Flame retardants in furniture foam – weighing the evidence
by ANDREW MAYNARD on MAY 10, 2012
The Chicago Tribune launched a hard hitting investigative series this week on the downsides of flame retardant chemicals. Opening with the line “The average American baby is born with 10 fingers, 10 toes and the highest recorded levels of flame retardants among infants in the world”, the series paints a picture of corporate greed, misinformation and questionable decisions as it takes a critical look at the possible health consequences, questionable benefits and alleged underhand business practices that in their words have “led to a proliferation of these chemicals, which don’t even work as promised”.

Not surprisingly, the series has attracted a lot of attention this week. Compellingly written, it tells a story of how cynical manipulation and misinformation has led to potentially harmful fire retardant chemicals being used widely in household products without clear evidence that they save lives.  But how accurate is the science behind the story?

CHILLICOTHE — Monday started off busy for Chillicothe firefighters who responded to two nearly back-to-back fires.

The first call came in just before midnight at the Sherwin-Williams store at 170 N. Bridge St.

“When they first pulled up, they had fire coming out of the northside door. As they were doing a walk around, the roof collapsed,” said Interim Fire Chief Jeff Creed.

Popping noises could be heard in the minutes of the fire, presumably from cans of paint exploding. As of 2:30 a.m., Bridge Street remained closed between Riverside and East Water streets. However, Creed anticipated the street to be open for the morning rush hour.

HUDSON, NC (WBTV) - At least person was injured in a furniture finishing plant explosion Thursday afternoon.

The incident was reported just before 3 p.m. at the RPM Chemical Coatings plant on U.S. 321 in Hudson, according to emergency officials.
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Hudson Fire Chief Tommy Courtner said the fire happened at 2:29 p.m. and firefighters had it under control in about 30 minutes.

The fire started when a worker was mixing chemicals in the paint and coating tank when there was a flash.

All 250 people working in the plant were evacuated as a precaution, Courtner said.

Employees at HAAS Agricultural on Grand Avenue in Red Lion are working to clean up a minor chemical spill from Tuesday morning, according to a Red Lion fire official.
The company had just received a delivery of a 300 gallon tank of a chemical called Polymeric MDI, said Tim Mooney, assistant chief of the Red Lion Fire Department. The chemical is often used in coatings and adhesives. A forklift punctured the tank at the bottom.
Mooney estimated roughly 80 percent of the tank's contents ran onto the ground before it could be plugged. The company acted quickly and began cleaning it, Mooney said.
"It's not going to hurt the environment," he said. "It didn't get into any drains" or groundwater. The liquid ran around the corner of Grand Avenue, a dead-end road, onto Wise Avenue, before it could be cleaned, Mooney said.

A fire in a spray paint booth at Mack Trucks Inc. sent seven workers to area hospitals about 1 p.m. today.

The fire spread from the paint booth into nearby ground-level ductwork, said Lower Macungie Fire Department Chief David, and it was confined to the area by workers using dry chemical fire extinguishers.

While a second alarm was called, it was cancelled and recalled before the trucks left their respective stations, Nosal said.

Firefighters worked mostly on the ductwork, he said.

The fire took 30 minutes for firefighters to bring under control, according to a report on wfmz.com.

Six of the workers were hospitalized for smoke inhalation, Nosal said, and the seventh for chest pain.

A large fire has erupted overnight at the plant for alkaline paints and resins "Orgahim" in Bulgaria's Danube city of Ruse.

The Ruse Mayor, Plamen Stoilov, reported early Thursday morning that the fire has been tamed. Three workers have inhaled harmful gases – they were sent to the local hospital and later released.

The crisis headquarters of the City Hall further inform that there is no danger for residents and visitors of the city. The Regional Governor of Ruse, Stefko Burdzhiev, told the TV channel bTV that precisely because of the fact that there was no immediate threat for the population, the blaze had not been officially reported via the alarm system.

In addition to thick smoke and the blaze, several secondary explosions have occurred along with a partial gassing of Ruse.

(Reuters) - The company that employed five workers killed in a 2007 fire at a Colorado hydroelectric plant was ordered on Monday by a federal judge to pay more than $1.5 million to the victims' surviving family members.

The compensation was part of the sentence imposed on RPI Coating Inc. in U.S. District Court for its guilty plea to five counts of violating a federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulation, one for each worker's death.

The sentence also requires the Santa Fe Springs, California-based company to pay a $100,000 penalty to OSHA and places the firm on probation for five years.

The five workers who perished were relining a tunnel at the Georgetown, Colorado hydro plant, about 45 miles west of Denver, when chemical vapors were ignited in the tunnel, and the fire blocked their escape.

