SAN PABLO, Calif. - Evacuation orders were lifted Friday in a San Pablo neighborhood days after the discovery of hundreds of dangerous and explosive chemicals found in a backyard shed.

At least 600 chemicals were found in more than 800 bottles and containers behind a home on Stanton Avenue, fire officials said.

"The found explosives, they found acids, they found oxidizers, they found flammable liquids," said Contra Costa County Fire Captain Chris Toler "We could have possibly had a catastrophic event in the middle of the neighborhood."

The stockpile of hazardous materials date back decades with some considered easily combustible, forcing neighbors from their homes for days. Bomb technicians said some of the chemicals were wrapped newspapers featuring stories from when Richard Nixon was president.


Investigators said the property belongs Mark Elson, 80, of San Pablo who died six months ago. They said he was possibly a chemist and science teacher, however, when and where he worked is not clear.

Toler told KTVU that his estranged brother discovered the chemicals early this week while cleaning out the home.

"There was a pretty strange relationship there," he said. "The gentleman hadn’t spoken to his brother in 60 years."

Neighbors said Elson kept to himself and was a hoarder prompting numerous calls to code enforcement for overgrown bushes, trees and trash.

"The front yard and stuff over there was so bad people had to walk out into the street to get around it," neighbor Emerson Harvey said.

San Pablo police confirmed Friday that the home at 925 Stanton Avenue had 18 citations for code violations since 2004.

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – While we all know the heat is dangerous if we’re out in it too long, you might not realize how risky it is for the batteries powering your devices.

Lincoln Fire & Rescue is getting the word out after responding to a pickup truck fire earlier this week.

After an investigation, officials believe lithium batteries caused the fire.

They say a battery-powered rangefinder was stashed in a golf bag in the bed of the pickup, which was sitting in the sun for several hours.

Inspector Brad Hasenjeager suspects that heat continued to build up inside the bag, and eventually, the batteries ignited.

LFR spokeswoman MJ Lierman said devices powered by lithium batteries are more likely to ignite, especially if they’re old or damaged.

“The lithium batteries are particularly the ones we’re concerned about,” she said. “It is a problem that’s becoming more and more aware as the batteries get older, and people are not keeping up with the maintenance. If they get damaged, they’re really more likely to have problems.”

Hasenjeager said battery fires can be especially dangerous because they’re technically chemical fires.

He said they’re harder to put out and can burn at over 3,000 degrees, which can ignite items that wouldn’t normally burn.

Earlier this year, Forbes reported that these batteries are overheating on aircraft nearly every single week.

MADISON COUNTY, Ky. (WKYT) - Workers at the Blue Grass Army Depot in Madison County have finished destroying 30,000 tons of chemical weapons.

If you’re 70 years old or younger and lived in or around Madison County all your life, the threat of a leak was a lifelong worry. Richmond residents tell us they are relieved the threat of a chemical spill or accident is now in the past.

PREVIOUS: Last of world’s declared chemical weapons destroyed in Kentucky
“This is something that has been hanging over our heads my whole life,” said Richmond resident Jennifer Sexton

Benjamin Hill, who lives across from Blue Grass Army Depot, says he no longer needs this long roll of plastic wrap used to cover his doors and windows in case of a chemical leak.

He’s lived across the street from the depot for the past three years. He’s not 100% convinced all of the chemical weapons are destroyed, nor is he assured there weren’t any accidents or leaks during the eradication process.

“I would be extremely surprised that no ‘oopsies,’ as you put it, happened, and if they did, I don’t believe they would tell anybody,” said Hill.

At times, Hill says he could feel the destruction.

“They’re old single-pane windows from the 60s, and, yeah, it would rattle the windows,” Hill said.

“There’s two sides to this. One, it’s completed. But, oh yes, what about all those jobs,” said Richmond Mayor Robert Blythe.

Blythe says the city has been working with a consultant to see which workers will retire and which ones will find similar jobs in the county.

“There will be people on site for a while because of demolition of those things that need to go,” Blythe said.

Potentially, thousands of jobs will be erased once everything is cleared.

Photo: Steven Song/Xinhua via Getty Images.
When a chemical plant in Port Neches, Texas, exploded on Thanksgiving eve in 2019, multiple people were injured, tens of thousands were evacuated from their homes and off-site property damage costs topped $150 million.

What's new: The plant's ultimate owners, private equity firms First Reserve and SK Capital Partners, will not be held liable, per a recent ruling by the Texas Supreme Court.

Why it matters: This was a failed attempt to pierce the corporate veil that private equity funds use to protect themselves from portfolio company misdeeds.

Had it succeeded in Texas, the second-largest state for private equity investment, it could have opened the floodgates for future litigation.
What to know: The Port Neches facility was owned by TPC Group, which was taken private for $850 million in 2012 by First Reserve and SKCP.

It mostly produced butadiene, a petrochemical used in the production of synthetic rubber.
An investigation by federal authorities determined that the blast was caused by the buildup of a “popcorn polymer” inside of a pipe, and that TPC failed to identity what it should have known was a possible problem.
TPC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last summer, in a prepackaged deal that included money to compensate thousands of plaintiffs in lawsuits that had been consolidated into a state multidistrict case. Prior to the bankruptcy filing, TPC had already paid out $134.5 million to settle explosion-related claims.
Piercing the veil: Not all victims were satisfied with going after TPC. Some also wanted compensation from the company's private equity owners, who they believed had caused the company to cut safety corners in the pursuit of investment profits.

The Keene Fire Department extracted 300 gallons of water from the Robin Hood Park Pond Wednesday morning after a mechanical failure with a fire truck resulted in fire-suppressant foam getting into the water, Fire Chief Donald Farquhar said.

The incident happened when a fire crew was conducting fire-truck pump training at the Keene pond around 10:30 a.m.

This involves drawing water from the pond and shooting it back out from the truck with a hose, according to Farquhar. The pump system and the foam tank are separate, but a leak in the foam container allowed it to seep into the pump, he explained.

“When the water was going back into the pond they noticed some bubbles in the water and shut it off,” he said.

According to Farquhar, the fire-suppressant foam is biodegradable and not toxic to humans or animals. “It’s like dish soap,” he said.

Within three hours, Farquhar said the crew was able to remove the foam from the pond using a vacuum and sealed it in a container. A sample of the foam has been sent to the N.H. Department of Environmental Services as a precautionary measure and the city is asking the public not to fish from the pond for the next 24 hours. The park remains open for other uses.

Farquhar said the amount of water removed from the pond is “imperceptible,” and that the water will remain in a tank until test results come back. The water will then likely go into the city sewer system.

The 1984 Bhopal disaster that exposed thousands in the Indian city to toxic methyl isocyanate has had long term, intergenerational effects on victims, a new study has found.

Researchers from the University of California, San Diego note that multiple studies have shown a broad spectrum of serious long term and chronic health effects for hundreds of thousands of survivors, including respiratory, neurological, musculoskeletal and endocrine problems. ‘These impacts may be the tip of the iceberg however, given that [methyl isocyanate] toxins affected groundwater and the reproductive health and other health outcomes of exposed women, factors suggesting that generations not exposed to the toxic gas directly may nevertheless suffer adverse health and social impacts of the [Bhopal disaster] event,’ the authors write.

Previous research has revealed that decades after the disaster, menstrual abnormalities and premature menopause are common problems among exposed women and their female offspring. Methyl isocyanate has also been shown to damage chromosomes – early clinical studies revealed signs of increased chromosomal aberrations.

The new study has found that the disaster affected people across a more widespread area than was previously thought. Up to around 100km from the site, as opposed to the 4.5km radius that was considered by public health officials and researchers after the disaster.

The researchers attempted to investigate long term, intergenerational impacts of the disaster using government data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-4 and 1999 Indian Socio-economic Survey. They discovered that women pregnant at the time of the disaster were more likely to give birth to a boy who went on to have a disability that affected their employment 15 years later, and had higher rates of cancer and lower educational attainment over 30 years later. ‘These results indicate social costs stemming from the disaster that extend far beyond the mortality and morbidity experienced in the immediate aftermath,’ they note.

BEIJING, July 1 (Reuters) - An explosion occurred at a chemical plant in the southeastern Chinese province of Jiangxi at noon (0200 GMT) on Saturday, state media reported.

Footage on state broadcaster CCTV showed dense smoke at the Qiantai New Material Co facility.

The authorities were trying to determine the extent of potential casualties, state media said. A woman who answered the phone at the company and declined to identify herself told Reuters there were none.

As many as seven people were injured after a fire broke out in a private pharmaceutical lab in Atchutapuram Industrial Special Economic Zone, in the Anakapalli locality of Visakhapatnam, police said on Friday. "At about 11:10 am, in a pharmaceutical lab, when a solvent was being loaded into a container, some short circuit occurred and the solvent exploded. There were 35 people working, and 7 were injured. The injured have been shifted to the hospital," ASP PSN Rao, Anakapalli told ANI.
[{852cfdfb-cfc3-4bf3-a0ec-004422cfbc91:intradmin/ANI-20230630120903.jpg}] "Precautionary measures are being taken and the fire tenders are here. The fire will be brought under control, ' he added.
Upon receiving information about the fire, police teams and fire tenders rushed to the site. The fire was caused due to a sudden reactor blast, according to the Superintendent of Police, Anakapalli Murali Krishna.
District Fire Officer, Lakshman Rao, said that eight fire tenders rushed to the spot and four more are on the way. The operation is still underway, as the fire is still not doused at the lab.

A new £2.6m investment in chemical safety research and education will tackle the rising problem of toxic chemicals and the harms they cause.

The Centre for Environmental Research and Justice, launched at the University of Birmingham with funding from its Dynamic Investment Fund (DIF), will combine expertise in science and law to offer solutions that will ultimately protect human health and the environment from exposure to hazardous chemical pollutants.

