Four employees were injured this morning in an explosion at the former American Brass plant on Military Road.

All four were burned, and one of them also suffered physical trauma in the explosion reported at 6:15 a.m. at the Luvata Buffalo facility, at 446 Military Road, fire officials said.

It was unclear how serious the injuries were, and whether any were life-threatening.

Fire officials described the incident as a steam explosion on one of the furnaces. A Buffalo Fire Department Hazmat team was called to the scene.

The explosion left an estimated $250,000 da

MILLBURY — A dozen people, mostly rescue workers, were taken to the hospital after a hazardous chemical spill yesterday at Barrday Composite Solutions, 86 Providence Road (Route 122A).

Nobody was seriously hurt, and the spill was contained with only a small amount getting into the ground, officials said. They said the public was never at risk.

“The situation is very much under control. The leak has stopped. There were very minor injuries,” Millbury Fire Chief Matthew R. Belsito said around 6 last night. “It is my understanding at this time that everyone was transported as precautionary and they will probably be treated and released.”

About 1:35 p.m. yesterday, the town’s 911 dispatcher received a call saying a Barrday worker had been doused with the chemical phenol, Chief Belsito said.

Michael E. Buck, president of the company, said a company engineer was working on an outside storage tank containing about 10,000 gallons of phenol when the accident occurred. When the worker removed a wire, the tank sprung a leak and liquid phenolic resin sprayed onto the worker’s arm, he said. Mr. Buck said the engineer and a second employee who was having trouble breathing were taken to a hospital for treatment.

When he arrived at the scene shortly after the initial call, Chief Belsito said, he immediately called Worcester Special Operations and summoned the state’s hazardous materials teams. He said the source of the leak was an approximately three-fourths-inch hole in the piping connected to the tank.

Andrew Delisio, the hazmat technician team leader on the site, estimated 5,000 to 6,000 gallons of phenol escaped.

“At no time was the public in any danger,” Chief Belsito said.

WEST JORDAN, Utah (ABC 4 News) - A chemical mistake triggered a HazMat situation in West Jordan on Monday.

Fire officials say a pool worker at the Renaissance Condo Complex accidentally poured bleach into a container already containing acid.  Firefighters quickly closed off the area, and people already in the complex were told to stay inside their homes for a time.

Investigators say the worker did inhale some of the fumes and was taken to the hospital, but was able to tell emergency crews what happened.  No one else was hurt.

LONGMONT, Colo. -- Authorities say a Front Range Community College student has been taken to a hospital after she suffered burns while diluting a chemical in a jewelry studio classroom.

Longmont emergency manager Dan Eamon tells the Daily Times-Call the woman was injured Saturday by a chemical reaction while she was diluting ferric chloride. The chemical is often used for water treatment and to etch metal.

Eamon says there was no explosion, although that had been the initial report as police, fire and hazardous materials units went to the scene.

The father of two suffered severe burns when his alleged clandestine drug lab exploded in the backyard of his Kemps Creek property in Sydney's southwest last year.

The aluminium shed used to make pseudoephedrine - a precursor chemical used to make illicit drugs - burst into flames shortly after midnight on October 10, police claim.

Dagger, 31, and a 23-year-old man both suffered burns. The 23-year-old man later died from his injuries.

Dagger has spent months recovering in hospital. This week, he was well enough to be arrested and charged.

TOWN OF WILSON, Wis. -- Four firefighters were injured in a fire in a chemical lab in Sheboygan County, according to the Sheboygan County Sheriff's Department.
Smoke was reported from Lab 1 at Aldrich Chemical, 5485 County Highway V, in the Town of Wilson. The plant is between Sheboygan and Cedar Grove, just west of Interstate 43.

The Town of Wilson Fire Department was initially dispatched to the scene. Mutual aid from Oostburg, Cedar Grove, Sheboygan Falls and city of Sheboygan Fire Departments was requested.
Lt. Mark Rupnik of the Sheboygan County Sheriff's Department said the fire was under control about 90 minutes after the initial call.

SANTA ROSA -- An explosion at the Agilent Technologies facility in Santa Rosa this morning left three people injured and prompted about 100 employees to evacuate the building, a company spokesman said.
The explosion happened about 10:30 a.m. in Building One at the facility, located at 1400 Fountaingrove Parkway. It occurred in a ground-floor laboratory, in an area where integrated circuits are made using molecular beam epitaxy, said Jeff Weber, spokesman for Santa Clara-based Agilent.
The explosion injured two employees, a man who was taken to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital with critical injuries and a woman with minor injuries who was later taken by private car to Kaiser Hospital, Weber said.
The man was cleaning a machine when there was a chemical flash, Weber said. He said cleaning the machine generally involves wearing a protective body suit, but he did not know whether the man was wearing one Tuesday morning.
The woman, a contract employee from Volt, was injured when something fell and hit her on the head outside the laboratory, he said.

Four UC Merced custodians were taken to Mercy Medical Center Monday night after a chemical spill in one of the buildings at the university, officials said.
The spill happened at the penthouse of the science and engineering building, which is the floor right above the third-floor and houses mechanical machines that help operate the building, said Kevin Creed, director of environmental health and safety. The spill leaked to a lab on the third-floor.
The spill involved anywhere from 10 to 15 gallons of water treatment chemicals used in industrial and large buildings to prevent mineral build-up in pipes, Creed said. The chemicals aren’t flammable and are similar to strong bleach.

A CRANBOURNE North resident cooking a box of chillis in an electric wok caused a chemical emergency when neighbours were overcome by fumes on Tuesday last week.
Five ambulances, a Cranbourne CFA unit and a Hazmat response vehicle from Dandenong CFA were called to Lawless Drive when about 10 residents were affected by the chilli fumes. The Hazmat unit was unable to detect the cause of the fumes because it was organic so a CFA crew was forced to rely on sniffing out the source.

Intensive care paramedic David Llewelyn said an ambulance arrived just before 10.30pm to treat two men who were coughing and having trouble breathing, and more ambulances arrived as the number of affected people grew.

"We had up to 10 people who were coughing and were dizzy and nauseated." He said the fumes reached houses up to 150 metres away.

