT RESPONDS TO CHEMICAL SMELL ON WEST NECK
Tags: us_NY, public, release, response, unknown_chemical
PETERBOROUGH PERKINS FACTORY CHEMICAL ALERT CAUSED BY 'DEHYDRATING ACID'
Tags: United_Kingdom, industrial, discovery, response, picric_acid
BIG HAZMAT FIRE AT INTERSTATE 10, INTERSTATE 17 STACK IN PHOENIX
Tags: us_AZ, public, explosion, response, propane
200 WORKERS EVACUATED DUE TO HAZMAT SITUATION IN MESA
Tags: us_AZ, industrial, release, injury, unknown_chemical
CHEMICAL SPILL REPORTED IN SEAL BEACH
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, release, response, xylene
MAPLE TREE DOPING? DANGEROUS CHEMICAL BOOSTS SYRUP HARVEST
Tags: Canada, public, discovery, response, formaldehyde, illegal
MAN INJURED IN BOULDER CREEK PROPANE EXPLOSION
Tags: us_CA, transportation, explosion, injury, propane
CHEMICAL FIRE SPURS IOWA TOWN'S EVACUATION
Tags: us_IA, public, fire, response, sulfuric_acid
HAZMAT CREWS SEARCH BRONX APARTMENT AFTER MAN HAD CYANIDE: SOURCES
Tags: us_NY, public, discovery, injury, cyanide
CONTROLLED EXPLOSION AT FACTORY
Tags: United_Kingdom, industrial, discovery, response, unknown_chemical
CHICAGO STUDENTS HEATING HOT CHOCOLATE SPARK FIRE INSIDE HIGH SCHOOL
Tags: us_IL, education, fire, injury, butane
YOUNGSTOWN NEWS, HOUSEHOLD CHEMICAL MIXTURE CAUSES MEDICAL EMERGENCY
Tags: us_OH, public, release, injury, cleaners
EUROPE'S CHEMICAL FIRMS PIN HOPES ON R&D WITH CUSTOMERS
Tags: Germany, other, discovery, response, plastics
CHEMICAL REGULATIONS GAIN SMALL BUSINESS SUPPORT IN WV
Tags: us_WV, public, follow-up, environmental, toxics
---------------------------------------------
TESORO BARS FEDERAL SAFETY AGENCY FROM EAST BAY REFINERY
Tags: us_CA, industrial, follow-up, injury, sulfuric_acid
In an unprecedented challenge, Tesoro Corp. has barred federal authorities from going inside its refinery near Martinez to investigate an incident in which two workers were burned by acid spewing from a broken pipe, The Chronicle has learned.
State officials ordered a partial shutdown of the Golden Eagle Refinery following the Feb. 12 incident after inspectors with California's workplace safety agency found numerous suspected safety violations, state officials said.
The investigators with Cal/OSHA went to the plant at 150 Solano Way in the unincorporated community of Pacheco when a pipe containing sulfuric acid burst, spraying the two workers in the face with the caustic chemical. The two were flown by helicopter to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, where they were treated for first- and second-degree burns and released later that day.
---------------------------------------------
UPDATE: CHEMICAL LEAK AT KENDALVILLE BUSINESS CONTAINED
Tags: us_IN, public, release, injury, ammonia
The chemical leak at a Kendalville business following a roof collapse has been contained.
Shortly after 11:00am Thursday morning, the roof collapsed at a Performance Food Group location. WPTA reports that anhydrous ammonia was leaking, and people were urged to avoid the area.
The CDC says anhydrous ammonia is a colorless gas with pungent suffocating fumes. Exposure causes irritation and breathing difficulty. Exposure can be fatal in high concentrations.
Thirty-three people were exposed to the gas, but only 8 people needed to be treated for it. No one needed to be taken to the hospital.
---------------------------------------------
FIRE DEPARTMENT RESPONDS TO CHEMICAL SMELL ON WEST NECK
Tags: us_NY, public, release, response, unknown_chemical
The Shelter Island Fire Department responded late Thursday morning to a report of a smell of gas at a residence on West Neck Road near New York Avenue.
A locksmith had gone to the residence to work on locks. When he opened the door and smelled gas he immediately reported it, according to Shelter Island Fire Department Chief John D?Amato.
Apparently, because of the heavy snows and an unplowed driveway, Picozzi?s Fuels couldn?t deliver propane to the residence and the tanks had run dry. Drained tanks are often accompanied by a chemical smell, representatives of Picozzi?s informed fire department members, who had shut down all electricity and vented the house.
---------------------------------------------
PETERBOROUGH PERKINS FACTORY CHEMICAL ALERT CAUSED BY 'DEHYDRATING ACID'
Tags: United_Kingdom, industrial, discovery, response, picric_acid
A chemical alert at a Cambridgeshire factory which led to a controlled explosion being carried out was caused by dehydrating acid, the firm said.
Nearly 100 workers were evacuated from Perkins at Peterborough early on Wednesday when picric acrid was found in an "unstable" state.
Nearby residents were told to stay indoors while RAF Wittering experts detonated the chemical.
Perkins said operations had since returned to normal.