The need for chemical pollution intervention has never been greater. Globally, pollution kills three times as many people as AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. This burden disproportionally affects low and middle-income countries, where pollution can account for one in four deaths. In terms of the impact of chemicals on the environment, the world has seen an average 69% drop in mammal, bird, fish, reptile, and amphibian populations since 1970.

University of Birmingham experts are well-placed to make an impact in this area, with a leading role in the €400 million 7-year European Partnership for the Assessment of Risks from Chemicals (PARC).

The new investment brings together academic expertise from Life and Environmental Sciences, Arts and Law, and Medical and Dental Sciences, to undertake interdisciplinary research into the effective management of hazardous chemicals. The Centre is recruiting nine assistant and associate professors, bringing together a team of more than 20 academic staff specialising in research at the interface of Precision Toxicology and environmental governance.

Precision Toxicology is an emerging scientific approach to environmental justice and health protection which establishes causation between chemicals and their adverse health effects, while environmental governance attempts to address the societal costs of chemical pollution. By combining recent innovations in both science and governance, the new Centre aims to develop and implement new approaches to defend against chemical hazards.

CNN
 — 
The early-morning fire at an e-bike store in lower Manhattan that left four dead was caused by lithium-ion batteries, the city’s fire commissioner said Tuesday.

“It is very clear that this was caused by lithium-ion batteries and e-bikes. There is a very large number of both batteries and e-bikes. This location is known to the fire department, we have written violations at this location before, and we have conducted enforcement in this location before,” Commissioner Laura Kavanagh said.

Kavanagh called lithium-ion batteries “incredibly deadly” because so much fire is created when they ignite. “It can often be too late, as soon as the fire has begun,” she said.

The city’s Chief Fire Marshal Dan Flynn said fire officials inspected the store in August and issued summonses for violations related to electrical wiring, charging of batteries, and the number of batteries. The owners of the store were found guilty of the violations and were fined. A reinspection of the property would have been scheduled following the guilty verdict, but the reinspection had not yet occurred, he said.

The same property was also found guilty of violations in 2021, Flynn said.

A group of New York Democrats in April announced support for federal legislation aimed at regulating lithium-ion battery safety standards after a spate of fires caused by the batteries malfunctioning or overheating.

LANCASTER, Texas —Workers from a warehouse in Lancaster are recovering in hospitals after a chemical leak Monday that brought first responders from several agencies to the scene. 

The initial call from the United Natural Foods (UNFI) distribution warehouse was for an ammonia leak, WFAA reported. The official substance has not been reported. 

Hazmat crews from Lancaster, Ovilla, Grand Prairie, Cedar Hill and Glenn Heights responded to the warehouse. Fifteen workers were transported to hospitals for treatment. NBC DFW reported that 11 of the 15 were transported to Parkland Health in Dallas. 

UNFI stated, "The safety of our associates is our top priority, and we are working closely with the fire department to assess the situation and determine when it is safe to open and return to the distribution center."

A recent British Medical Journal Open study revealed that 39 years after the Bhopal gas explosion, the devastating industrial disaster is still haunting future generations. Males who were exposed to the gas leak while they were still in the womb were more likely to have a disability that affected their employment and also, at a 27-fold higher risk of cancer.

The Bhopal gas explosion took place in December 1984 at a Union Carbide pesticide plant on the outskirts of the city due to a methyl isocyanate gas leak. The gas spread across a 7 kilometer radius around the pesticide plant. More than half a million people ended up breathing the toxic air-borne chemical that is used to produce the pesticide carbaryl. The leaked gas killed more than 30,000 people in that vicinity.

“There is a broad spectrum of serious long-term and chronic health consequences for hundreds of thousands of survivors, including children, manifesting across multiple systems including respiratory, neurological, musculoskeletal, ophthalmic, endocrine,” the researchers wrote.

DULUTH — After years of monitoring chemical contamination near the Fond du Lac neighborhood in western Duluth, Lake Superior College signed an agreement to address PFAS, the "forever chemicals" that polluted waterways through the college's firefighter training program.

The college agreed this month to work with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) over contamination in soils and a stream that connects to Sargent Creek at its emergency response training center near the Fond du Lac neighborhood in Duluth. The creek is a tributary of the St. Louis River, and PFAS were found in fish where it meets the river at Boy Scout Landing.

PFAS contamination from firefighting foam was first discovered in the area in 2009, MPCA spokesman Adam Olson said.

The MPCA determined then that drinking water, both city-supplied and in households with wells, wasn't affected, and continued to monitor the area. Recent drinking water testing results showed no evidence of PFAS, but soil and streams showed elevated levels, said Jamie Wallerstedt, head of an MPCA division that deals with the removal of pollutants.

She said the agency's approach to PFAS pollution has evolved since the 2009 discovery. The training center site was flagged then, she said, but the agency prioritized other sites throughout the state that had larger public health impacts.

Environmental policy changes signed into law by Gov. Tim Walz in May include a ban on PFAS compounds in certain products as early as 2025, and a total phaseout by 2032 unless they are given a specific exemption.

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- From the look of the images of black smoke and the gaping hole in the interstate, you might think Sunday's I-95 collapse in Philadelphia was a freak accident. However, a CBS News investigation found hazmat road accidents in the U.S. have more than doubled in the past decade.

Over the last 10 years, the number of big rig accidents involving hazardous materials has increased by 155%. According to data from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), in the last decade, there have been 52 fatalities and 160 injuries due to hazmat incidents involving tractor-trailers in transit.

With Philly's dense population, parts of I-95 are among the busiest stretches of highway in the country.


RELATED: Highways pose greatest danger for potential Pa. hazmat situation

 "We don't recognize that driving down these roads, we're driving next to one the most dangerous things that can be produced," Timothy Boyce, the head of emergency management in Delaware County, said last month. "If you're cutting off a truck or tailgating, or you think you want to challenge that truck, think of the consequences you may have for your family and others."

According to PHMSA data, hazardous materials such as nitric acid, sodium chlorate, batteries, and compressed gas have led to 17 Philadelphia highway fires – about one every three years – since 1974. Just five of those have happened since 1997, and Sunday's incident was the city's first highway fire caused by gasoline since 1984. 

Drivers are found to be at fault in nearly one in five hazmat crashes. A variety of safety technology is available, such as cameras, lane assistance, rollover prevention, and automatic braking. It's not known how many smaller trucking companies can afford measures like these, and a CBS News investigation found there's no federal mandate for companies to put them in place despite NTSB recommendations.

ANKARA, TURKEY — 
An explosion at a rocket and explosives plant in Turkey caused a building to collapse Saturday, killing all five workers inside, an official said.

The explosion occurred at around 8:45 a.m. at the compound of the state-owned Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation, on the outskirts of the capital, Ankara, Gov. Vasip Sahin told reporters.

Sahin said the explosion was likely to have been caused by a chemical reaction during the production of dynamite. Prosecutors have launched a formal investigation, he said.

OMAHA, Neb. —
Authorities responded to an acid spill in Omaha on Wednesday morning.

About 300 gallons of hydrochloric acid spilled onto the streets near South 102nd and J streets around 11:15 a.m., authorities said.


After arriving at the scene, crews dammed up the area and put down "soda ash" to help neutralize the spill, according to authorities.

The Omaha Fire Department told KETV NewsWatch 7 that the leak is no longer active.

Female-specific diseases such as cervical, ovarian and uterine cancers will be added to the list of conditions that are automatically presumed to be caused by professional firefighting, under a plan to be unveiled by the Andrews government on Friday.

A cabinet minister, who was briefed on the changes earlier this week, said the incoming reforms would extend to female firefighters, female mechanics employed by fire services and women who work in forest fire prevention.


Firefighter Katherine Dunell welcomes the expansion of the presumptive cancer laws to female-specific cancers but says it should only apply to firefighters, not other fire services workers.CREDIT: JASON SOUTH
“It’s taken a while, but we’re getting it done,” said the senior Labor MP, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss government matters.

The government promised former Derryn Hinch Justice Party MP Tania Maxwell two years ago that it would add female-specific cancers to the existing workers’ compensation scheme.

Under the scheme, if a professional firefighter develops cancer it is presumed to be as a result of their profession – effectively reversing the traditional onus of proof. About 5000 paid firefighters are covered, as are some 90 maintenance staff.

Exposure to chemicals in common household products during pregnancy could increase the risk of obesity in kids, warns a new study.

Thousands of individual per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are used in personal care products, firefighting foams, food packaging, medical products and many other household items.

Toxic PFAS are incredibly durable and are believed to survive for thousands of years.

The study analyzed the levels of seven different types of these “forever chemicals” in blood samples collected from mothers during pregnancy. They then calculated each child’s BMI.

They studied data collected over two decades from just under 1,400 children between the ages of two and five as well as their mothers.

Study author Dr. Yun Liu, a postdoctoral research associate in epidemiology at the Brown University School of Public Health, said: “The findings were based on eight research cohorts located in different parts of the US as well as with different demographics.

“This makes our study findings more generalizable to the population as a whole.”

They found that the more PFAS the mom had in their blood during pregnancy the higher the risk their child will suffer from obesity, even when the levels were low.

In 1997, the Chemical Weapons Convention—a first-of-its-kind global disarmament agreement—came into force. The treaty was championed by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) with the aim of ridding the world of that class of weapons of mass destruction. In World War I alone, chemical weapons injured more than 1.3 million people, and over 100,000 of those died shortly after exposure, according to the OPCW.
Now the OPCW is approaching a new milestone: the destruction of all declared stockpiles of chemical weapons by its 193 member states. (Only four countries—Egypt, Israel, North Korea, and South Sudan—aren’t members.) In a few weeks, the destruction of the remaining stockpiles by the US will be completed, according to the OPCW.
In Pueblo, Colorado, the US is destroying between 600 and 700 4.2 in (107 mm) mortars containing sulfur mustard, also called mustard gas, a chemical warfare agent that was used in both World Wars and causes blistering of the skin.
Related: Most Of World’s Chemical Arms Destroyed

Meanwhile, 2,000 km away in Kentucky, a facility is destroying 155 mm rockets containing sarin, a colorless, odorless, and tasteless nerve agent that can be released into the air as a spray and be fatal in small quantities.
“There’s a little remnant of chemical weapons left in the United States. It will be destroyed in the next few weeks, and this will be grounds for celebration,” Ambassador Fernando Arias, director general of the OPCW, told journalists at an event May 3. “Chemical weapons cannot exist in the 21st century in the world because they are abhorrent.”
And globally, more than 70,000 different poisons have been destroyed under supervision of OPCW inspectors. Jeffrey Kovac, a retired professor of chemistry at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, who has written about the ethics of chemical weapons research, says the destruction of all declared stockpiled chemical weapons is a significant achievement. He notes that people have been calling for the abandonment of chemical weapons since World War I.