"We decided to do a doorknock of other homes to make sure no one else had been overcome, while the CFA worked to find the source of the fumes. It emerged someone was roasting strong chillies in the backyard and that's what caused the fumes."

Three employees were treated at a hospital after a pressurized canister ruptured and released fumes at a Mauldin pest control business, according to the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.

DADE CITY - Deputies have identified the two people injured when a methamphetamine lab exploded at a Dade City house.

Kenneth Dixon, 39, and Adonia "Star" Olsen, 45, suffered burns and were taken to hospital by helicopter.

Dixon was listed in serious condition this afternoon at Tampa General Hospital. Olsen's condition was not available.

Dixon and Olsen were renting the house at 15615 14th St., the Pasco County Sheriff's Office said.

Another female who was in the home at the time of the explosion Tuesday left before deputies arrived. She hasn't been identified and it isn't known whether she was injured.

On March 16, at 3:45 p.m., two semi trucks collided in front of Fiesta Mart in Chouteau. One of the trucks was carrying battery acid while the other was carrying cleaning chemicals. The combination of the two spills caused a chemical reaction that put off a smokeless fume.

When Chouteau Fire Department arrived, Brandon along with fellow firefighter Troy Schopp went around the right side of the wreck to check the scene. Brandon said about 10 minutes later when they went to move the fire truck upwind from the scene, Schopp began to complain that he couldn’t breathe.

“I couldn’t catch my breath. It felt like someone was strangling you,” Schopp said.

Schopp was then transported to St. Francis Hospital, in Tulsa where personnel did a chest x-ray and gave him a breathing treatment. Schopp a nurse at Cancer Treatment Center of America, said he was released the same day.

Three labourers were injured and 35 vehicles gutted, when a naphtha pipeline which was damaged burst into flames at Zuari Agro-Chemical Industry Limited (ZACIL), Zuarinagar-Sancoale, on Monday morning.
The fire broke out at the entrance gate of Zuari industry, damaging property worth crores of rupees. The fire that broke out at about 11.20 am was brought under control at 4 p.m.
The three injured persons are Ramakant Gaonkar (47) from Quepem, Savio D’Costa from Shiroda and Kailash Ram (38) from Bihar. They were rushed to GMC Hospital in Bambolim. Two of the injured were discharged later in the evening.
According to fire fighters and emergency service personnel, the incident occurred when a negligent heavy earth mover driver damaged an underground naphtha pipeline while undertaking excavation work.
“It generated a spark, due to which traces in the naphtha pipeline burst into huge flames,” they informed.

Four contract cleaners are in hospital - with one of them critical - after being overcome by toxic fumes when a mixture of bleach and caustic soda exploded in a Wan Chai alley.
The cleaners, a woman and three men, are outsourced workers of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department. They were about to clean a back alley next to a restaurant in Jaffe Road when the explosion occurred at about 10am.

White fumes with a strong chemical odor spewed out of the bucket containing the mixture. Two bottles of chemicals were next to the bucket and yellow powder was spread on the ground.

CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- Firefighters have finally been able to make entry into a battery recycling facility in Cartersville that caught fire Saturday afternoon.

Firefighters and witnesses at the scene said the batteries started exploding from the fire.

Emergency crews told Channel 2's George Howell that they began evacuating neighbors in the area because they weren't sure what kind of chemicals were in the batteries.

Hazmat crews were also at the scene helping with the situation.

Channel 2's Erica Byfield learned from officials at the Cartersville Medical Center, that eight people from the surrounding neighborhood were taken the hospital because of possible exposure.

NORFOLK -- Two people were injured in an ammonia leak at a Norfolk business.

Fire and Rescue personnel say they've secured the situation at Americold Logistics in the 3800 block of E. Princess Anne Road as a Level 2 hazard.

It was reported around 11:30 a.m. and around 2:39 p.m., a hazmat team had gone into the building and secured the leak. They started to release units from the scene around 6:12 p.m.

Capt. Mike Marsala said employees reported a worker on a ladder fell and struck a pipe that leads to tank containing ammonia.

It wasn't immediately clear what injuries the workers sustained, but two employees were taken to the hospital. One worker had been released by 1:30 p.m. The other was hospitalized with non life-threatening injuries.

NEWARK -- About 15 employees evacuated an industrial gas product company and five workers were taken to the hospital as a precaution Tuesday night after the building's alarms were set off, a company spokesman said.
Nearly 20 firefighters, including the Alameda County Fire Hazardous Materials Team, responded to an 8:35 p.m. call from Matheson Tri-Gas Inc., at 6775 Central Ave., fire spokeswoman Aisha Knowles said.
Meanwhile, five employees were taken to an East Bay hospital as a precautionary measure and later released, Matheson spokesman Stephen Stroud said.
Stroud did not say what possible health threat prompted the employees to visit the hospital.
"We're still investigating that," Stroud said. "All I can say is there were no specific injuries at the site."
The county Hazmat team worked with Matheson personnel to identify the problem, a malfunctioning piece of equipment called a "scrubber," which cleans the air inside the facility, Alameda County fire Battalion Chief Terence Carey said.

About 40 people were evacuated from hotels near Auckland Airport last night after fumes from a pesticide, which has historically been used in chemical warfare, wafted through their windows from a neighbouring farm.

International guests at Kiwi International Hotel and the Airport Skyway Lodge on Kirkbride Rd, Mangere, started getting itchy eyes due to strong fumes in the air, Fire Service incident controller Grant Thompson said.

One neighbour told NZPA the sensation was similar to when you cut onions.

The Fire Service was called around 10pm and it was established the fumes were caused by a neighbouring strawberry farmer who had poured the soil fumigant chloropicrin on his paddock.

Mr Thompson said the chemical was treated with respect because it has been used in chemical warfare.

Seven road workers have been taken to hospital after being exposed to a dangerous chemical on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.
The Main Roads Department maintenance crew came into contact with a drum containing toxic pesticide on the Bruce Highway near Nambour this morning.
Fire crews hosed down the workers, who suffered facial swelling and watery eyes.
Six men were taken to the Nambour Hospital for treatment and one woman was taken to the Royal Brisbane Hospital.