The owner of the plant, public utility Xcel Energy Inc., and an Xcel subsidiary that operated the facility, were acquitted in June after a 16-day trial of the same charges.

FULLERTON – One man has died and another is in critical condition after being exposed to chemicals at a paint-manufacturing plant Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.
Fire crews responding to a request for a medical aid at Vista Paints in the 2000 block of Orangethorpe Avenue just before 2:30 p.m. found two men suffering from chemical exposure, said Julie Kunze, a division chief with the Fullerton Fire Department.ADVERTISEMENT
The men were overcome by fumes, Kunze said, and were taken to a hospital.
One man was pronounced dead at a hospital, Supervising Deputy Coroner Dan Aikin said. Coroner's office officials late Tuesday identified the man as Roberto Magdariaga, 62, of Los Angeles.
The second man, who police say is 45, is in critical condition.
Authorities believe that the chemical that caused the fumes is a paint stripper. The fumes were confined to the area where the men were working, Kunze said.
No other workers reported symptoms, Kunze said, and hazardous-materials teams were not required.
Cal/OSHA spokeswoman Erika Monterroza said the men are believed to have been working inside a tank when they were overcome by the fumes.
"It's a real tragedy when there are situations like this where it is a confined space," Monterroza said.

Lexington Police are encouraging drivers to avoid the intersection of Old Frankfort Pike and Alexandria Drive after an accident there late Friday morning.

Traffic flow on Old Frankfort Pike has been reduced to one lane following a vehicle collision and subsequent hazmat spill. A large amount of paint containers and paint has been spilled on the roadway about a mile east of Alexandria Drive.

Traffic flow on Old Frankfort Pike will be significantly affected until at least the evening rush hour, according to police.

Howrah (WB), July 24 (PTI) Fire broke out in two factories - a paint factory at Shalimar and another in a chemical factory at Salkia area - in Howrah district today but there was no report of any casualty, Fire Brigade sources said. A fire broke out the in the three-storeyed Research and Development building of Berger paints at Swarnamoyee Road at around 6.10 am, company sources said. The company's security staff and other personnel tried to extinguish the flame with their own fire fighting equipment and also informed the local Fire Brigade. At least 12 fire tenders were rushed to the spot and after fighting the blaze for five hours brought the fire under control, Fire Brigade sources said. There was no casualty in the fire, they said. Another fire was reported at a private chemical factory at Salkia area of the district. Five fire tenders were rushed to the spot who brought the blaze under control after three hours of fire fighting, Fire Brigade sources said adding that there was also no report of any casualty in the fire.

It’s not yet clear what caused the explosion and fire at Chemical Coatings at about 3 p.m. Saturday.

“As far as we know, the plant was closed,” said B.J. Fore of the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office. “We don’t have any reports of anyone injured and we haven’t gotten any complaints from anyone about illnesses caused by the fumes.”

Emergency crews are working to control the fire and determine if it’s safe for the estimated 750 people evacuated from a one-mile radius around the plant to return to their homes, Fore said.

By 6 p.m., firefighters had the fire under control but were still on the scene battling hot spots at 8 p.m.

“An investigation has not started yet, because we have to make sure the scene is safe,” Fore said.

BRADFORD TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- A tractor-trailer rollover crash early Wednesday spilled bright yellow paint, caused a potential hazmat situation and backed up traffic for hours.

As of noon, crews were still working on the cleanup, but said any steady rain may hinder their efforts. Department of Environment officials said the load was water-based paint, which means it will have minimal if any environmental impact.

"We contained it. It did get into some drainage ditches and we've contained it at the end of the drainage ditches. It didn't make it to any waterways. Environmental damage is going to be very contained and very isolated," said Emergency Management Agency Director Jerry Pollock.

An evacuation was ruled out after firefighters got a smoky industrial blaze under control in Oldcastle Sunday.

Firefighters, OPP and paramedics converged around 1: 30 p.m. on CBi Custom Coatings for Aluminum and Steel on Fasan Drive. Tecumseh fire Chief Doug Pitre said there was no need for an evacuation after firefighters quickly dealt with a chemical blaze inside.

"The product was extinguished quite quickly," Pitre said. He said the product was a type of nickel-based sealant into which metallic parts are dipped for oxidization. A sign in front of the shop advertises anodizing and black oxide services.

Though the fire was taken down quickly, Pitre said the main danger was to firefighters exposed to the chemical. "If you get it on your skin it would continue to burn for 48 hours," he said.

Firefighters washed down their equipment after coming into contact with the sealant, he said. He said a small amount of product was spilled and would be dealt with by Environment Canada.