Makers of PFAS, a class of chemicals used in everything from cookware to food containers and makeup, had evidence the substances were toxic as early as the 1970s and obscured the danger, according to a new study based on industry archives held at the University of California.

Governments in Canada and the U.S. are now cracking down on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a class of more than 9,000 human-made chemicals produced since the 1940s. They have unique properties that make them heat-resistant, oil- and water-repellent and friction-resistant, and are found in products from cosmetics and take-out boxes to non-stick cookware and fire suppressants. 

(AP) - Food workers who showed up while sick or contagious were linked to about 40% of restaurant food poisoning outbreaks with a known cause between 2017 and 2019, federal health officials said Tuesday.

Norovirus and salmonella, germs that can cause severe illness, were the most common cause of 800 outbreaks, which encompassed 875 restaurants and were reported by 25 state and local health departments.

Investigators with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention called for better enforcement of “comprehensive food safety policies,” which emphasize basic measures like hand washing and keep sick workers off the job.

Although 85% of restaurants said they had policies restricting staff from working while sick, only about 16% of the policies were detailed enough to require workers to notify managers and to stay home if they had any of the five key symptoms — including vomiting, diarrhea, and sore throat with fever.

About 44% of managers told the CDC their restaurants provided paid sick leave to workers. That’s a problem, according to Mitzi Baum, the chief executive of STOP Foodborne Illness, a nonprofit advocacy group.

She said it means workers are forced to choose between not earning money or showing up sick — or there’s social pressure not to leave fellow employees short-staffed.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) - Every day, tons of hazardous materials roll right through Southern Colorado unnoticed by most, with trains transporting everything from crude oil to radioactive material on state railways.

However, as 11 News Anchor Matt Kroschel learned when asking how HAZMAT crews prepare for rail accidents, first responders usually don’t learn what’s on board these trains until after a potential rail incident occurs.

“We rarely get notified about particular chemicals that are coming through the city,” John Roy with the Colorado Springs Fire Department said.

If an incident were to occur in a five-county area surrounding Colorado Springs, the city’s HAZMAT team would be some of the first to respond. These teams train for situations like this, but under current law, they’re acting at a disadvantage when they occur.

“We are running through these scenarios every single day,” Roy said. “We pick a random chemical and we say, ‘how would we plan for this sort of event?’”

Since the State Termination Act of the mid ‘90s, federal law abolished the Interstate Commerce Commission. With it, a lot of the oversight went away, and under current law, railroads are not required to provide a heads up of what’s on board a train at any given time. Both HAZMAT crews and state regulators cannot tell at any one point what’s loaded on board these trains, and they say that that information would make preparing for potential incidents a lot easier.

coalition of major beauty product stores has formed to collect and share chemical hazard data on ingredients used by the personal care industry. The Know Better, Do Better Collaborative so far includes the retailers Sephora, Ulta Beauty, Credo, Beautycounter, and The Honest Company, as well as the personal care chemical maker Inolex and the Environmental Defense Fund, a nonprofit.
The effort is organized by ChemFORWARD, a nonprofit that says its goal is “creating broad access to chemical hazard data, illuminating safer alternatives, and ending toxic chemical exposure.”
In addition to beauty and personal care, ChemFORWARD has initiatives in packaging and electronics. The group says an analysis it conducted in 2022 found that detailed chemical hazard data is available for only about half the ingredients used in beauty and personal care products. “These data gaps create risk for brands, retailers, and consumers,” the group says.
Christina Ross, a senior scientist at Credo Beauty, says in a press release that “with comprehensive chemical hazard data generated by this work, Credo and our brand partners can avoid replacing one bad actor chemical with another, which is called ‘regrettable substitution.’ ”
Other ingredient transparency efforts, such as the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, are already underway in the personal care industry, says Rosmy Barrios, a physician specializing in aesthetic and anti-aging products.

DURHAM, N.H. —
A Ph.D candidate at UNH who is facing criminal charges after an apparent hazmat situation near campus over the weekend was trying to follow a YouTube video that specifically warned viewers not to repeat the experiment, according to Durham police.

Police said the suspect, Emad Mustafa, 29, called authorities himself on Saturday, saying he may have been exposed to a toxic chemical.

According to new court documents, Mustafa told officers he believed he had made a chemical called dimethyl mercury inside his Oyster River home.

He told officers that mixing the chemical caused a flash-burn, creating smoke and toxic vapor.

He was taken to the hospital and treated, but that process launched a multi-department investigation.

Mustafa admitted that another tenant may have also been exposed to the chemicals.

Town officials in Durham said Mustafa identified the chemicals as mercury, sodium and dimethyl sulfate.

MERCED, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – A staged chemical spill was conducted by the University of California in Merced on Thursday with the purpose to train first responders in the event of a real hazardous incident happening.

The University of Merced Police said that it is really important to collaborate with the first responders so everyone would be prepared if a real incident happens.

Officials stated that the staged scenario consisted of an accidental chemical spill in the Sustainability Research and Engineering Building during research.

The University of Merced Police stated that it is important to build confidence among the first responders and the community. They also said that it is important to know which areas might need improvement and which areas already work so they can plan ahead and move forward.

Officials say that the University of Merced partnered with the Merced County Fire Department, the Merced County Environmental Health, the Merced County Public Health, the Merced County Office of Emergency Services, and the Merced City Fire Department, as well as the Sciences Department from the university.

According to the University of Merced Police, around 100 people participated in the training, and this is not the only training happening in 2023.

MONACA, Pa. — Shell has agreed to pay $10 million to Pennsylvania for exceeding emissions limits during the troubled launch of its massive new plastics plant in Beaver County. The sum includes a nearly $5 million civil penalty and another $5 million to fund local environmental projects.

“With this agreement, the Department of Environmental Protection is taking steps to hold Shell accountable and protect Pennsylvanians’ constitutional right to clean air and water while encouraging innovation and economic development in the Commonwealth,” said acting Secretary Rich Negrín.

The “ethane cracker,” as the plant is called, is a 384-acre-wide industrial complex that heats ethane — a byproduct of fracking in the region — and “cracks” it under high pressure into ethylene to produce polyethylene pellets, a building block for plastic. 

The Shell ethane 'cracker' plant in Beaver County, Pa.Hannah Rappleye / NBC News
It officially switched on last November, with an interim permit that allows it to emit a yearly total of 516 tons of “volatile organic compounds” — chemicals such as benzene, toluene and naphthalene, which are linked to a range of adverse health effects, from respiratory irritation to nerve damage.

But state records show that before operations even began, Shell had exceeded its 12-month VOC emissions ceiling due in part to “flaring” events — when excess gasses are burned off instead of released into the atmosphere.

“It’s not normal to look up in the sky and see flames,” said local resident Hilary Flint, 31. “The sky has been a completely different color since they’ve become operational.”

The enforcement action comes three weeks after NBC News and the Global Reporting Centre first started asking Shell and DEP questions about the plant, and not long after environmental advocacy groups sued Shell over its excess emissions. The agency’s consent order details a range of violations. In addition to repeatedly breaching emissions limits for VOCs, nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide and “hazardous air pollutants” — otherwise known as air toxics — DEP cited a slew of malfunctions at the plant dating back to June 2022.

LA PORTE, Texas – The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) has released its final report on a deadly 2021 acid leak in La Porte.
The findings in the report show that 164,000 pounds of extremely hot acetic acid were released at the LyondellBasell La Porte complex in July 2021.
According to the report, workers had mistakenly removed a valve cover while trying to repair a pipe leak.
Two workers died and two others were seriously injured in the incident. In addition, the facility received an estimated $40 million in property damages.
“As this tragic incident shows, even a simple task can turn deadly if it is not performed properly. There have been similar incidents around the country involving plug valves being inadvertently taken apart when removing connected equipment. It is time to improve the design of these valves and take other protective actions, such as signage and training, before more workers are killed or injured,” said CSB Chairperson Steve Owens.
CSB investigators said better valve design and more worker training is needed to prevent future accidents.

With a variety of simple recipes widely available, featuring equipment and materials relatively easily obtainable, methamphetamine can be manufactured nearly anywhere. Clandestine laboratories range from rivalling legitimate drug production facilities in terms of size and sophistication to smaller ‘kitchen labs’ or ‘cooks’, with production done at a dizzying array of locations including private dwellings, hotels or motels, Airbnb properties and vehicles.1,2

When a clandestine laboratory is seized or production stopped, a variety of challenges remain – including whether a location can be adequately decontaminated. Sites used for smoking methamphetamine may also retain residues, though at far lower levels than detected at production sites.1 Rendering such sites safe is often a community priority.

May 23—A University of New Hampshire doctoral student is facing reckless conduct with a deadly weapon and improper disposal of hazardous materials charges in connection with a toxic chemical in a Durham home, officials said.

On Saturday, May 13, Durham police, fire, and personnel with McGregor Memorial EMS responded to 35 Oyster River Road in Durham for a report of a 29-year-old man reporting he may have been exposed to a toxic chemical.

Durham police say a man identified as Emad Mustafa was transported to Wentworth Douglass Hospital, where he was treated and released the same day.