The Sleep Inn at 485 Madison Ave. in North Liberty was evacuated Wednesday morning after a chlorine spill was reported to the North Liberty Fire Department.

One person was treated on scene for exposure to the chemical, Capt. Craig Voparil of the North Liberty Fire Department said. According to Voparil, firefighters were dispatched to the hotel at 7:10 a.m. Wednesday.

The Johnson County Haz-Mat Team, North Liberty Police Department and Johnson County Ambulance responded to the incident. Voparil said it took crews about seven hours to dilute and clean up the spill.

RANCHO BERNARDO — More than 200 students at Rancho Bernardo High School were evacuated for about 90 minutes Thursday, and one student was taken to a hospital, after teachers noticed a strong odor in the science building.

The odor most likely came from a gas-powered leaf blower that had been used by a gardener along the sidewalk in front of the science rooms, said Maurice Luque, spokesman for the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department.

One 15-year-old girl who reported trouble breathing was taken to a hospital by ambulance, Luque said. A second ambulance crew was brought in to evaluate other students claiming to have headaches and other symptoms of the fumes.

A Norfolk village was brought to a standstill today when an agricultural worker walked into a medical practice after being contaminated with a toxic chemical.

Your view Email Print Got a story?
Staff at a medical practice and the emergency services were praised for their quick actions after a farm worker triggered a major chemical alert.

The man walked into the East Harling Surgery, near Thetford, at about 11am today after coming into contact with a toxic pest-control substance.

Fears were raised that patients and staff at the practice had also been contaminated by the aluminium phosphide and 35 people were contained in the building.

The farm worker, who was complaining of respiratory problems and was taken to hospital for monitoring, was also isolated by medical staff.

Paramedics, fire crews from Thetford, East Harling, Attleborough, a chemical incident support unit from Sprowston and an NHS Hazardous Area Response Team from Cambridgeshire attended, which closed the main road through the village for more than two hours. The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital was also placed on major incident standby.

The school is no longer on lockdown.

Lee County EMS Chief of Operations Scott Tuttle said a student brought itching powder into the school. Twelve students and 11 cafeteria workers were affected by the powder.

Fort Myers police have arrested one 14-year-old on a misdemeanor charge of disrupting a school function.

No one was transported to the hospital. Those who were affected by the itching powder were decontaminated at the school.

Itching powder was found in two separate areas of the school.

A call to parents of students at the school said there had been “an incident,” but didn’t say what the incident was.

A worker at a Southwest Side trucking yard was taken to the hospital in serious-to-critical condition this morning after an accident that released chemical fumes, fire officials said.

A container of the chemical--whose nature was not available--was knocked over by a fork lift at R&L Carriers, 4359 W. 36th St.

A Level 1 hazardous materials response was called at 4:39 a.m., and a worker who inhaled fumes was taken by paramedics to Mount Sinai Hospital, said fire department spokesman Richard Rosado.

A chemical spill that created noxious fumes sent two people to the hospital and closed two business warehouses in Nesquehoning on Friday morning.

Nesquehoning Police Officer Timothy Wuttke said an emergency response call for a sick male came in at 9:40 a.m. from Ametek Winchester Plastics on Mountain Avenue in the borough.

At the scene, Wuttke said emergency responders found two sick men, both of whom had accidentally inhaled fumes from a chemical that spilled during a delivery of supplies at the plastics manufacturing facility.

Wuttke said Ametek's delivery area was wet with rain Friday when the chemical - maleic anhydrid - spilled. Mixed with water, maleic anhydrid becomes maleic acid.

"Apparently when they were unloading the shipping container, the package opened and the substance spilled out. When it comes in contact with water, which it did, it releases fumes that are hazardous when inhaled," Wuttke said.

MILWAUKEE -- Milwaukee's hazardous materials team responded to a call at UW-Milwaukee on Thursday night.
Crews were seen outside the chemistry building near Cramer Street and Kenwood Boulevard.
A spokesperson for the fire department told 12 News a janitor spilled nitric acid and was taken to St. Mary's hospital for treatment. His injuries are not life-threatening.

An incident involving chemicals at a southwest suburban Bridgeview meat packing facility sent people feeling ill to area hospitals and prompted emergency officials to evacuate the building early Tuesday.

Emergency officials responded to Stampede Meat, Inc., on the 7300 block of South 78th Avenue, about 12:20 a.m. after unknown chemicals mixed and caused people at the facility to feel ill, Bridgeview Police Sgt. Lou Dominguez said.

An unknown number of people were taken to area hospitals but no serious injuries had been reported as of about 1:15 a.m., he said.

The building, which houses a meat-packing type facility, was fully staffed when the incident occurred and had to be evacuated, Dominguez said.

SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) - Shreveport Fire investigators want to warn people to be careful when checking your mail. They have found 3 bombs in mailboxes since Saturday. The Fire Department says this type of explosive is usually in a bottle, possibly a soft drink bottle, with a chemical odor.

They've arrested 2 teenaged boys for allegedly making the devices. They think the boys found how to make them online.  If convicted, the boys could face up to 20 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.

So far, only one man suffered minor injuries, but they say it could have been a lot worse.

"Very dangerous. Very volatile. These are basically household chemicals that are being mixed together, but they can have a very volatile reaction," said Chief Scott Wolverton with the Shreveport Fire Department. 

A hazardous material spill on U.S. 101 stalled rush-hour traffic for about six hours Tuesday.

Police responded to a medical call from the driver of a 1998 International big-rig on the northbound side of the freeway about 1:34 p.m., according to California Highway Patrol officer Jaime Rios.

Upon arrival, officers discovered the driver was having difficulty breathing, and found that his truck was leaking an unknown chemical onto the shoulder of U.S. 101 between Dunne and Tennant avenues, where the vehicle was stopped, police said.

Police called the Santa Clara County Fire Department to the scene, and the leaking chemical was later determined to be sodium hydroxide, or lye, a common ingredient in soap and detergent. About five gallons of the chemical spilled out of the truck onto the freeway.

One person was injured in a flash fire Tuesday afternoon at Hoeganaes Corporation on Airport Road in Gallatin, a plant that produces powdered metal products, according to the Gallatin Fire Department.