(New Braunfels, TX) -- What appeared to passersby to be the start of a major fire in downtown New Braunfels yesterday afternoon was quickly brought under control before any major damages to the structure, after a bag of garbage caught fire on the front porch of a home. New Braunfels Firefighters were called out to the corner of Castell and Jahn Streets in downtown New Braunfels, where they found the garbage bag on fire near the front porch of the structure. Those firefighters made the quick decision that they could put the fire out without even having to use a hose, so instead they used 2 chemical fire extinguishers, and were able to stop the fire from spreading to the house itself. Only the porch railing suffered a little damage. Now, garbage bags generally don’t spontaneously combust, but in this case, that’s exactly what investigators believe happened. On Saturday a painter was painting the house and threw away their used brushes and other painting supplies into a plastic garbage bag, which they tied off and left near the porch. But the heat inside the bag, combined with the flammable gases given off by the paint chemicals, combined to start the fire inside the bag. No injuries were reported in that incident.

TROY, Mich. -- A small fire broke out Tuesday morning at a Troy building belonging to a pavement painting company.
A spokesman for P.K. Contracting on Barrette Road said a solvent in a paint mixture caught fire but was quickly extinguished. There was no damage to a the building or injuries to any employees.

A Ngaruawahia ambulance officer called local fire fighters to their station about 1.15am this morning after finding a leaking drum on a trailer parked outside the station.

Fearing the worst, Fire fighters got kitted out in chemical suits only to find the two dozen 200 litre drums contained a liquid that turned out to be paint. Council workers were called to help with the clean up.

The Hazardous Materials Chemical Assessment Team from Hopkins says paint products are to blame for the false nerve agent reading that sparked an investigation in St. Louis Park.

The St. Louis Park Fire Department was called to Park Village Apartments on Shelard Parkway just before 10 a.m. Sunday for a chemical smell in a second floor hallway.

The Hazardous Materials team found several household substances spilled or spattered in the hallway and determined them not to be a threat.

However, according to the report, during a check of the rest of the building, the team received a reading on its monitoring device indicating the presence of a possible nerve agent.

Authorities said no residents or responders showed symptoms consistent with the actual presence of such an agent, but Hazmat crews weren't taking any chances and began investigating the cause of the reading.

A home renovation project took an unexpected turn Thursday when Hazmat teams were called to an Omaha home after someone reported a strong smell coming from the premises.

Firefighters made sure no one was in danger before entering the residence near 38th and Grand to investigate.

What they found was an open can of paint. Officials say there were two to three inches left in the bottom. None of the nearby homes or businesses were evacuated.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Hazmat teams have determined fumes from a room painted overnight sickened dozens of employees at an Orlando business.

Office workers were vomiting and dizzy when Orange County Fire Rescue crews arrived Thursday morning.

Of 350 workers evacuated from the building, 47 were treated on the scene. Three were taken to a hospital.

Authorities say weather conditions helped spread the fumes from a room on the building's second floor that had been painted Wednesday night.

Large fans cleared the fumes, and the building was reopened later Thursday morning.

Crews were called to the Aycliffe Industrial Business Park on Tuesday evening after reports of a 45-gallon drum rupturing inside a lorry.

Crews from Darlington, Bishop Auckland and Newton Aycliffe managed to seal off the leak and the men were taken to hospital as a precaution.

The drum, containing a paint chemical, ruptured when the lorry braked heavily.

David Turnbull, operations manager for the Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service, said the lorry braked suddenly to avoid an accident.

He said: "We dealt with this as we would any other 999 call - crews arrived and made sure the spill wasn't going any further.

"It was confined to the industrial site - we have isolated the leak and sealed it and the drums will be taken away this morning."

A Tomball paint warehouse burned for nearly 16 hours Saturday.
Several callers reported flames shooting from American Coatings, a painting manufacturer in the 10600 block of Mahaffey Road, around 2:40 a.m., said Dean Hensley, an arson investigator with the Harris County Fire Marshal's Office.
About a dozen agencies responded to the blaze, including the Klein, Ponderosa, Cy-Fair, Magnolia, Rose Hill, Houston and Cypress Creek fire departments as well as Harris County hazmat and emergency management officials.
No one has been injured. A person of interest, arrested on unrelated charges, is being questioned.
Several households were evacuated in the early hours of the emergency, but everyone has been told to return to their homes, he said.
The Harris County Department of Public Health and Environmental Services monitored air quality for nearly 11 hours into the early afternoon Saturday and found nothing to prompt further directives for residents to evacuate or shelter in place.
Agency spokeswoman Rita Obey said the department’s devices can determine whether gases or particulate matter exists at dangerously high levels.
“We had our air monitors up and we did not detect anything above normal levels. There was some faint intermittent ground-level smoke,” Obey said. “We monitor downwind of whatever the event is and we try to get in the areas where people may be impacted to see if there are any readings, but we didn’t find anything.” .