On Tuesday, under the direction of the Strafford County Attorney's Office, Durham police and fire departments, the University of New Hampshire Police Department, New Hampshire State Police, federal partners, and the Seacoast Technical Assistance Response Team (START), a search warrant was executed at Mustafa's residence.

Mustafa was arrested for reckless conduct with a deadly weapon, and improper disposal of hazardous materials — both class B felonies that carry a maximum of seven years in prison.

START is a regional hazardous materials team operating under the leadership of the Seacoast Chief Fire Officers Mutual Aid District. Several Seacoast-area towns make up the 40 member team.

The Southeastern New Hampshire Hazardous Material Mutual Aid District was called to assist START as well, "due to the nature of the event," officials said.

"The health and safety of the community was the priority during this investigation and at no time was there a safety concern for the community or surrounding neighbors," Durham police said in a statement. "The hazardous material was identified and contained during the operation and there is no public safety hazard known at this time."

Mustafa is a UNH Ph.D. student, Durham police said in a statement. He is scheduled for arraignment at the Strafford County Superior Court on June 22.

SIDNEY — A chemical leak at the Sidney-Shelby County YMCA closed the facility Monday night. The Y reopened Tuesday with the exception of the pool which remains closed. Classes, program and Child Watch were closed until 3 p.m. Tuesday. The Child Development Center was closed Tuesday but will reopen Wednesday.

According to the Sidney Fire Department press release, at 7:22 pm on May 22, Sidney firefighters were dispatched to 300 E. Parkwood at the Sidney-Shelby County YMCA for a chemical reaction in the basement. The original call stated that the chemical was 10 ounces of Chlorine poured into a 40-gallon tank of Sulfuric Acid creating a chlorine gas in the basement.

Upon the Sidney Fire Department’s arrival, they found a large commercial building with no evacuation in progress. Crews made entry with a series of detectors and confirmed that there was an active chemical reaction in a labeled Sulfuric Acid container in the basement. Chlorine gas substance was emitting from the 40-gallon tank of Sulfuric Acid.

Crews assisted in the evacuation of the building. Firefighters and the Shelby County Hazmat team mitigated the situation with offloading the chemical into an over pack drum while conducting air monitoring throughout the building.

The risk of developing Parkinson’s disease later in life could be increased by up to 70% by drinking water contaminated with the industrial solvent, trichloroethylene (TCE). The researchers said it was, to their knowledge, the first study to assess the association of Parkinson’s disease and exposure to a TCE-contaminated water supply, in a large, population-based cohort.

The study investigated whether the risk of Parkinson’s disease was raised in veterans who served at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina for at least three months between 1975 and 1985. The water supply to the base was contaminated with high levels of TCE, and several other volatile organic compounds (VOC), by leaking underground storage tanks, industrial spills, waste disposal sites and an off-base dry-cleaning business. The authors note that TCE and the related compound tetrachloroethylene are present in up to one-third of US drinking water supplies.


Trichloroethylene
According to the researchers, between 1975 and 1985, the estimated monthly median TCE level in the water supply at Camp Lejeune was 366μg/l, more than 70 times the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 5μg/l. Maximum contaminant levels were also exceeded for tetrachloroethylene and vinyl chloride during that time period.

Health data from 84,824 of these veterans was compared against the data of 73,298 veterans who had been based at a non-contaminated site. Overall, a total of 430 veterans had Parkinson’s disease; 279 from Camp Lejeune and 151 from the control group. The researchers calculated that the risk of Parkinson’s disease was 70% higher in Camp Lejeune veterans compared with the control group.

Among veterans without Parkinson’s disease, residence at Camp Lejeune was associated with a higher risk of several clinical diagnoses that are well-established early warnings for the condition, such as erectile dysfunction and anxiety.

The derailment of a Norfolk Southern freight train earlier this year in East Palestine, Ohio, sent toxic chemicals into the surrounding community and brought national attention to the potential risks of transporting hazardous materials.

Since then, legislators and industry leaders have emphasized the need for more hazmat training among local emergency responders -- the same kind of training that was on display earlier this month in New Jersey, where trains range from passenger rail to freight, carrying chemicals like chlorine and propane.

A captain at the Allendale Fire Department had requested a training session earlier this year on how emergency responders should react to a situation involving hazardous materials in transportation to ensure that the community's responders knew how to deal with an event involving hazmat.

MORE: NTSB to open special investigation into Norfolk Southern following recent derailments

And so, on a weekend in May, dozens of emergency responders, some traveling in from other states, gathered for a daylong training at the Bergen County Police and Fire Academy.

"If you plan for the when and if and you got all the right information to train on, those folks are better prepared to respond," said Mike Stephenson, the New Jersey state coordinator for TRANSCAER, the organization that hosted the session.

KINGSTON, Mass. — Investigators suspect a man was making homemade explosives or fireworks when he was seriously injured and flown to a Boston hospital from a Kingston home on Sunday afternoon, police said.

The explosion inside the Nobadeer Circle home shortly after 1 p.m. Sunday drew a response from the Massachusetts State Police Bomb Squad and FBI investigators, a hazmat crew, as well as local police and fire investigators, state and local police said.

The man’s condition or the extent of his injuries were not immediately available on Sunday.

The large emergency response to the home resulted from “the type/amount of materials present” found inside the home “and additional materials/powders consistent with bomb-making,” Kingston Police Detective Lt. Michael Skowyra said in a statement.

“The materials were collected and rendered safe. There is no public safety risk at this time and the investigation remains ongoing,” said Skowyra, who did not provide further details on the materials at the scene.

Approximately 61,000 pounds of ammonium nitrate, a chemical used as both fertilizer and an ingredient in explosives, went missing when it was shipped by rail from Wyoming to California last month, prompting officials to begin investigating the mysterious disappearance. 

Ammonium nitrate was used in 1995 at an attack on the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. The explosion killed 168 people and injured approximately 850.

On April 12, a railcar loaded with 30 tons of the chemical left Cheyenne, Wyoming. However, according to an incident report from Dyno Nobel, when the car arrived two weeks later at a rail stop in the Mojave Desert, it was completely empty. 

Dyno Nobel, the company responsible for shipping the ammonium nitrate is a leader in commercial explosives and filed a report with the federal National Response Center (NRC) on May 10.

First Shell, then Marathon, then Valero. In the last three weeks, major fires have broken out at these companies’ oil refineries and chemical plants in East Texas, leaving one dead and over a dozen injured.

The blazes in Deer Park, Galveston Bay and Corpus Christi follow a years-long string of explosions, fires and toxic releases in a region where oil refining and chemical production is highly concentrated, often close to residential neighborhoods. And while some residents have grown accustomed to the incidents, others are alarmed by how frequently they are hitting home.

“I have grown up here and watched neighborhoods near the refineries become too toxic to live in and people forced to leave their homes due to the toxicity,” Kristina Land, a resident of Corpus Christi, told The Washington Post.

On Wednesday, a fire broke out at the Valero West Refinery in Corpus Christi, sending smoke plumes into the sky and prompting emergency responders to mobilize. The cause of the fire is yet unknown.

LAKE, MI – A federal hazmat team is investigating a mercury poison package that spilled at a Northern Michigan post office on Monday, WPBN/WGTU reports.

The U.S. Postal Service has confirmed that a substance that leaked out of a package on Monday at the Lake Post Office was mercury, 9&10 News reports. The post office in Clare County has been closed since workers noticed the leaky package while sorting mail. The nearby Lake George Post Office is also closed since the package passed through that location.

People who were exposed to the poison have been medically evaluated and cleared, WPBN/WGTU reports.

The package originated in the Detroit area and investigators are working to discover where it was headed and why, 9&10 reports.

It is illegal to send mercury through the mail. Exposure can cause tremors, mood swings, muscle weakness, headaches and nervous system damage, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Cases of high exposure can result in kidney effects, respiratory failure and death.

USPS is working to reroute mail that would have gone through this post office, WPBN/WGTU reports.

CBS News Investigations found the likelihood of an accident involving hazardous and toxic chemicals is actually far greater on the roads, where you and your family drive every day.

LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Lynchburg Fire Marshal’s Office has been monitoring a release of a chemical from a holding tank at Cathcart Rail on Hydro Street that has been producing strong noxious odors in the area for the past several weeks, according to the Lynchburg Fire Department.
Officials said on April 3, LFD responded to a call for a chemical smell near downtown, which they tracked back to the business on
A follow-up visit from the Fire Marshal this past week identified the source as a tank containing about 2200 gallons of ethyl acrylate which is used in the production of resins, plastics, and rubber materials, according to the department.
LFD said the tank has produced a very slow, leak, which is currently contained in the immediate area. The Virginia Department of Emergency Management was notified, as well as the Department of Environmental Quality.
Both are working with the company on the cleanup process which officials said is expected to get underway this week.
Officials said Ethyl acrylate is a flammable liquid with a particularly acrid odor, and while residents in the Rivermont and downtown areas may notice a strong chemical smell, there is no risk to public health from this leak.

HOWELL - Cleanup will likely continue for months at a Howell industrial site where hundreds of chemical drums — many of which are leaking, rusted or severely damaged — were left abandoned, according to federal environmental regulators.

Compounders Inc. manufactured asphalt, glues and adhesives at 15 Marl Road until about 2019, and now is facing more than $1 million in fines from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. The company has responded with a request for a hearing on the fines, according to the state agency.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency "has been on-site since early April and is overseeing the sampling and removal of around 400+ drums and 1000 small containers of potentially hazardous materials found at the site," said EPA spokesman Stephen McBay. "We have made significant progress in securing containers at the site and making the property safe to continue the assessment and removal activities."


None of the drums have yet been removed, because the agency is currently sampling and identifying their contents for proper disposal, according to McBay.

The federal agency "expects the cleanup process to take several months, depending on the availability of disposal facilities and transportation options," he said.

State environmental regulators levied heavy fines against Compounders Inc., alleging the company violated remediation rules, operated a hazardous waste site without permits, and stored toxic and hazardous material in violation of requirements.

The Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) has welcomed the UK government’s decision to scrap plans for all retained EU laws to automatically expire by the end of 2023, in the absence of a decision to preserve them. The institution had expressed concern that safety legislation could be affected by the sunset clause.

Under the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill, around 5000 laws could have been struck off including several major pieces of hazard legislation. IChemE said the 2023 deadline could have ‘created a risk that not all affected legislation would be sufficiently scrutinised in time to understand the full impact of revoking EU law’.

‘IChemE is pleased that the immediate deadline to sunset thousands of laws has now been removed,’ said David Bogle, president of IChemE. ‘This will give legislators more time to properly assess the impact of revoking EU-originated legislation and reduces the risk of unforeseen consequences that might impact the safety of the many industries and environments within which chemical and process engineers work.’

The government still plans to remove or replace 600 laws by the end of 2023, but IChemE said these did not appear to include ‘safety-critical legislation at this stage’.

SACRAMENTO - Northern California is no stranger to toxic train derailments, and there's a renewed focus on rail safety following the recent disaster in East Palestine, Ohio. But when it comes to toxic transport in California, the highway may be more risky than the rail.

On April 28, 1973, over five terrifying hours, 48 people were injured as explosions ripped through a bomb-filled freight train at the Roseville Railyard. The bombs, bound for the Vietnam War, were set off by flames from overheated train brakes.

On July 14, 1991, the Dunsmuir train derailment dumped more than 90,000 gallons of herbicide into the Sacramento River, killing millions of fish and animals and making locals sick. That derailment prompted a congressional hearing led by then-Congresswoman Barbara Boxer.

"Why has it taken 21 accidents on this stretch of track in the last 16 years?" said Rep. Boxer at the hearing.

Three decades later, hearings continue, the most recent one was in the wake of the recent Ohio derailment.

But while the nation is focused on rail safety, hazardous materials are being transported by planes and trucks too. And based on federal data, planes and big rigs may actually be a bigger concern.

According to Department of Transportation data, there were 18 times more highway hazmat incidents in California than rail incidents over the past 10 years, with highway hazmat damages totaling nearly $38 million ($37,913,312) -- eight times more than the costs of rail incidents in California ($4,505,037).

While trains can physically carry more volume, legally, trucks can carry the same types of hazardous materials and may face more hazards. For instance, a  fiery tanker truck crash in South Lake Tahoe killed the driver, shut down Highway 50, and contaminated the Truckee River. Reports reveal the tanker swerved to avoid hitting a Prius that cut it off.

In San Joaquin County, there were 18 times as many highway hazmat incidents as incidents on the railway. In Sacramento County, 35 times as many highway incidents.

MARTINEZ, Calif. - The ongoing mercury spill discovered days ago in the Martinez Amtrak parking lot continued to disrupt surrounding areas Wednesday as crews worked to remove every spec of the toxic chemical.

Mercury is one of the basic building blocks of chemistry and if uncontained, can cause sickness and in some cases death.

The mercury spill, which is now on its third day, has expanded into a full-blown hazmat emergency, closing some streets. Though the chemical is widely used in electrical switches, paints, and soaps, it is highly toxic on the loose.

A garbage truck inadvertently spread the hazardous waste, Contra Costa County health officials said Tuesday night. Some neighbors and bus and train riders said the widened scope of contamination is unnerving.

"I don't know if it travels or whatever. You know, I don't know if you have to touch it or the wind blows it because this is very close to me," said resident Lorraine White.

Earlier Wednesday, White said she boarded a bus from the very location now cordoned off and being treated for mercury contamination, one of the most highly toxic, non-radioactive elements.

MARTINEZ, Calif. -- Contra Costa Health put out an advisory Tuesday night for areas of downtown Martinez near the Amtrak station, where a mercury spill occurred on Monday.

Officials found "minor" mercury contamination in the street from Marina Vista Avenue, to Alhambra Avenue, to Buckley Street, to Berrellesa Street, they said at 8:20 p.m.

Authorities are advising that If residents must be in the area, to please stay on the sidewalk.

The mercury spill that closed the Amtrak station in Martinez on Monday was bigger than initially thought and may have spread to the platform, inside the train station, and into the street, officials from Contra Costa Health (CCH) said.

What was once an emerging threat has become a full-blown crisis in New York City with 220 lithium-ion battery fires recorded last year, equaling to about one every 36 hours. 

So far this year, 76 fires have killed seven people including two this past weekend in Washington Heights. 

With 60 people injured, the city is outpacing all of last year. The vast majority of fires are in the homes of the 65,000 delivery bikers who live across the five boroughs. 

One of the solutions to the city's dilemma is over 800 miles away at the UL Solutions laboratory for battery testing in Northbrook, Illinois, outside of Chicago. 

Dr. Robert Slone is the chief scientist and the man behind making lithium-ion batteries safe. 

For batteries to receive a UL logo, it has to endure what is called "torture testing." But experts said the problem in New York is uncertified batteries, often cobbled together in the black market. 

DEER PARK, Texas (KTRK) -- A lawsuit has been filed against a Deer Park plant for the "catastrophic release and fire" that injured multiple workers on May 5.

Attorneys from Arnold and Itkin said the fire led to serious injuries, including to their client.

According to documents, the $1 million lawsuit against Shell Chemical L.P. states Cristobal Jasso suffered "significant injuries as a result of (Shell's) negligence, gross negligence, and premises liability." Some of the injuries include burns, as well as injuries to (Jasso's) neck, back, spine, and other parts of the body.

The fire broke out at about 3 p.m. at 5900 State Highway 225, according to Shell. Heavy smoke was seen from miles away as SkyEye flew over the plant.

"The doctor says he's doing well. He's doing good, but I have seen a lot of the arms, the face all red. Red burns on his body. His face is red hot. His arms - everything, because the oil and the steam splashed everywhere in his body," Jasso's father, Pablo Jasso, told Eyewitness News in the immediate aftermath of the fire.

Authorities initially said some type of "explosion" unfolded at the plant, but later corrected it to only a fire emergency.

Officials described the chemical released as a "hydrocarbon," which they say is a heavy gas oil and precursor to the production of gas and diesel.

Shell said it still doesn't know what caused the fire, but the lawsuit claims they "were objectively aware of the extreme risk posed by the conditions which caused plaintiff's injuries but did nothing to rectify them."

The facility said 15 people had to be evaluated for their injuries at the hospital.

Shell hasn't immediately responded to the lawsuit.

Victims were instantly overwhelmed by gas, which left high concentrations of hydrogen sulfide in air

India’s National Disaster Response Force, the State Pollution Control Board and the police are all investigating the incident
As people were heading towards a milk vendor in Ludhiana, India, early in the morning of 30 April, highly toxic gas suddenly overwhelmed and killed 11 people, including two children, in the street and nearby houses. Four others were injured but have since recovered.

Preliminary investigations indicate that there was a high concentration of hydrogen sulfide in the air which smelled pungent and of rotten eggs. ‘There was no respiratory distress and the gas is suspected to contain neurotoxins,’ says Swati, a Sub Divisional Magistrate for Ludhiana, who is heading the magisterial inquiry.

The investigators from the National Disaster Response Force, the State Pollution Control Board and the Ludhiana police are investigating the exact cause and source, which remains unknown. The Punjab state police has also formed a five member special investigation team. The police have warned the pollution control officials that if they don’t help the police in finding the culprits, they too will be prosecuted.

Whether industrial chemicals were illegally dumped in the sewers is yet to be determined

‘We are checking sewage connectivity as well, but the concentration of hydrogen sulfide has to be very high to be able to kill instantly,’ says Swati, who uses a singular name. The circumstantial evidence indicates that those exposed to the gas, or mixture of gases, died almost immediately, she adds.

DEER PARK, Texas — Shell officials said they're directing runoff water from the Deer Park Chemicals facility fire into the Houston Ship Channel as a "controlled discharge."
In a statement released Sunday morning, Shell said that their wastewater storage capacity was been "exceeded" and that they'll be deploying a boom to prevent products from entering the channel.
Water is also being added to retention ponds nearby as officials said they expect they'll continue to need large volumes of water to cool equipment for up to 36 hours after the fire is extinguished.
Officials said they're still monitoring the air quality and that no harmful levels of chemicals affecting neighboring communities have been detected.
The fire at the chemical plant reignited Saturday afternoon after being extinguished. The fire continued to burn into Sunday night. In a tweet, Shell Deer Park said the fire "has been contained to a controlled zone."
The company went on to say additional clean-up crews have been deployed and air monitoring is still ongoing as of Sunday night.

A fire burned for a third day on Sunday at Shell Plc's chemical plant in the Houston suburb of Deer Park, Texas, a company spokesperson said.

The fire initially ignited on Friday afternoon in an explosion in an olefins unit, used to make plastics and rubber.

The fire was extinguished for a few hours on Saturday morning before it reignited around 3 p.m. CDT (2000 GMT), said Shell spokesperson Curtis Smith.

No injuries were reported from the fire. Nine people were evaluated and released at local hospitals on Friday for possible chemical exposure.

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Water is being sprayed onto the fire to keep it under control until the chemicals, which were being processed at the time of the explosion, burn away, Smith said.

Water may continue to be sprayed for up to 36 hours after the fire is extinguished to keep nearby equipment cool, he said.

Tucson hospitals and county health officials weren’t immediately notified about a nitric acid spill on Interstate 10 in February, among communication missteps in a mostly strong and effective emergency response, says a new report.

The after-action report by the Pima County Emergency Management Office, released to the public on Friday, assessed strengths and weaknesses in agencies’ response to the hazardous material spill.

On Feb. 14, truck driver Ricky Immel, 54, was driving near Kolb Road on I-10 when he slowly veered off the road and onto the median, where the uneven ground caused the truck to roll onto its left side. Containers carrying about 18,200 kilograms of nitric acid ruptured in the crash, causing the Arizona Department of Public Safety to shut down both directions of the interstate and tell residents and other people in the area to shelter in place.