This is the second such flash fire at the facility since January. First responders were dispatched to the scene at 2 p.m.

One person sustained burns in the accident and was transported to a nearby hospital, according to fire department officials. The injuries sustained were not significant, according to Fire Chief Billy Crook.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board, a federal agency tasked with investigating industrial incidents, is investigating both incidents, according to the board’s website.
On Wednesday, March 30, the board announced it will send a team back into Gallatin to investigate the new incident.

Two people were taken to hospital and two were treated at the scene after a chemical incident in Manchester.

Fire crews were called to The Alchemist bar in Spinningfields at 0143 BST following reports of a substance giving off furmes.

Greater Manchester Ambulance Service said two people with asthma were taken to hospital with breathing difficulties.

All four people affected were employees of the bar.

A Greater Manchester Fire Service spokesperson said it was suspected the fumes were caused by an accidental mixing of two heavy duty cleaning agents in the kitchen.

Three workers have been hurt in a chemical spill at a boat building company in Worcestershire.

It is thought that two chemicals reacted in a drum and splashed workers at Sealine International in Kidderminster, the fire service said.

West Midlands Ambulance crew treated two men and a woman for breathing problems caused by the toxic vapours on Monday morning.

Environmental protection officers decontaminated the area.

Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service station commander Chris White said the workers were not too "seriously affected".

One person was injured in a flash fire at Hoeganaes Corporation on Airport Road in Gallatin, a plant that produces powdered metal products, according to the Gallatin Fire Department. This is the second such flash fire at the facility since January.

First responders were dispatched to the scene at 2 p.m.

One person sustained burns in the accident and was transported to a nearby hospital, according to fire department officials.

The identity of the person burned, the severity of the injuries and the hospital to which the person was transported have not been released as of Tuesday evening.

CHITWAN: Six workers have been injured when a fire broke out due to chemical leakage at a pharmaceutical factory at Yagyapuri in Bhatarpur-6 of Chitwan district on Tuesday.

According to witnesses, fire and smoke had broken out at Live Care and Agri Care medicine production unit when raw materials for two different medicines came in contact.

All the injured have been admitted to Chitwan Medical College in Bharatpur for treatment. The condition of three injured is reported to be critical.

Part of a north-Lincoln YMCA was evacuated Monday morning after someone smelled an unusual concentration of chlorine.
Hazardous materials crews responded to the YMCA at 2601 N. 70th St., around 11:30 a.m.
An employee was fixing a pool pump when some chemicals leaked, according to Battalion Chief Jeanne Pashalek.
The man was taken to the hospital for minor inhalation and has since been released, she said.

TWO people have been taken to hospital and a whole workforce evacuated after a toxic chemical leak at a factory in Kidderminster.

Employees of Sealine on Whitehall Road fled the building when an alarm sounded after a skin irritant was spilt at about 11.20am.

Two people were stripped and washed down at the scene by the ambulance hazardous area response team, before being taken to Worcestershire Royal Hospital as minor casualties.

It could have been mistaken for end of term celebrations. In fact, the loud noise which stopped passers-by outside the University’s research lab on Mansfield Road was caused by a chemical explosion.
Two students were sent to hospital after the blast, which drew onlookers and fire-fighters to the scene in minutes. Having closed Mansfield Road at approximately 3.30pm, a police blockade was erected to deter curious onlookers.
Although a spokesperson for Thames Valley Police said they “were aware of the incident,” the precinct will not begin an investigation into the matter.
The Chemistry Department are withholding further details about the explosion, including the state of the injured students, until they conclude their own investigation.
A spokesperson for the University was said: “A minor explosion occurred at a University chemistry building on Friday afternoon but was contained by a safety cabinet. Two people were injured and were taken to hospital. The fire brigade were called but the building was reoccupied and there was no risk to the public and no indication of criminal activity.”

Fire crews are in the final stages of putting out a chemical fire at a Kurnell water treatment facility, in Sydney's south, but evacuated residents have been told to stay away until the fire is completely extinguished.

1000 litres of hydrogen peroxide caught fire early this morning, spewing toxic smoke around the Botany Bay suburb.

Two workers suffered minor injuries.

Homes within 1 kilometre were evacuated, with Fire and Rescue New South Wales saying about 250 people had to leave.

The toxic smoke that led to the evacuations has since blown out to sea.

March 22--CHOUTEAU -- A Chouteau firefighter remained hospitalized Monday following a semi truck crash on Highway 69.
Chouteau Police Sgt. Rod Howell said two firefighters were transported to St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa after the two-semi collision Wednesday. One firefighter collapsed on the scene, said Howell, and another was taken to the hospital two days later. A hazardous materials crew, Sooner Management, worked into the night to clean up after the crash.
Chouteau emergency personnel received the call at 3:39 p.m. Howell said the first semi, driven by Eugene Henderson of Newark, Ohio, was exiting Highway 412 onto Highway 69. Henderson began making a u-turn around the highway barrier with the intention of going south.
Howell said the driver was obstructing the northbound lanes near Fiesta Mart. The second semi, belonging to Transport America, was northbound. Howell said driver Jessie Hill, of Balch Springs, Texas, attempted to avoid the crash. Hill swerved left and skidded 85 feet, striking the other semi in the southbound lane.

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- Bill Williams Elementary School will be closed Tuesday following an incident Monday in which 30 students were exposed to Mercury.

According to a city fire spokesman, one class was quarantined after a student dropped a vial of Mercury. Bakersfield Fire responded with its Hazardous Materials Team and later brought out a decontamination trailer to treat the affected students. Environmental Health also responded and the students were released to their parents after being checked out.

"They had to get us out of the classroom and then wash our feet and hands and put on booties," said Williams student Trisha Uziah. "Then they had to use a monitor to see if there was any mercury left on us."

Mercury is the only metal that is liquid in its natural state. It is highly toxic, especially if ingested. The element is commonly used in thermometers, barometers and other scientific apparatus.

District assistant superintendent Gerrie Kincaide said the school will be closed Tuesday on the advise of Environmental Health. That will allow investigators time to assess other classrooms to make sure exposure levels are as they should be. If it turns out they're not, it will allow enough time for proper treatment.