Peterborough is the headquarters of Perkins, which makes diesel and gas engines for industrial, construction and agricultural machines.
---------------------------------------------
BIG HAZMAT FIRE AT INTERSTATE 10, INTERSTATE 17 STACK IN PHOENIX
Tags: us_AZ, public, explosion, response, propane
Phoenix Fire Capt. Jonathan Jacobs said the fire that started just before noon was considered a hazardous materials incident.
....
Firefighters could see the thick black smoke from the firehouse and said they instantly knew this fire could be big.
Almost immediately fire crews said they were faced with small explosions.
?There were some large popping noises, probably propane tanks blowing up, and some shrapnel flying through the air from those,? Pacimeo told ABC15.
But soon the explosions became larger, as many as four to six in a row, according to Jacobs.
---------------------------------------------
200 WORKERS EVACUATED DUE TO HAZMAT SITUATION IN MESA
Tags: us_AZ, industrial, release, injury, unknown_chemical
, AZ - Four people are in the hospital Thursday morning after a hazmat alert at a future Apple plant in Mesa.
Firefighters said they got a call to respond to a building near Signal Butte Road and Elliot just after midnight.
More than 200 employees were evacuated after firefighters said they started complaining about a strange burning sensation.
First responders didn't find any obvious chemical spills or contaminants inside the building.
While onscene firefighters, said they treated 20 people for nausea and headaches. Four people were sick enough they decided to go to the hospital.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL SPILL REPORTED IN SEAL BEACH
Tags: us_CA, laboratory, release, response, xylene
Orange County firefighters contained a chemical spill at a medical laboratory in Seal Beach today.
No one was injured when between five and 10 gallons of the chemical Xylene spilled on the fourth floor of offices of Sterling Pathology National Laboratories at 3030 Old Ranch Parkway about 5 p.m., prompting evacuation of the floor, Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Steve Concialdi said.
About 25 firefighters and hazardous materials team members contained the ?highly flammable? chemical, Concialdi said.
The clean-up operation was turned over to the Orange County Health Care Agency and a private company around 7:40 p.m., Concialdi said.
The chemical, which is heavier than air when it evaporates and stays close to the ground, posed an explosion risk, Concialdi said.
Firefighters shut down the building's heating, air conditioning and ventilation system and evacuated about 40 people before containing the spill, Concialdi said.
---------------------------------------------
MAPLE TREE DOPING? DANGEROUS CHEMICAL BOOSTS SYRUP HARVEST
Tags: Canada, public, discovery, response, formaldehyde, illegal
More than a dozen maple syrup producers stand accused of illegally boosting harvests with a chemical that can kill trees and even people.
Paraformaldehyde has resurfaced in Quebec more than 20 years after it was banned.
The Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup Producers (FPAQ) told QMI Agency that it has sanctioned 15 cheaters over the past three years.
FPAQ said the harvesters sprayed tapholes with paraformaldehyde, which can prevent scarring around the hole, thereby increasing sap production.
However, the chemical can also kill maple trees and is a suspected cancer-causing agent.
Insertion of paraformaldehyde capsules, the old cheating method, was banned in 1991. Some producers have since obtained a paraformaldehyde spray that's just as dangerous and invisible to the naked eye.
---------------------------------------------
MAN INJURED IN BOULDER CREEK PROPANE EXPLOSION
Tags: us_CA, transportation, explosion, injury, propane
BOULDER CREEK -- A worker was injured Wednesday in a propane explosion at a home on Bar King Road in Boulder Creek.
He was transferring fuel from a 500-gallon propane tank on a flatbed truck to a 4,000-gallon propane tank at a home near Rincon Way, said Boulder Creek Fire Chief Kevin McClish.
A valve broke in the larger tank and propane vapor leaked into the air. It caught a pilot light on a wall heater at a nearby home, which triggered an explosion and fire that trailed back to the tank, firefighters said.
The worker was "thrown to the ground in the explosion," said McClish. He was treated at a hospital and released on Wednesday, according to a representative of Mountain Propane, his employer. His age was not released.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL FIRE SPURS IOWA TOWN'S EVACUATION
Tags: us_IA, public, fire, response, sulfuric_acid
(CNN) -- A chemical fire involving sulfuric acid forced the evacuation of an entire Iowa town Thursday, emergency management officials said.
The roughly 2,000 people in Northwood, near the Minnesota state line, were told to head to a community center about 6 miles south of town, according to an emergency message from the Worth County Emergency Management agency.
"A fire that is burning at a facility at the Northwood Municipal Airport contains sulfuric acid. This is a dangerous situation," the message warned. County officials told residents who didn't have transportation to gather at the courthouse for a ride.
---------------------------------------------
HAZMAT CREWS SEARCH BRONX APARTMENT AFTER MAN HAD CYANIDE: SOURCES
Tags: us_NY, public, discovery, injury, cyanide
Hazardous material crews removed an unknown substance from an apartment in the Bronx Wednesday night during a search after a man gave police a container with traces of cyanide, law enforcement sources say.
The unknown substance was found after the man, who apparently has a history of mental disturbances, brought a container to the NYPD precinct in the Pelham Parkway section of the Bronx Friday and told officers that there was a dangerous substance inside, sources say.
