AN ARMY BOMB disposal team was deployed to the Malahide Road at Dublin 17 earlier today after an unstable chemical was discovered at a laboratory.
The team arrived on the scene at Teagasc on the Malahide Road at about 4pm. The unstable chemical, called Picric Acid, had been found during a routine audit of the lab.
It was removed to waste ground and a controlled explosion was carried out to make the substance safe.

MARSHFIELD — A State Police bomb squad and a hazardous-materials response team on Monday removed explosive chemicals from two locations in town.

Chemicals were taken from the basement of a Church Street home and then from the high school’s chemistry lab.

The Marshfield Fire Department said all of the dangerous chemicals found at both locations were removed and disposed of. No injuries were reported.

As of Monday night, classes at the high school, at 167 Forest St., had not been suspended or canceled as a result of the chemical removal.

The chemical removed from the high school was potassium, a substance commonly used in fireworks and pyrotechnics, said John Hall, chairman of Marshfield’s board of selectmen. By 7:30 p.m., the potassium was transported to the town landfill off Clay Pit Road, where it was disposed of.

Earlier in the day, picric acid, an explosive agent once used by military forces, was removed from a Church Street home, Marshfield Fire Chief Kevin Robinson said.

Robinson said the chemical operation at the high school occurred Monday afternoon only because the hazardous-materials team was already in town for the Church Street incident.

EDMOND — The discovery of a potentially hazardous substance in a chemistry lab at the University of Central Oklahoma prompted the evacuation of a science building Wednesday.
Adrienne Nobles, spokeswoman for the university, said a professor was doing inventory in a lab inside Howell Hall when he discovered picric acid, a crystalline solid that can be detonated by extreme heat or electric charge.

Hazardous material first located at a Churchill Drive business in south-end Barrie on Wednesday night did not pose a public health risk, city officials said Friday afternoon.

The material, known as picric acid, commonly found in laboratories and in dyeing manufacturing, was located Wednesday night and reported to officials by workers cleaning a former waste management plant, 2R Services, which has had its problems in the past.

An explosion there in 2002 resulted in four people being treated at the scene for minor injuries and 10 taken to Royal Victoria Hospital for evaluation.

Picric acid, a pinkish-coloured liquid, was found in four five-gallon drums, but was stable, according to Barrie Fire Chief John Lynn.

"There was no threat to public safety," Lynn said, during a news conference on Friday.

The containers were being X-rayed on Friday to determine how much of the liquid is in each container.

MOORESVILLE – On November 4, 2011 around 12:43 hours units form the Mooresville Fire Department responded to 171 Fairview Road (Lake Norman Regional Medical Center) in reference to a Haz-mat situation. Upon arrival the fire department was notified that a small quantity of “Picric” Acid was located in the Histology Laboratory.
Fire Department personnel along with the Director of Safety for Lake Norman Regional Medical Center evacuated the area for safety. Further investigation showed the acid to be in a crystal form.

WATERVILLE, N.Y. (WKTV) - Students and staff members at Waterville Junior and Senior High School were evacuated a little after Noon on Thursday the New York State Police Bomb Disposal Unit out of Albany was called in to assess and dispose of some potentially hazardous chemicals.

"We are concerned about one of the chemicals that is possibly dangerous and could call an explosion," says Gary Lonczak, superintendent of schools.

The main issue is a bottle of picric acid which is over 25 years old.

When in liquid form, the chemical is safe to use. However, the compound has solidified over the years, which means it could be potentially explosive if not removed properly.

"We acted as quickly as we could and we followed protocol and we got good advice from the State Police and hazmat unit," says Lonczak.

Administrators were never advised to evacuate students, but they say they did so as a precautionary measure.

Lonczak says he will send an informational letter to parents regarding the incident and on Friday, the school day will resume as usual.

AN ARMY BOMB disposal team was called out to deal with an unstable chemical at a science facility in Dungarvan, Co Waterford this afternoon.
The unit were alerted after a quantity of picric acid was discovered during an audit at Lancaster Laboratories in the town. Arriving on scene at 3.45pm, they were able to remove the chemical to nearby waste ground.
Specialists then carried out a controlled explosion to make the chemical safe. The scene was declared safe at 4.20pm.

An unstable acid was made safe by the Defence Forces at a Waterford laboratory yesterday.

The bomb disposal team was called to Lancaster Laboratories in Dungarvan due to concerns over picric acid.

The team arrived at 3.30pm and removed the chemical to waste ground where they carried out a controlled explosion. The area was declared safe by 4.40pm. Picric acid is routinely used in labs but over time it can crystallise and become unstable.