No illnesses were reported. It's not believed that students will suffer any ill effects from the exposure.

Six people were injured and 11 cars incinerated after an explosion on the La Linea highway Monday morning, reports Caracol Radio.

The La Linea roadway, which runs between Cajamarca and Ibague in the western department of Tolima, is closed due a chemical spill, according to the Director of Transit and Transport Rodolfo Palomino.

"There was a tank-type vehicle which carries carbonic gas, it suffered mechanical problems, rolled over, and dumped its product, which generated some explosions," said Palomino.

The accident occurred at the seven kilometer marker, where three separate explosions were generated by the chemical spill. The injured were taken to hospitals in Cajamarc and Ibague, reported a member of the Relief Corps Carlos Torres.

Dozens of people, mostly children, were treated for unknown respiratory ailments Saturday after swimming in a South Lubbock hotel pool.

Dozens of people, mostly children, were treated for unknown respiratory ailments Saturday after swimming in a South Lubbock hotel pool.

First responders set up a medical triage in front of Embassy Suites hotel, Slide Road and South Loop 289, to treat 24 people who started having trouble breathing while in and around the hotel’s indoor swimming pool.

The son of WA Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan was one of five people injured in an explosion at a clandestine drug factory in Carlisle late yesterday.

Russell O'Callaghan, 29, was severely burnt during the blast.

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- A man cleaning a tanker truck passed out due to low levels of oxygen, fire crews said.
The Kern County Fire Department said that about 1:20 p.m. on Wednesday, a call was received about an unconscious man inside a tank in the 7100 block of Golden State Highway.
Crews said a man was found unconscious inside a tanker trailer carrying residual crude oil.
The man had been cleaning the tank with a citrus chemical when a coworker noticed him unconscious, according to the KCFD.
Crews immediately began to monitor the air within the tank for potential hazards prior to making entry.
An air system was placed inside the tank after determining high levels of flammable vapors and low levels of oxygen.

A mystery ailment sickened 26 people, sending nine to the hospital at a law firm and call center here. What made everyone ill is still under investigation, authorities told Fox 13.

"We were just taking phone calls, doing our work and a couple of employees just started becoming nauseous," said Jay Rowley, who reported feeling light headed after smelling "propane like fumes."

According to Giles County Sheriff Kyle Helton, one person suffered severe chemical burns March 3rd while allegedly cooking meth in the residence at 218 Ella West Circle in Lynnville.

Although the suspect has not been identified, Helton said the subject was attempting to seek medical help in Maury County when a traffic stop occurred. That person was taken from the traffic stop by ambulance to Maury Regional Hospital in Columbia, then transported to the burn unit at Vanderbilt in Nashville by LifeFlight.

“Charges are pending with a Giles County grand jury,” Helton said. “A search warrant was served at the Ella West residence by Sheriff’s Narcotics Investigator Mike Thomason. There, officers found a meth lab or what was left of one.”

Giles Fire and Rescue members stood by for fire control, a haz-mat team with Giles Office of Emergency Management and Pulaski Police Investigator Joey Turner, who is a meth certified officer, were also on the scene while officers made entry into the home, which has now been posted quarantined due to meth contamination.

Hazardous material crews this afternoon have secured a chemical spill in the city's Bridgeport neighborhood, authorities said.

It remained unclear exactly what chemical was spilled in the 2800 block of South Archer Avenue, just south of the Stevenson Expressway.

Two city garbage collectors came into contact with an item that emitted a strange odor, police spokesman Robert Perez said, citing an initial report.

One of the men, who complained of feeling ill, was taken to Mercy Hospital and Medical Center for treatment, fire department spokesman Richard Rosado said. He was unsure of the patient's condition.

Fire crews were called to the scene about 12:30 p.m. and asked for a precautionary hazardous materials call, Rosado said. Fire officials secured the scene by 1:35 p.m., he added.

A chemical company has been sentenced after a worker suffered toxic burns to his arms and chest at an Ellesmere Port factory.

The employee at Abacus Chemical Ltd was mixing two chemicals together on 7 May 2009 when they exploded, causing him to be drenched in a hot, toxic chemical solution.

The company was prosecuted in a joint case brought by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Environment Agency following the incident at its plant on Oil Sites Road in Ellesmere Port.

Chester Magistrates' Court, sitting in Knutsford, heard that the company had mixed 22 kilograms of sodium cyanide pellets with hydrogen peroxide to make them less toxic. By taking this action, Abacus avoided having to pay a licensed hazardous waste company to dispose of the pellets at a cost of less than £300.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Three Nitro city workers exposed to a chemical while collecting garbage on Monday may have been sprayed with nothing more dangerous than household bleach.

Nitro Mayor Rusty Casto said the workers were compacting trash in their garbage truck on 18th Street at about 10 a.m. when something in one of the garbage bags burst, spraying the workers with an unknown chemical.

"It looks like it was bleach," Casto said Monday afternoon. "They found bleach [in the trash] and they found weed killer."

Officials did not initially know what the men had been exposed to. Casto said two of the employees were taken to CAMC General Hospital. The third refused treatment.

Eight workers at a LaGrange manufacturing plant this morning suffered nausea caused by a chemical spill and were taken to a local hospital for observation, officials said.

The workers were taken to Advocate LaGrange Memorial Hospital, fire officials said. All were released by noon Monday.

LaGrange Fire Chief Bill Bryzgalski said ink was spilled shortly before 6:30 a.m. at Grayhill Inc., 541 W. Hillgrove Avenue, which makes keypads for electronic devices. A worker cleaning the spill used a chemical thinner called “VD Thinner,” which released fumes and sickened eight workers, Bryzgalski said.

"They just didn't get it ventilated properly," he said.

Two FedEx employees in Medford received medical care last night after inhaling suspicious materials from a package they were transporting, according to Medford fire officials.

The 911 call came in about 8 p.m. from a passerby who noticed a FedEx delivery driver on the ground at Meadow Glenn Mall on Mystic Valley Parkway, Deputy Fire Chief Martin Cunniff said.

Cunniff said the driver had opened the door of his truck to retrieve a package when he was overcome by fumes from another package. He was taken to Lawrence Memorial Hospital in Medford.