The container tested positive for traces of cyanide, so officers brought the man in for questioning. During an interview, the man told officers he had ordered the contents online, sources say. He said he also bought another jar containing a ricin-like substance, which was still at his apartment.
The substance found Wednesday will be tested, police say.
According to the NYPD, two people were taken to the hospital from the apartment and were later released. The building has since been declared safe.
---------------------------------------------
CONTROLLED EXPLOSION AT FACTORY
Tags: United_Kingdom, industrial, discovery, response, unknown_chemical
Police have urged people living near an industrial estate in Peterborough to stay indoors while a controlled explosion is carried out.
Cambridgeshire Police said staff were evacuated from the Perkins site in Frank Perkins Way shortly after 1.30am following the discovery of an "unstable chemical".
A police statement said: "A team from the Explosive Ordnance Department at RAF Wittering are at the scene and will carry out a controlled explosion at 6.30am.
"The chemical does not pose a risk to nearby residents, however people are being advised to stay indoors as a precaution."
A cordon has been set up around the site and nearby roads are currently closed.
The Perkins site is a manufacturing facility which produces engines for use in construction and agriculture machinery.
Inspector Kieran Mylchreest, from Cambridgeshire Police, said: "The engineering company called us to tell us they'd found this chemical in an unstable state and that they would like some assistance in dealing with it.
"The risk is very, very low to the general public. Those living in neighbouring streets should stay indoors as a precaution.
---------------------------------------------
CHICAGO STUDENTS HEATING HOT CHOCOLATE SPARK FIRE INSIDE HIGH SCHOOL
Tags: us_IL, education, fire, injury, butane
Five Chicago high school students were injured on Wednesday after using gas burners to heat hot chocolate.
The fire erupted in a classroom at Northside College Prep High School at about 10:30 a.m.
Police initially responded to reports of a chemical explosion, according to ABC. They discovered that butane exploded while the students were making hot chocolate during a cooking class.
?It lasted all of maybe 10 minutes,? fire department spokesperson Larry Langford told the Sun-Times. ?A gas burner ignited. The fire went up to the ceiling, and was immediately put our by the sprinkler.?
The fire erupted in a classroom at the school.
A hazmat crew was called to the scene, along with fire trucks and an ambulance.
One student suffered facial burns and was taken to a local hospital in serious-to-critical condition. Three others were also transported to hospitals?two in fair condition and one in good condition. A fifth student declined medical treatment.
---------------------------------------------
YOUNGSTOWN NEWS, HOUSEHOLD CHEMICAL MIXTURE CAUSES MEDICAL EMERGENCY
Tags: us_OH, public, release, injury, cleaners
Household chemical mixture causes medical emergency
A medical call received by the Western Reserve Joint Fire District in Poland turned into an odor investigation Tuesday night.
Fire Chief David ?Chip? Comstock Jr. said a mixture of house cleaning chemicals are believed to be the cause of a gas cloud in a house on Youngstown-Pittsburgh Road.
?You have to very careful with what you mix,? he said. ?We have had in the past were people mix chlorine and ammonium based products.?
This causes a chemical reaction and releases a gas.
In this situation it is assumed that the man became unconscious after mixing chemicals to unclog a drain. ?What [emergency workers] did is open up windows and got the patient to a position where they could work on him,? Comstock said.
A few people were exposed to the gas, but no one needed treatment.
?We try to teach our folks to be aware of their surroundings as they go into homes,? Comstock said.
---------------------------------------------
EUROPE'S CHEMICAL FIRMS PIN HOPES ON R&D WITH CUSTOMERS
Tags: Germany, other, discovery, response, plastics
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - European chemicals and plastics makers are cutting in-house research and instead trying to persuade industrial customers to work together on developing running shoes, cars or electronics.
Collaborating can cut millions of euros from research and development (R&D) budgets and translate into exclusive supplier contracts as chemical and plastics profits come under pressure from cheaper emerging market competition and rising fuel bills.
German chemicals group BASF has started working with sportswear maker Adidas to make running shoe soles more bouncy. Solvay is developing polymer linings for corroded pipelines with an oil major while Lanxess is helping VW unit Skoda make car parts.
---------------------------------------------
CHEMICAL REGULATIONS GAIN SMALL BUSINESS SUPPORT IN WV
Tags: us_WV, public, follow-up, environmental, toxics
Local businesses in favor of stronger regulations after the Jan. 9 chemical leak into the Elk River have support beyond the Mountain State from the American Sustainable Business Council.
The ASBC is pushing for federal regulation to protect people from hazardous chemicals and to encourage the creation of safer chemicals.
"We want them to understand, small and medium-sized businesses across this country are standing up with them," said Frank Knapp Jr., president and CEO of the American Sustainable Business Council. "They're part of the bigger picture."
Jennifer Pettigrew Burns, owner of Ms. Groovy's Catering on Charleston's West Side, said support from the national group reinforces her belief that campaigning for stricter regulations is the right thing to do.
"This is a national thing," Burns said. "It can happen in any part of the country that have storage tanks with toxic chemicals."
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