MADISON COUNTY - A potentially hazardous chemical spill near Archer has hazmat teams on alert.

Around 4 p.m. Wednesday afternoon, police responded to a home on 2000 West. They were there on a complaint the owner had too many broken down cars on his property. They found something that may be much more dangerous.

"It's a very large area of 5-gallon buckets, different storage containers containing chemicals in different states of leeching out of buckets [that are] rusting," said Captain Travis Williams of the Madison County Sheriff's Office.

The homeowner, Max Spatig, says the chemicals are just ordinary household paints and primers, nothing hazardous about them.

EVANSVILLE, Ind. — Authorities say two workers were badly burned in a flash fire at an auto parts factory in Evansville.

City Fire Department District Chief Dan Grimm says the workers at Guardian Automotive Trim were using a chemical to clean a paint booth Monday when a halogen light was knocked onto the floor and ignited the fumes.

Grimm said the initial explosion was out quickly, but the workers' clothing caught on fire. The names of the man and woman weren't immediately released and they were taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn., for treatment of their burns.

Gas truck accidental explosion kills 18, wounds 40

A truck carrying chemicals accidentally exploded on Monday in southern Pakistan after pressure built up in its storage tank, killing 18 people and wounding 40, police said.

Hundreds of people rushed to the truck depot in Hyderabad city to search through the rubble of destroyed shops for dead and wounded, local television footage showed.

Authorities ruled out militarism and determined the blast occurred from a pressure build-up, said the senior police official in Hyderabad.

The truck was carrying 30-thousand litres (7,925 gallons) of "thinner," said the police chief in Sindh province where Hyderabad is located.

CHENNAI: It took firemen from across Chennai 18 hours to put out the massive fire that broke out at a paint company in Ambattur on Tuesday evening. Preliminary investigations suggest that human error caused the fire.

As the chemical solvents were lighter than air, the fire spread quite quickly but the firemen were able to contain it. "If there had been inflammable materials that were denser than the air, LPG for instance, fighting the fire would have been a greater challenge. Such denser substances can cause powerful blasts and throw fireballs. Our men did a commendable job and stopped the fire from spreading to nearby areas," S Veeramani, divisional fire officer, who headed the fire fighting operations at the paint company, said.

Fire service sources said preliminary investigations suggest that human error and failure of the monitoring mechanism in the processing unit of the factory could have lead to the fire.

Sources said slight impurities in the mixing solvents could also have caused the blast. The security guards heard a loud blast in the processing unit of the factory around 7.45pm. The fire engulfed the factory in no time.

An Iberia worker is behind bars tonight. His bond is set at $50,000 for allegedly starting a fire that ruined a building and everything in it at Parkway Mechanical. Daniel S. Regan was an employee there for a little more than four years. Owners are calling what happened a bad joke that went the wrong way.

Parkway Mechanical owner Clint Dore received a call Tuesday afternoon informing him of a chemical explosion. "It was quite frightening. My immediate concern was not about the business, but who got hurt, and I couldn't find out until I got there," said Dore. He was in Lafayette at the time.

Dore's employee, Daniel S. Regan was arrested and now faces charges of aggravated arson.
We reported Tuesday, Regan threw a cigarette in what he thought was a drum of water, but it was actually paint thinner. The state fire marshal's investigation reveals Regan allegedly lit the paint thinner in good fun, joking it wouldn't burn. Workers say the explosion was so big it was felt through out the entire facility. "It was a bad judgment call by one of my employees," said Dore.

The blast destroyed an entire building in the back, which included a forklift, lots of mechanical equipment and more than 500-thousand dollars in damage. The good news is, clean up has already begun. "The business is functional, but we'll be limping along for two weeks before we get everything up and running again," said Dore. One employee was injured trying to put out the fire, everyone else is safe.

Parkway Mechanical provides radiator and cooler work to company's statewide along the coast.

No one was injured in a fire Thursday afternoon in which a HazMat response was called to a factory in the West Side Humboldt Park neighborhooD.
The Level 1 HazMat was called to a fire at 976 N. Kilbourne Ave., Fire Media Affairs Chief Kevin MacGregor said.
At 1:49 p.m., a working fire broke out in a paint spray booth in a factory at that address which summoned the HazMat response, according to Fire Media Affairs spokesman Joe Roccasalva.
There were no injuries, he said.