A WAGGA hazmat team was left stumped yesterday about the source of noxious fumes which left four employees of Kurrajong Waratah Recyclers in hospital.
Initially believed to be a chemical spill, the incident brought police, a hazmat team, firefighters and paramedics to the facility around 1pm, after the employees were overcome by fumes.

The building was evacuated while the fire brigade and paramedics were called.

Fire and rescue duty commander for the Wagga area Duncan White said an unknown chemical had escaped from a steel can while it was being crushed and baled.

"It became apparent a can had erupted with some sort of chemical escaping which left five workers overcome. Four were taken to hospital, with one who refused transport," he said.

MEDFORD, Mass. -- Hazardous materials crews were called to Medford after a scare in a delivery truck on Thursday night.

Crews were not exactly sure what chemical it was that they were dealing with, but crews are focusing their attention on a FedEx truck.

The driver of that truck was on the interstate when all of a sudden he felt ill. He became nauseous and light headed, causing him to pull over in a Medford parking lot, where he then called police.

Police, fire and paramedics arrived on scene. They immediately transported the driver to the hospital and brought in hazmat teams.

“We don’t know. It could be a solvent, it could be paint; a mixture of something in that nature. It made the individual quite sick and we did transport him to the hospital,” said one official.

Emergency crews then crawled all over a delivery truck searching for something that made the driver sick in Medford.

Crews removed a box from the truck, put it in a hazardous materials container, and took it for more testing.

A FAULTY tank valve was the cause of a major chemical spill at a Nuneaton factory.

Fire crews were alerted when nitric acid poured out at Technic UK, on the Attleborough Industrial Estate.

One worker suffered minor burns in the incident, which led to all neighbouring units being evacuated.

The alarm was sounded at 9.30am on Tuesday and the whole cul-de-sac around Liberty Way was cordoned off for several hours because of the danger of escaping fumes.

Gareth Davies, technical sales manager at the firm, said: “A valve on a mixing tank blew out. It was a complete accident and is something that has never happened before.

"We managed to contain the chemical within the unit but needed to call in the fire brigade.

“The man who was operating the tank was slightly burned on one arm and went to hospital for treatment. A specialist contractor was brought in to take away the spilled chemical.”

A fireman was injured while dousing a blaze in a chemical storehouse in Jajmau industrial area on Wednesday afternoon.

The employees had a narrow escape as materials worth several lakhs of rupees were gutted in the fire that began at Bihari Chemical Store and soon spread to the adjoining Anik Tannery.

Employees of the chemical store claimed that a short circuit caused the fire, but district authorities said the cause was yet to be ascertained.

Shiv Singh, the fireman who started suffocating in the fumes emitted by the chemicals, was admitted in the intensive care unit of Ursula Horsman Memorial Hospital. His condition has been declared to be stable.

a chemical factory ‘Shasun Chemicals and Drugs Limited’ at SPICOT Industrial Estate, Tamil Nadu has lead to the hospitalization of more than 120 people. Fire broke out at the stores of the factory where chemical bromine and hydrochloric acid had been stocked, leading to poisonous fumes emanating from the unit on Monday night. Fire brigade personnel neutralized the gas using carbonated water.

Suspicious package forces evacuation 20/20 Eyecare Centers in

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- HazMat teams evacuated the 20/20 Eyecare Centers at 806 Regal Drive on Wednesday, March 9, 2011, after fumes from a "suspicious package" affected two employees.

Huntsville Fire & Rescue erect a decontamination tent outside 20/20 Eyecare Center after a suspicious package was discovered by employees. Two employees were decontaminated and transported to Huntsville Hospital. (The Huntsville Times/Dave Dieter)
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- HazMat teams evacuated the 20/20 Eyecare Centers at 806 Regal Drive this afternoon after fumes from a "suspicious package" affected two employees.
HazMat units, Huntsville Fire & Rescue and the HEMSI ambulance service responded to the call between 2:30 and 2:45 p.m. HazMat set up a decontamination unit to treat two employees who came in contact with the packages, according to Steve Oliver, District Chief for Huntsville Fire & Rescue.
The employees were cleaned and taken to Huntsville Hospital for evaluation and treatment.
According to an employee, Jared Pittenger, the package smelled like kerosene. Pittenger said it gave him a headache and he felt lightheaded but he refused treatment. The two employees were complaining of nausea and headaches.
It appeared as if something had spilled onto the package, perhaps in the delivery truck that delivered it earlier today. The package contained frames and frame cases and the contents were not disturbed.
Initial tests on the package by Huntsville Fire & Rescue failed to register on instruments, officials said.

SAN DIEGO -- The owner of an Otay Mesa business was injured Wednesday after a gas tank he was working near exploded and sparked a small fire.
According to Maurice Luque of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, crews received a report of an employee at a business in the 7100 block of Otay Mesa Road who was burned in what was initially considered a chemical explosion. The incident happened shortly before 10 a.m.
Luque told 10News the unidentified man was doing welding work on a gas saddle tank when one of the tanks exploded, causing a small fire and burning the man on the arm.

Authorities are investigating the discovery of acid on seats in a GRTC Transit System bus that left a girl with leg burns.

Richmond fire Lt. Shawn L. Jones said the girl was taken to VCU Medical Center for treatment of second-degree burns on her knees after coming in contact with one or more seats in the bus late Sunday.

Jones said results of state lab testing came back this morning and showed that the chemical was a strong acid. Beyond that, the tests were unable to determine exactly what type of acid it was, he said.

"We believe it was an accidental release of product," Jones said.

School officials evacuated Southfield-Lathrup High School in Southfield this morning after a chemical explosion during a science experiment.

Southfield Schools Deputy Superintendent Kenson Siver said three students and assistant principal Frank Czapski were transported to Beaumont Hospital after the 9:30 a.m. incident at 19301 West Twelve Mile Road in Lathrup Village. None suffered serious injuries, he said.

“We’re not calling it an explosion; we’re calling it an experiment that went bad,” Southfield Schools Superintendent Wanda Cook-Robinson said.

Siver said students were heating sugar and potassium nitrate when the mixture ignited, Siver said in a statement. The smoke and dust from a fire extinguisher sent clouds through the school’s B wing, forcing the district to cancel classes for the rest of the day.