ARMY BOMB DISPOSAL experts have made safe an unstable chemical after sealing off several streets near St Stephen’s Green in Dublin.
The military unit was called in to the Catholic University School on Lower Leeson Street, after a quantity of picric acid was found. The bomb disposal team removed the chemical to a nearby piece of open ground, then carried out a controlled explosion.
Traffic was stopped in the area as the unit arrived at 4.15pm. The scene was declared safe at 6.10pm.
According to the Defence Forces, the substance was discovered during a routine audit of chemicals held in the school’s science department. Picric acid is a reagent which is routinely used in laboratories, but over time it can crystallise and become unstable.
It has caused a number of alerts in recent weeks, including some at schools in Limerick and Celbridge, and the offices of the pharmaceutical regulator in Dublin. The Leeson Street incident is the 21st time this year that the unit has dealt with dangerous substances, and its 186th call-out since January.

An army bomb disposal team has carried out a controlled explosion on a chemical substance found in the science lab of a Co Limerick school.
The army was called to St Enda's Community School on the Kilmallock Road after a quantity of picric acid was found during a routine audit of chemicals in the school.
Picric Acid is routinely used in laboratories but can become unstable and sensitive to heat and shock over time.

An Army Bomb Disposal team made safe a quantity of unstable chemicals at the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory in Celbridge, Co. Kildare this evening.

The Defence Forces deployed the team to the laboratory where the chemical, picric acid, had been found during a routine audit of chemicals.

The team arrived on scene at 5pm and removed the chemical to nearby waste ground. The team carried out a controlled explosion in order to make the chemical safe.

Picric Acid is a chemical re-agent and is routinely used in laboratories but can crystallise and become unstable over time.

THE IRISH DEFENCE Forces had to carry out a controlled explosion today after an unstable chemical was found at the offices of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI) in Dublin this morning.
An Army Bomb Disposal Team was called to the offices of the PSI, which regulates pharmacy services in Ireland, on Shrewsbury Road after the unstable chemical Picric Acid was found this morning.

An Army Bomb Disposal Team made safe a quantity of unstable picric acid at Institute of Technology Tralee this afternoon.

The Defence Forces deployed the team to ITT where the unstable chemical had been found during a routine audit of chemicals in a Science Laboratory.

The team arrived on scene at 11.45am and removed the chemical to waste ground.

The Bomb Disposal Team carried out a controlled explosion in order to make the chemical safe. The scene was declared safe at 1pm.

Picric acid is a chemical re-agent and is routinely used in laboratories but can crystallise and become unstable over time.

This is the 143rd call out for the Army Bomb Disposal Teams this year and the 11th substance of concern safely disposed of.

DALLAS — As they prepared last week for a training session, members of the Dallas bomb squad took a "live" call. Someone had discovered a decades-old first-aid kit that contained picric acid.

Though it had beneficial military and medicinal uses around World Wars I and II, the chemical becomes highly explosive when it gets old and crystallizes. A Pennsylvania teenager blew off his hand in 2003 when he mixed picric acid with other materials in what authorities said then was a bomb-making attempt.

"We went and got the chemical, took it out to our range and destroyed it," Dallas bomb squad Sgt. Dennis Wilson said. "That's what we do."

Exactly. When things blow up — or are about to — the bomb squad gets the call.

But in Dallas, it was the unit itself that nearly exploded.

DENVER - Bomb squads along the Front Range have been visiting some unlikely places: museums and the homes of collectors. The same volatile chemical keeps turning up.

Carol and Ernie Altvater of Denver did not expect they would find it in their basement among their Girl Scout memorabilia.

The Altvaters have been collecting the memorabilia for 20 years. They did not know that a piece of their collection could cause an explosion: a first aid kit with gauze pads soaked in picric acid.

"When you hear words like picric acid it's similar to when you hear structure fire or child choking. Your adrenaline goes a little higher," Capt. CJ Haberkorn with the Denver Fire HazMat team said.

Picric acid once was used as an antiseptic and anesthetic. When picric acid ages and crystallizes, it turns into a compound that can explode.

Haberkorn says his HazMat team trains for encounters with it.

"What's the biggest problem with picric acid if it's crystallized?" Haberkorn asked a class of Denver firefighters on Tuesday.

"Explosion," Haberkorn answered, picking up a cup to demonstrate. "Shock sensitive. If this is picric acid and it's crystallized and we go up and grab it we could actually blow it right there."

Denver firefighters see six to 12 picric acid calls a year.

Streets surrounding Tudor Place Historic House and Gardens (31st between Q and R) were closed Monday afternoon to investigate a HazMat situation, Mandy Katz, Tudor Place communications officer told The Georgetown Dish.

Tudor Place executive director Leslie Buhler released this note to trustees at 5:55 pm. "During the textile inventory project a early 20th c. girl scout medical box was found. It contained picric acid gauze pads which are highly explosive. After several calls to D.C. government offices, we finally were told to call the police. That resulted in a response by more police, fire, and the bomb/hazardous waste specialists.

All staff and visitors were evacuated from the property and careful instructions were given to the HZMAT team. After 3 hours, they went into the house and removed the pads from the box. They took them out to the driveway area in a protected position and exploded them. All is safe with no injuries or damage."