Immel died in the crash. He had a blood alcohol level nearly eight times above the state’s legal limit, the county medical examiner found.

With the help of the Tucson Fire Department and DPS, the county Emergency Management Office conducted a survey and held two debriefing sessions to discuss what went well and what could have gone better. The first session was for first responders, and the second session included community stakeholders and support agencies, the report said.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas health officials have identified elevated levels of liver cancer among people living in several historically Black neighborhoods in Wichita where groundwater was polluted by a rail-yard chemical spill. The Wichita Eagle reports that the Kansas Department of Health and Environment released a study Friday that found a liver and biliary tract cancer diagnosis rate of 15.7 per 100,000 people in the contamination zone. Among non-Hispanic Black residents, the diagnosis rate was 23.9 per 100,000. That is compared with 6.4 diagnoses per 100,000 people in Kansas and 8.0 per 100,000 in the surrounding county.

DEER PARK, Texas (KTRK) -- Heavy plumes of smoke could be seen for miles from the Shell Deer Park facility Saturday morning hours after a fire that broke out on Friday was extinguished.

Shell representatives said they are experiencing yet another fire with visible smoke within one of their units.

"The incident is being handled within the boundaries of this facility and there is no threat to the community from this incident. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause," their statement read, in part.

PEMEX Deer Park said although there is no fire at its units, its emergency response team is providing aid.

The Harris County Fire Marshal's Office said it is aware of the reignited fire and said it's at one of the same units from Friday. So far, officials say, no injuries have been reported as crews are working to put out the fire.

An explosion at a Seqens chemical plant in Newburyport, Massachusetts, early on Thursday, May 4, killed one worker. The cause of the explosion has not been determined.
The incident is the third serious accident at the plant, which manufactures pharmaceutical chemicals under contract, since 2020 when an explosion damaged a building. A chemical fire occurred at the site in 2021.
The body of Jack O’Keefe, an employee at the company for more than 25 years according to a local news report, was removed from the site late Thursday afternoon. Four other workers on site when the explosion occurred were hospitalized for precautionary reasons, but were uninjured, according to Barry Salt, Newburyport deputy fire chief.
“They had just wrapped up a typical manufacturing procedure that they’d done numerous times daily,” Salt says. “Obviously there was some sort of accident to cause the explosion, but what that was or how that happened is still in the beginning stages of investigation.”
The plant manufactures both active ingredients and intermediates of pharmaceutical chemicals. Chemicals on site at the time of the accident, according to Salt, included acetone, isopropyl alcohol, and methanol.
Salt says air quality has been monitored by the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services beginning 1.5 h after the explosion. Local residents have been informed that there is no risk in the area.
The area of the plant damaged in the explosion has been in operation for more than 20 years. The facility was built in the 1980s. Novacap, a French firm now called Seqens, became the site’s owner when it bought PCI Synthesis in 2018.

Corteva Agriscience subsidiary has pleaded guilty to criminal negligence, 8 years after an accidental chemical release killed 4 employees and injured several others at a now defunct insecticide plant in La Porte, Texas.
On April 24, a US district judge ordered the subsidiary, EIDP Inc., formerly known as E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company Inc., to pay a $12 million penalty and make a $4 million community service payment to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. EIDP must also serve 2 years of probation, during which time the company must provide the US Probation Office full access to all its operating locations.
The accident, which occurred on Nov. 15, 2014, at what was then a DuPont facility, released nearly 11 metric tons of highly toxic methyl mercaptan after plant workers tried to clear a section of blocked piping. A US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board probe following the incident determined that flawed engineering designs and a lack of adequate safeguards were to blame.
The US Department of Justice also found that Kenneth Sandel, a former manager who was responsible for making sure employees understood and followed safety procedures, failed to provide sufficient instructions on how to safely clear the blockage. Sandel pleaded guilty alongside the company and was sentenced to 1 year of probation.
“The Company deeply regrets the tragic events that occurred on November 15, 2014, at a former EIDP facility in La Porte, Texas,” says a Corteva spokesperson in an emailed response. “We are committed to the highest safety standards, and safety is a core value.”

The world-leading Biomedical Sciences (BMS) facility at the University of St Andrews was officially re-opened last week (Wednesday 26 April) four years after a devastating fire ripped through the hi-tech laboratories.

Following the fire in February 2019, which destroyed labs and research facilities, the University undertook a £21 million investment project to refurbish and modernise the BMS building. The redevelopment and restoration, which started just before the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, was completed in the summer of 2022.

Professor Dame Sally Mapstone FRSE, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University, welcomed staff, students and invited guests to the official re-opening in the presence of distinguished honorary graduates, Professor Lesley Yellowlees CBE and Professor Sir Mike Ferguson, Regius Professor of Life Sciences at the University of Dundee.

The new design of the BMS building centres on efficient spaces that facilitate collaborative working within modern research and teaching laboratories, along with workspace and breakout areas strategically located in a warm and welcoming building.

Reflecting on the fire and the efforts of staff, students, and the St Andrews community to restore the facilities, Professor Mapstone commented: “The re-opening of our world-class BMS building is, therefore, an occasion for celebration and for looking forward to the future. However, I do wish to acknowledge the difficulties that had to be overcome for us to arrive at today’s event, because it is only against this background that we can truly appreciate the hard work and dedication that so many members of our community have demonstrated over the past four years.”

Environmental groups are suing the Federal Aviation Administration over the explosion of SpaceX's massive new rocket, saying that the agency allowed Elon Musk's company to bypass important environmental reviews because of political and financial influence.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., on Monday, says the case boils down to "a question with national, global, and even interstellar implications."

"It is also about whether regulators will hold powerful corporations accountable or allow them to disregard environmental laws," the lawsuit continues. "We must decide whether we will protect the wildlife and frontline communities that can be adversely affected by our desire to reach the stars, or whether we will leave a legacy of needless destruction in the scorching wake of rocket plumes."

Anamosa — Tuesday afternoon at 1:10 p.m., staff at the Anamosa State Penitentiary Prison Industries' sign shop were alerted to what appeared to be a chemical reaction inside one of the shop's scrap metal storage containers.

According to a press release Tuesday evening, department staff immediately removed the storage container from the sign shop and initiated chemical safety protocols.

No staff or inmates were harmed during the incident.

Officials say the department staff decided, out of an abundance of caution, that the container should be moved outside the facility's secure perimeter for remediation in a remote facility storage lot.

The Anamosa Fire Department helped with the remediation process, and were able to successfully dilute the chemical reaction without further incident.

Officials say while it appears this is an isolated incident, the department will investigate the cause and ensure the sign shop workspace is safe for staff and inmates.

Hazmat and fire teams from Sidney and nearby stations in Shelby County were dispatched to the 1900 block of Progress Way at around 9:08 a.m. on reports of a chemical spill, Sidney Dispatch said.

A full evacuation of a commercial building was ordered following the chemical spill, a hazmat team told News Center 7 crews who responded to the scene.

One employee was reportedly “exposed” to the chemical, prompting medical units to respond.

An employee was transported to an area hospital, while another refused transport after being treated at the scene, Assistant Chief Eric Barhorst of Sidney Fire said.

Although the call came in as an industrial spill of hydrochloric acid, a preliminary investigation found that the chemical was a sodium metabisulfite solution, Barhorst continued.

Emergency responders were able to confirm that the product did not leak; however, there was an “active chemical reaction in the container,” Barhorst said. Firefighters and employees mitigated the situation with neutralizing material made to control the chemical.

Emergency responders were able to clear the chemical spill within about two hours.

A firefighter’s protective clothing, called turnout gear, is essential for operating in the dangerous conditions of a fire. However, the firefighting community has raised concerns regarding the presence of a class of chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) — some of which have been linked to cancer — in the gear. 
Until recently, the public has had little information regarding the specific types, quantities and location of PFAS in firefighter equipment, but now, a new report sheds light.
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have conducted an in-depth examination of a range of textiles used in turnout gear coats and pants, which are constructed in three layers. The results showed that the amount of PFAS present varies widely between manufacturers and layers, with the highest PFAS concentrations observed in the outermost two. The results of the study suggest that selecting optimal combinations of fabrics for each layer could significantly reduce the amount of PFAS present in turnout gear. 
PFAS, which are ubiquitous in manufactured products due to their oil- and water-resistant properties, do not break down easily and persist in our bodies and the environment, earning them the moniker of “forever chemicals.” These suspected carcinogens have found their way into the bodies of most Americans. However, researchers have shown that firefighters are burdened by comparatively high levels of at least one type of PFAS.
The first step to better protecting firefighters from this potential health hazard is to learn about the sources of PFAS exposure, which may include their protective gear.  

Frederick, Md (KM) There was a small mercury release at the Monocacy Valley Montessori Charter School in Frederick on Monday afternoon.

According to Fire and Rescue officials, personnel were dispatched at 1:39 PM to 217 Dill Avenue,  where they learned a small amount of mercury was released on a desk, and one student was exposed. The student had received a vial of mercury as a gift and brought it to school to show someone else.

Students in adjacent classrooms were told to remain in place. while emergency workers began containing the mercury. Crews reported negative air readings in the hallway outside classroom where the mercury was released, officials say. 

Two students were exposed:  one tested negative and the other was positive. That contaminated student washed their hands and arms to remove the mercury. That person then tested negative for the chemical, according to County Fire and Rescue Services.  

No one was taken to the hospital.

Fire fighters did cleanup operations before leaving the scene.