A chemical release at a Lansing dry cleaner sent six people to area hospitals with non-life threatening injuries, officials said.
According to Fire Chief Dan Gregorovic, firefighters were called to CD One Price Cleaners, 17705 Torrence Ave., at 11:20 a.m. for a report of people who were feeling ill.
When paramedics arrived, they discovered an aerosol can containing a dry cleaning solution released an inert gas, causing some in the building to have trouble breathing. Gregorovic said he issued a box alarm calling for help from area departments.
Six people were taken to area hospitals with non-life threatening injuries, he said.
Firefighters ventilated the building and took air samples. The business was deemed safe and open for business within an hour, he said.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Fire officials say 18 firefighters were taken to a hospital for a possible chemical exposure after an explosion inside a business that applies spray-on truck bed liners in Lincoln.

Acting Battalion Chief Guy Pinkman says it's a precautionary move, and the firefighters will be observed for several hours to make sure they OK..

Television station KOLN/KGIN says the blast at Line-X happened just before noon on Thursday. Officials say a vehicle was on fire inside the business. The fire was contained by a sprinkler system and extinguished.

Pinkman says there's a concern that some of the chemical used in the spraying process may have been in the smoke from the fire, and that some firefighters may have been exposed to it.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

A chlorine leak at North Vancouver’s Canexus plant has sent four people to hospital.

Emergency crews were called to the Maplewood facility on Amherst Avenue at about 5:30 a.m. today after an unknown amount of the toxic chemical escaped from a scrubbing tank.

Four workers were apparently exposed, with two seriously affected. A woman who was in a vehicle nearby was initially thought to have been exposed as well, but was later deemed to be OK, according to firefighters.

Police, fire crews and paramedics arrived a few minutes after the incident to find the leak had been contained and that on-site medical and rescue personnel were already decontaminating the victims.

The four exposed workers were taken to Lions Gate Hospital by ambulance for treatment. Two were released later that morning and two were kept for observation, according to plant manager Rick Denton. None of the workers’ injuries were life-threatening, he said.

Virudhunagar (TN), Mar 2 (PTI) Twelve workers, including seven women, were seriously injured in a blaze at a matchstick manufacturing unit at nearby Sattur this afternoon, officials said.

They said the fire broke out in the unit''s chemical dipping unit due to alleged carelessness and spread instantly, fanned by strong winds. The fire was doused at 6.00 PM after a four-hour battle, they said.

The women, who were packing boxes, were trapped and seriously injured.

All the injured have been hospitalised, they said, adding that the condition of three workers was stated to be critical.

A man at a Manorhaven, N.Y., jewelry store may have been exposed to excessive amounts of cyanide March 1, the Nassau County Fire Marshal tells JCK.

Following limited evacuation, Nassau County Fire Marshal spokesperson Vincent McManus says hazardous materials crews discovered open products containing cyanide at the store. 

“They were able to reseal the open containers,” he says. “As a precaution they treated the whole scene.”

The store owner—who had called 911 himself after feeling faint—was transported to St. Francis Hospital around 3:40 a.m. Initial tests detected cyanide in the man’s system. His condition was not immediately known.

McManus says no one else was exposed to the chemical and the hazmat team determined the area was safe.

Cyanide is commonly used in the jewelry industry—as an ingredient in cleaning solutions, for example—but McManus says it is rare for someone to become ill from exposure.

ANSONIA, Conn. -- A hazmat situation was reported in Ansonia on Tuesday afternoon.
The incident was reported before 5 p.m. at Auto Repairs Unlimited on Main Street.
Employees there called authorities after the business filled with a mist after an employee opened a gas tank on a vehicle. Employees said they believe someone poured acid into the gas tank as an act of vandalism. When an employee opened the tank, a mist sprayed out and burned him in the face.
Officials from the Department of Environmental Protection said a car was towed to the shop from Derby. The owner was complaining the car wasn't running correctly. When mechanic began working on the car, he suffered chemical burns. He refused treatment.

An explosion at a chemical plant in Zhejiang Province that local residents demanded be shut down years ago left two workers injured Saturday.

The explosion occurred at around 8:50 pm at the Yue'an Chemical Plant in Panshi township, Yueqing, blowing up a boiler and causing colorless ammonia gas to leak, China News Service (CNS) reported Sunday.

"When I heard the huge explosion, I thought it was an earthquake," a local resident surnamed Zhou, who lived some two kilometers away from the site, told the Global Times Sunday.

A man was critically burned this afternoon in a small chemical explosion inside an Edgewater car wash.

The explosion occurred at about 4:15 p.m. inside the building shared by Leo's Auto and Body and Snappy's Car wash on the 5900 block of North Ridge Avenue, fire officials said. The explosion occurred in the car wash, fire department spokesman Quention Curtis said.

A fire resulted from the explosion, burning one man inside, according to Curtis. The burn victim was taken to Swedish Covenant Hospital in critical condition, Curtis said.

Fire officials quickly knocked down the fire, which didn't appear to cause any lasting damage to the structure.

KANNAPOLIS — Two people were severely injured in a chemical explosion and fire in Kannapolis around 7 p.m. today.

A 40-year-old female has been airlifted to Baptist Hospital with burns over 36 percent of her upper body, authorities said. The explosion occurred at 1935 Angela Lane, according to the Kannapolis Police Department. The department did not have the woman’s name and Kannapolis firefighters were not available by phone.

A second victim, the woman's nephew, was taken to Carolinas Medical Center-NorthEast in Concord. The patient's condition was not available. The woman threw what she thought was diesel fuel on a bonfire, according to her brother, who spoke to a Post photographer. The chemical turned out to be gasoline, he said. The female victim caught fire, and her nephew attempted to put out the flames when he was injured. Contact reporter Emily Ford at 704-797-4264.

At least two were injured Saturday after a boiler blast caused the leak of ammonia gas at a chemical plant in east China's Zhejiang Province, rescuers said.

The accident occurred at around 8:50 p.m. at a local chemical plant in Panshi Town of Yueqing City.

The injured had been rushed to hospital, rescuers said.