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The Colorado Springs Police Department's Hazardous Materials Team and Regional Explosives Unit was called out to a fire station Sunday because of concerns about the safety of a an antique Boy Scout first aid kit.
The owner of the kit was concerned that kit may contain a small amount of picric acid and brought the kit to Fire Station 5 in Colorado Springs for disposal.
The hazmat and explosives team remotely removed the hazard to a safe location and destroyed it, officials said.
Same Chemical Causes Other Evacuations

Picric acid was found in an antique Boy Scout first aid kit at the Pioneers Museum in Colorado Springs earlier this month. The museum was evacuated while the bomb squad and firefighters removed the material.
The same chemical was found in a historic doctor's bag last month in a warehouse in the Lowry area of Denver belonging to the Colorado Historical Society, said society spokeswoman Rebecca Laurie.
It too was picric acid, so the Denver bomb squad and a fire hazmat teams were called in to remove the acid.
"Sometimes, our researchers do come across chemicals in these kinds of medical hits or chemistry kits, things that were donated a long time ago," said Laurie. "If they're not sure what it is, they're trained to call 911."
Picric acid was stocked in pharmacies in the early 1920s as an antiseptic and as a treatment for burns, malaria, herpes and smallpox.
Other Items Dropped Off At Fire Stations

On Saturday, a 25 mm military training practice round was dropped off at another fire station in Colorado Springs for disposal.
Officials said if you find any possibly dangerous material such as an antique first aid kit, military ordnance or any other explosive material, call 911 and don't touch it. They said you should not bring the item into a police or fire station. Emergency personnel will respond to your location and safely dispose of the item.

Things are back to normal around the Pioneers Museum in downtown Colorado Springs following a Hazmat situation that forced the evacuation of the building.

Museum workers discovered that a Boy Scout first-aid kit from the 1930s was leaking Piric acid, an ointment used to treat wounds, which can become corrosive. The building was evacuated as a precaution. A robot used to retrieve the substance and dispose of it.

An Army bomb disposal team made safe a quantity of unstable picric acid in Killmallock, Co Limerick this morning.

The Defence Forces deployed the team to a retail premises on Sheare St. where a quantity of the unstable chemical had been found during a routine audit of chemicals.

Picric acid is a chemical re-agent and is frequently used in laboratories but can crystallise and become unstable over time.

The team arrived on scene at 10.30am and the substance was made safe via a controlled explosion. The area was declared safe at 11.40am

NORTH HIGHLANDS, CA - A Sacramento County Sheriff's Department hazmat crew safely detonated a flammable chemical at a North Highland landfill after a teenager tried to dispose of it Thursday afternoon.

The teen, a 16-year-old girl, brought a container of picric acid to the Sacramento County North Area Transfer Station on Roseville Road that had belonged to her late father, a chemist, according to sheriff's spokesman Deputy Jason Ramos.

The picric acid was marked as flammable or explosive and that prompted landfill operators to call the Sacramento Metro Fire District. The sheriff's department was also contacted.

CHEYENNE -- Emergency operations ceased Monday night at the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation building when a department chemist deemed the explosive chemical discovered there to be stable and of no danger to the community at its current location.

An explosive ordnance disposal team and fire/hazardous material experts responded to the building at on West 22nd Street at 2 p.m. Monday when a gallon container of crystallized picric acid was discovered in the State Crime Lab. It was thought to be highly explosive, and several downtown buildings were evacuated.

An Army bomb disposal unit today carried out a controlled explosion on an unstable chemical at a laboratory in the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin.

Authorities at the college on St Stephen's Green contacted the emergency services shortly before 12.30pm after an internal audit of the lab found the chemical had degraded to a dangerous state.

Following an examination of the chemical by the bomb disposal team, the chemical was deemed unsafe to transport and was subsequently made safe through a controlled explosion on nearby waste ground.

The offending material is understood to have been 30g of picric acid, a potentially explosive substance which is commonly used by laboratories in the analysis of metals and ores.

When the substance goes beyond a certain timeframe, it can become dangerous to transport.

Vancouver Police closed down streets for a time Wednesday evening so they could dispose of a potentially explosive chemical.
Police were notified by staff from a medical building at Broadway and Fir that they had a small amount of picric acid that may have aged to the point where it had become unstable. The Bomb Squad removed the acid from the building and safely disposed of it.
Like TNT, picric acid is explosive but can also be used in a variety of medical tests.
There were no injuries.

NEWBERG, Ore. -- Classes were canceled until 5 p.m. Tuesday at George Fox University after a lab official found a vial of picric acid that had dried out and posed an explosive hazard to students and faculty, according to school officials.
The picric acid was discovered in an Edward-Holman Science Center lab around 9 a.m., according to information from the Newberg Police Department and from a statement posted Tuesday morning on the George Fox University website.
When in its liquid form, picric acid is harmless, according to school officials, but the acid had been allowed to dry and hardened to a solidified state.
Police and fire departments responded; a bomb squad recovered the vial and detonated it just after noon.
Police said other vials were also located in the building and bomb technicians would be destroying those as well.