At least five people were killed, one was missing and another one was injured after an explosion rocked China's chemical factory on Monday morning, reported The Global Times. On Monday, the incident took place at the chemical hydrogen peroxide production area in China's Liaocheng, Shandong province, reported The Global Times. Investigation is underway to determine the reason behind the blast. Meanwhile, according to another local newspaper, the fire had been put out as of Monday afternoon. The person, who has been injured, was rushed to the local hospital for treatment while rescue work is still underway.
Fire explosions recurring in China 

This was not the first time that China has witnessed an explosion. Earlier in January, five people died after an explosion occurred at a chemical company in Panjin, Northeast China's Liaoning Province on missing on January 16. Rescue teams had arrived at the scene of the accident and a search operation has been launched for people who may be trapped, reported The Global Times.  As these incidents keep on recurring in China, The Ministry of Emergency Management has continued to guide the on-site rescue and treatment of those injured. In the January explosion, Wang Xiangxi, minister of Emergency Management, had made arrangements and called for all-out efforts to rescue the missing and prevent secondary accidents. Meanwhile, local authorities have asked the officials to adhere to the principle of safety first and learn lessons from the accident. At this incident, which took place in January, 20 ambulance vehicles and 240 medical personnel and other staff were at the site, as per media reports.  

The US Environmental Protection Agency is going after Chemours to reduce per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in wastewater regularly discharged into the Ohio River from the company’s Washington Works facility near Parkersburg, West Virginia. The agency claims the levels of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA), a breakdown product of the PFOA replacement known as GenX, exceed those set in the facility’s discharge permit.

The action marks the first time the EPA has used its enforcement authority under the Clean Water Act to target PFAS in wastewater discharges.

Chemours produces fluoropolymers and other fluorinated organic chemicals at the Washington Works site. The company says those products are not harmful to human health. But the fluorinated surfactants used as processing aids to make the chemicals are persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic to humans and the environment.
Contamination from the former use of PFOA as a processing aid at the Washington Works facility still plagues Chemours, which was spun off from DuPont in 2015. The firm is also facing scrutiny over discharges of HFPO-DA resulting from the use of GenX.

GENEVA — The World Health Organization (WHO) said there’s a “high risk of biological hazard” at a laboratory caught up in the ongoing conflict in Sudan.

Officials said it was unclear who was behind the occupation of the National Public Health Laboratory in the capital Khartoum.

The city has been ravaged by fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The WHO told the BBC on Tuesday that workers can no longer access the lab.

And it warned that power cuts were making it impossible to properly manage material at the lab.

Officials said that a broad range of biological and chemical materials are stored in the lab. The facility holds measles and cholera pathogens, as well as other hazardous materials.

A lack of power is also putting depleting stocks of blood bags stored at the lab at risk of spoiling.

The lab is near the center of Khartoum and not far from city’s main airport.

It lies just outside the area where Sudan’s military headquarters are located, and where a lot of the fighting has been taking place.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says there's a "high risk of biological hazard" at a laboratory caught up in the ongoing conflict in Sudan.
Officials said it was unclear who was behind the occupation of the National Public Health Laboratory in the capital Khartoum.
The city has been ravaged by fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The WHO told the BBC on Tuesday that workers can no longer access the lab.
And it warned that power cuts were making it impossible to properly manage material at the lab.
Officials said that a broad range of biological and chemical materials are stored in the lab. The facility holds measles and cholera pathogens, as well as other hazardous materials.

LEMONT, Ill. (CBS) -- One person is dead after an explosion and fire at a petroleum plant in unincorporated Lemont in the southwest suburbs.

Around 9:30 a.m., there was an explosion at the Seneca Petroleum plant at 12640 New Ave. in unincorporated Lemont, according to the Will County Sheriff's Office. An asphalt tank on the property apparently exploded, according to the sheriff's office.

Chopper 2 was over the scene and spotted the lid of one of the tanks appeared to be gone as a result of the blast.

One person has died, and another person was taken to Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox, according to the sheriff's office. The second person's condition was not immediately available.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A lithium iron phosphate battery fire Tuesday at a sprawling Jacksonville plant that produces industrial-sized batteries forced the evacuation of the warehouse building at Cecil Commerce Center.
The fire at the SAFT America battery plant, which ignited around 7 a.m., burned for hours and was finally out by 5 p.m., according to the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department.
JFRD Chief Keith Powers said the commercial alarm came in at 7:15 a.m. and when firefighters arrived they first tried to attack the chemical-fueled blaze with a dry fire suppressant instead of water.
But the fire, called a thermal runaway, was producing hazardous gases and crews were ordered out of the building onto Waterworks Street. A thermal runaway is a chemical chain reaction in which a battery gradually combusts from the inside out.

SUPERIOR — On April 26, 2018, an explosion and fire rocked the Husky Energy refinery in Superior.

And after five years of reconstruction, the facility is beginning to reopen.

"We have commenced restart of the refinery and introduced crude in late March," said Doreen Cole, senior vice president of downstream manufacturing at Cenovus, which now owns the refinery. "So the restart process is underway."

Additional details on the restart timeline are expected to be made public Wednesday morning when Cenovus releases its first-quarter financial results.

The rebuild of the facility has taken longer and cost more than first expected.

Original rebuild estimates predicted it would cost $400 million with a startup in 2021.

The most recent cost estimate put the total at $1.2 billion, Cole said. The company has said insurance "substantially" covers that cost.


Two towers sit in a staging area along Stinson Avenue shortly after their arrival in Superior in 2020. The two towers, one 90 feet long and the other 110 feet long, will be used to process chemicals when the refinery resumes operation.Steve Kuchera / File / Duluth News Tribune
"I think the term 'rebuild' captures why it does take that amount of time," Cole said. "There were a number of units that were completely reconstructed."

Employment is also expected to be higher than the 200 employees prior to the blast.

"Currently, our forecast is approximately 350 employees. ... We do have many more protocols and procedures in place. We want to make sure everything is adequately covered," Cole said.

Today, the Delegated Regulation on classification, labelling and packaging of chemicals (CLP) enters into force. The Delegated Regulation introduces new hazard classes for endocrine disruptors, as well as for chemicals that do not break down in the environment and can accumulate in living organisms, or risk entering and spreading across the water cycle, including drinking water. The Commission adopted this Delegated Act on 19 December 2022, which then passed through the European Parliament and the Council and was published in the Official Journal on 31 March 2023.

The new hazard classes are the result of extensive scientific discussions and will provide easier access to information to all users of such chemicals, notably consumers, workers and businesses. They allow further action to address and mitigate the risks of substances and mixtures under other EU legislation such as REACH, while taking account of socio-economic impacts.

Background

The objective of the CLP Regulation is to ensure a high level of protection of health and the environment, as well as the free movement of substances, mixtures and articles. It requires manufacturers, importers or downstream users of substances or mixtures to classify, label and package their hazardous chemicals appropriately before placing them on the market. The CLP Regulation establishes legally binding hazard identification and classification rules. It sets out common rules on labelling for consumers and workers to enable them to make informed decisions when purchasing or using dangerous products. 

A major fire was averted at Punjabi University today morning. University authorities said an outbreak took place at the laboratory of the Department of Zoology and Environmental Sciences on the campus at 3.45 am.

They said the outbreak was controlled by security officers on the campus. VC Professor Arvind said the employees who were instrumental in dousing the flames will be honoured.

University security officer Gurtej Singh said the fire incident purportedly took place due to a short circuit at the lab on the ground floor of the building. The swift action of the employees saved the expensive equipment from being damaged.

The fire was brought under control and extinguished by 4.15 am.

North American freight rail companies aren’t interested in improving safety because it costs too much, according to one American-born expert now teaching in Denmark. “Rail safety in North America is pretty bad, to be honest,” says Steve Harrod, “it's very bad by European standards and it has been really bad for a long time.”

Harrod is an associate professor at Technical University of Denmark in the DTU Engineering Technology department. He focuses on transportation management, science, and analysis with a specialization in railway management and technology.

“The fundamental technology of North American freight trains needs to be changed,” explains Harrod. “It's a really tough statement to make, because one of the great successes of North American freight transport is the very low price, the very economical movement of freight by rail in North America.”

That economical advantage can’t be understated according to Harrod, who notes how much more profitable rail companies are in North America compared to Europe. He says typically a North American rail company generates $1 of profit for every $2 in revenue which is “incomprehensible” for European companies to have that level of profit, “it just doesn’t exist.”

Harrod highlights three distinct differences between Europe’s freight rail system and North America’s that make Europe safer: Train length, coupling systems, and approach to hazardous materials.

Hazardous materials

The dangers of hazardous materials transported by rail are on the minds of many American lawmakers after the fiery derailment of a Norfolk Southern freight train on February 3. Earlier this week, the company’s CEO, Alan Shaw, apologized to Ohio lawmakers for the accident that saw toxic chemicals spill and burn in East Palestine, Ohio. The chemicals included vinyl chloride, butyl acrylate and isobutylene. Shaw expressed support for some newly proposed safety measures, while resisting others.

Harrod says accidents involving toxic chemicals and other hazardous materials are very rare in Europe because they are typically transported by sea and not rail. But in North America there is “a lot of over the land shipment of hazardous material,” says Harrod.

“In America you are shipping petroleum from North Dakota to New Jersey and to New Orleans. And then you're shipping it to the chemical coast…then you're making chlorine and plastics and all kinds of crazy stuff. And then you're shipping it from Texas and New Orleans to Ohio and to New York and Pennsylvania.”

A solvent commonly used in enamels, varnishes, lacquers and resins was discovered over the weekend in an air sample taken from Nashville International Airport.

The odor caused breathing problems for travelers, airport officials said in a statement, leading to the evacuation of a concourse about 2:45 p.m. Sunday.

Joseph Pleasant, a public information officer for the Nashville Fire Department, said Sunday afternoon that no patients were in need of medical treatment. The concourse was reopened around 4:15 p.m.

In a statement late Sunday, the airport said the Nashville Fire Department's air sample found butoxyethyl acetate, a solvent. The statement also mentioned additional air quality testing reported no contaminants.

A decade after the deadly fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, the community has largely rebuilt — but chemical safety advocates worry that regulators haven't done enough to prevent a similar tragedy from occurring.

Driving the news: Today is the 10th anniversary of the explosion that killed 15 people — including 12 first responders — and injured more than 250.

What happened: At 7:51pm on April 17, 2013, a fire at the West Fertilizer Co. storage facility detonated about 30 tons of ammonium nitrate.