Many workers were working when the accident happened. Rescuers sped off towards the scene to put out the fire and were searching the site for possible victims.

13 people have suffered smoke inhalation after a fire broke out at a chemical factory in the Westmead area of Pinetown.


It's thought the fire started at the factory on the corner of Alexander and Clarke Roads just before 9am today.

While the cause of the blaze is unknown, firefighters have managed to extinguish the flames and are still on scene dampening down the building.

"When we arrived on scene, all workers from the factory already had been evacuated. We set up a triage area to examine all the workers," said ER24's Derrick Banks.

One person is in hospital and four other workers at Imperial are being treated on site for chemical burns after a hazardous materials leak at the refinery.

Sarnia deputy fire chief Joe Bondy said a power outage caused the leak. Five workers were exposed to an unknown chemical compound. Their condition is not known at this time.

The all clear was issued at 11:15 a.m.

"Four are being look at in the plant, because they have the facilities there," he said. "I know one is being taken by ambulance to the hospital. Depending on the severity of the people (at the plant) they may or may not be transported."

Imperial Oil spokesperson Jon Harding said the incident occurred at 9:58 a.m. Excess flaring and odours may be noticeable, he said.

Bondy said workers took immediate steps to fix the leak and it's believed that it has been contained. The fire service is currently conducting air monitoring onsite.

INDEPENDENCE, Pa. (AP) -- An explosion and fire at a gas well injured three workers Wednesday night, authorities said.

The blast, at the Chesapeake Appalachia LLC Powers site in Avella, was reported at about 6:20 p.m., Washington County emergency officials said.

Read more about natural gas drilling

Workers were transferring water used in a gas-extraction process called hydraulic fracturing, and several of the natural gas liquids storage tanks caught fire, said Katy Gresh, a spokeswoman for the Department of Environmental Protection's southwest region.

The illness that sparked hazardous materials responses to three locations Tuesday in Oxnard was apparently caused by vapor from a 5-gallon water bottle filled with gasoline, according to the Oxnard Fire Department.

The incident began about 9 a.m. after an Oxnard Environmental Resources worker became ill after the trash truck he was on picked up a dumpster behind Transfresh Corp., 1001 Industrial Ave., said Deborah O'Malia, a spokeswoman for the Oxnard Fire Department. The man was taken to an occupational health clinic on Outlet Center Drive in Oxnard.

Early reports indicated the man was sickened by an unknown chemical, and authorities initially believed the chemical may have been in the dumpster, which was taken to the city's recycling facility, O'Malia said.

Because the chemical involved was unknown, hazardous materials teams responded as a precaution to all of the locations that could have been contaminated — standard protocol in such situations, O'Malia said. The recycling center was evacuated as a precaution; workers at Transfresh were asked to shelter in place.

New London - An independent contractor hired to paint the floor at the city's wastewater treatment plant was injured Monday and rushed to Lawrence & Memorial Hospital.
Police and fire officials are investigating the incident which "appeared to be a chemical burn related to an accidental discharge,'' police said.
The accident occurred about noon at the plant on Trumbull Street in Fort Trumbull.
Barry Weiner, chairman of the Water and Water Pollution Control Authority said he could not disclose the nature of the injuries because the incident is under investigation.

AT least 300 families in Quezon City were evacuated from their homes after they fell ill after inhaling ammonia that leaked from a nearby ice plant Sunday night.

City police station 2 chief Supt. Audie Madrideo said the residents complained of vomiting, cold-like symptoms, dizziness and eye irritation after smelling ammonia.  

Madrideo said that police personnel and officials from Bureau of Fire Protection and city hall immediately inspected the VCNC ice plant located at 78 Bukidnon St., Ramon Magsaysay, Barangay Bago Bantay.

He said the ice plant shut down its operations to ensure that there will be no more leakage.

Families living within the 330 feet radius of the ice plant were evacuated to a nearby basketball court.

Madrideo said that ammonia, which is used as a refrigerant at the plant, can cause difficulty in breathing, especially among children.

Roanoke, VA – Three contractors are in the hospital after a hazmat spill in Roanoke on Sunday.

Roanoke EMS officials say the contractors were working on a Norfolk Southern railcar on 24th Street and Shenadoah Avenue when molten sulfur started to leak.

Officials say the contractors are being treated for respiratory and chemical burns at the Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital. One person is listed in critical condition, and the other two are listed in serious condition.

Roanoke Police closed roads 17th street to Shenandoah avenue during the clean-up. The hazmat spill is contained, and the roads are back open.

Greensboro, NC—A flash fire at a Sherwin-Williams plant left one worker with burns on his face and arms. The industrial accident occurred at around 7:14 a.m., at the plant located at 113 Stage Coach Trail, as reported by the Greensboro News-Record.
According to the Greensboro Fire Department, they believe methyl ethyl ketone vapors ignited, causing the flash fire. The chemical which caught fire is also known a butanone, an industrial solvent.
Responding emergency crews rushed the worker, who remains unidentified, to Moses Cone Hospital for treatment of minor burns to his arms and face. No other injuries were reported and there was no reported damage to the building.

The Wayne Farms further processing plant was evacuated and four employees were hospitalized after an ammonia leak early Thursday, a company official said.

A forklift accident at 12:30 a.m. caused the ammonia release at the Plugs Drive facility.

The Decatur police and fire departments responded to the call, as did the Wayne Farms Decatur Further West Hazmat Team.

Ammonia is used in the facility’s refrigeration process.

Four employees went to Parkway Medical Center for observation and treatment for exposure to fumes. All four were released at 5 a.m. Thursday.

CHENNAI: Two persons suffered burns and two tankers went up in flames after a fire broke out at a chemicals manufacturing company in Manjankaranai near Tiruvallur, 35 km from here, early on Friday. One of the tankers was completely gutted. The cause of the fire and the loss to property are yet to be ascertained.

Driver Ravinder (32) and cleaner Sriram Kumar (40), both from Bihar, were asleep in the driver's cabin in one of the tankers when it caught fire. They jumped down and were rescued and admitted to the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital (KMCH).

According to the police, around 5.45 am, one of the security guards noticed smoke from the godown and alerted the authorities who informed the fire and rescue services department.