The blast destroyed a middle school, a high school, a two-story apartment complex and a 145-bed nursing home. About half the homes in the town were damaged.
The explosion was so powerful that the U.S. Geological Survey registered it as a 2.1-magnitude earthquake.
The sound was audible in Dallas, 80 miles away.

The remains of an apartment complex next to the fertilizer plant. Photo: Erich Schlegel/Getty Images
The aftermath: Later that year, then-President Barack Obama issued an executive order aimed at improving chemical facility safety.

In 2015, Texas passed a bill partially regulating the storage of ammonium nitrate.
The town placed a monument about 100 yards from where the plant once stood.
What they found: In a 267-page report released three years after the explosion, the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (USCSB) concluded that the way the fertilizer was stored and the lack of ventilation had contributed to the explosion.

The board's report also cited a lack of safety inspections at the plant, land planning that allowed development so close to the plant, and "shortcomings in federal and state regulations that could reduce the risk of another incident of this type."
Yes, but: Nine of the USCSB's 19 recommendations haven't been implemented, including suggestions that the Environmental Protection Agency strengthen oversight of ammonium nitrate and that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration add ammonium nitrate to its list of highly hazardous chemicals.

Undergraduate library workers across the University of Chicago library system were not warned about the presence of poisonous elements in the bindings of books in the University’s collection, The Maroon has learned.
Full-time staff in the University of Chicago library system received an email on Friday, March 31, notifying them about the potentially poisonous materials in the bindings. Undergraduate workers only learned about the contamination on Wednesday, April 5, when a staff member independently posted a flier in the Regenstein Library’s bookstacks department.

The sign an independent worker placed in the library.
The Maroon received a copy of the March 31 email with “Planning for Handling 19th-Century Cloth Covered Books with Copper Arsenic Compounds” sent out to the University’s “All Library Staff” email list by Associate University Librarian for Collections and Access James R. Mouw.
It read, “A team from Conservation and the Special Collections Research Center led by [Head of Conservation] Ann Lindsey is developing a protocol for identifying and handling this material.”
Per the email, the proposed protocol includes sealing books that meet the color identification criteria in polyethylene bags until testing can be conducted as well as training staff on identifying and handling such materials.
The University of Delaware’s Winterthur Poison Book Project, which was cited in the University’s email and the staff member’s flier, aims to identify and catalog books that contain known poisonous substances, particularly books from the 1840s and 1850s containing the pigment Paris green.
Paris green, also known as emerald green and Vienna green, is an arsenic-based pigment found in the book cloth, illustrations, and labels of certain antique books. Book cloth is the material used to create a textile effect on the covers of books, and it became popular in the 1800s as an alternative to expensive leather binding. More than 50 percent of the 19th-century cloth-case bindings analyzed by the Winterthur Poison Book Project had book cloth containing lead.
The danger in exposure to these books comes primarily from the pigment’s tendency to shed arsenic flakes. While contact with skin can cause small amounts of arsenic to be absorbed, ingesting or inhaling flakes containing arsenic poses more concerns. The project found that conservators could be exposed to arsenic pigment dust levels can be “several times higher than the OSHA exposure limit.”

Hyderabad fire: In a tragic incident, a massive fire broke out in a chemical factory in Mallapur industrial area on the outskirts of Hyderabad on Wednesday. According to reports, panic gripped the nearby residential areas after huge flames were seen leaping out of the factory premises.
However, there was no report of any casualties as employees were not present in the factory at the time of the incident. A short circuit is suspected to have caused the fire.
Six fire engines were battling for over three hours to douse the fire which started around 3 pm. Notably, firefighting personnel were trying to prevent the fire from spreading to three adjoining factories.

Thousands of people were forced to evacuate their small town on Tuesday after a large fire engulfed a Richmond, Indiana recycling plant. Officials say the fire could burn for days.

The fire department arrived to find a semi-trailer full of "unknown type of plastics" on fire, according to Richmond Fire Chief Tim Brown. Soon the fire spread to other trailers and then the building.

The fire is emitting a large plume of black smoke which forced an evacuation for all residents living within a half mile of the plant, according to a statement from the Wayne County Emergency Management Agency.

The smoke is "definitely toxic," Indiana State Fire Marshal Steve Jones said in a news briefing on Tuesday.

Blue Rock, Ohio – A property owner reported an accident Tuesday on Blue Rock Church Road that involved a trailer dropping off into a ditch. 

Muskingum County Emergency Management Agency Director Jeff Jadwin said when the trailer carrying liquid fertilizer dropped into the ditch, the tank carrying the chemical cracked, allowing approximately 200 gallons to leak into the ditch approximately 100 yards from a tributary of Meigs Creek.

“The people that own the farm here called 9-1-1 because they started seeing dead fish on the surface of the water,” Jadwin said. “So there was an immediate response from the fire department, our office, Ohio EPA, Ohio Department of Natural Resources wildlife. So we were all here for quite a while dealing with this issue.”

The contamination appeared to be limited to approximately 600 yards downstream and Zemba Brothers has been tasked with handling the cleanup efforts.

“The fertilizer is putting ammonia in the water, which is higher than what is normal,” Jadwin said. “So we’re constantly testing that. We’re trying to inject air into the water to try to free up the ammonia. The other options are, which we’ve been doing some of, is to spray it out on the ground. But a veterinarian decided that wasn’t the best decision even though that’s what the EPA suggested.”

OKLAHOMA CITY (KOKH) — Hazmat was called out to the ReddyIce building in SW Oklahoma City on Monday after toxic gas was released into the area.

The ReddyIce building and neighboring locations were evacuated after workers were putting in new equipment and cut a line that released 100lbs of Anhydrous Ammonia into the air.

Anhydrous Ammonia is stored as a liquid under pressure. When it is released into the environment though, it becomes a toxic gas. Liquid anhydrous ammonia expands 850 times when its released into the air and can form large vapor clouds.

Anhydrous Ammonia is stored as a liquid under pressure. When it is released into the environment though, it becomes a toxic gas. Liquid anhydrous ammonia expands 850 times when its released into the air and can form large vapor clouds.

The chemical release has since dissipated, and no injuries were reported. OKCFD has given the all clear after Hazmat worked on the area.

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, April 8, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — A small chemical explosion inside a science lab at the University of Utah blew out a window and caused minor damage Saturday afternoon.

Salt Lake City Fire Capt. Shaun Mumedy told Gephardt Daily the explosion happened about 12:30 p.m. in the James Fletcher Building, home to the university’s physics and astronomy department. No injuries were reported, he said.

Only one person was inside the lab at the time of the explosion, Mumedy said. That person self-treated and left the lab before fire crews arrived, he said.

JEFFERSON COUNTY — BREAKING: Three people have been injured in an explosion at a building on Jerry Ware Drive in Jefferson County near Nederland, according to Nederland Police Chief Gary Porter.

Nederland Fire Chief Terry Morton says that three AmSpec employees were injured due to a small explosion and a flash fire while conducting testing in the lab at about 5 p.m. All three were treated at the scene and one was transported by air to UTMB and two to Memorial Herman Hospital. Chief Morton advised that at no time was there a danger to the public. Chief Morton says it's his understanding the business does lab testing of oil and gas samples for industry, among other things.

The Nederland Fire Department, Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, Acadian Ambulance and the Jefferson County Office of Emergency Management responded.

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio —
Seven U.S. government investigators briefly fell ill in early March while studying the possible health impacts of a toxic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed to CNN on Thursday.

The investigators' symptoms included sore throats, headaches, coughing and nausea — consistent with what some residents experienced after the Feb. 3 train derailment that released a cocktail of hazardous chemicals into the air, water and soil.

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The investigators who experienced symptoms were part of a team conducting a house-to-house survey in an area near the derailment, and they immediately reported their symptoms to federal safety officers.

"Symptoms resolved for most team members later the same afternoon, and everyone resumed work on survey data collection within 24 hours. Impacted team members have not reported ongoing health effects," a CDC spokesperson said in the statement.

The Valero refinery in Benicia will pay the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency $1.2 million for violating the Clean Air Act, the EPA announced Wednesday.

After what the EPA called “significant chemical incidents” at the refinery in 2017 and 2019, a 2019 inspection found that Valero had failed to report the release of hazardous substances, among other noncompliance issues.

“This settlement sends a clear message that EPA will prosecute companies that fail to expend the resources needed to have a compliant, well-functioning Risk Management Plan to the fullest extent of the law,” Larry Starfield, the acting assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance said in a statement.

As part of the settlement, Valero has agreed to make chemical safety improvements at the Benicia refinery.

BRISTOL, Pa. - Quick actions from those in charge of a water treatment facility near a chemical spill along the Delaware River prevented the harmful toxins from entering the plant. 

Health officials in Bucks County said Sunday that between 8,100 and 12,000 gallons of a water-based latex-finishing solution spilled into the river late Friday because of a burst pipe at the Trinseo Altuglas chemical facility in Bristol Township.

The midnight spill happened at low tide less than half a mile upstream from the AQUA Pennsylvania water treatment facility. AQUA President Mark Lucca said by the time he heard about the spill the plant had already been shutdown thanks in part to early warning sensors that helped them decide to shut off water intake from the river. 

"The first thing people are asking us is ‘is my water safe to drink?’ It absolutely is safe to drink, how do we know? Because it never got into the plant" Lucca said. 

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AQUA's local water reserves were fairly high, so Bristol's water supply was never threatened. And even if it was, AQUA says it would have been able to call on more supply from company resources in nearby Delaware and Montgomery counties. 

"We have a lot of resources within Southeastern Pennsylvania to move water from one area to another, which is what got us through all the plant was shut down," AQUA Vice President Todd Duerr said.

AQUA says it waited until shortly after the next high tide to reopen the facility to ensure clean water from upstream flushed the potentially chemical-tainted water down the Delaware River. The plant normally operates 24-hours a day, but their operations are currently cut in half.