The EPA has finalized a rule amending its Risk Management Program (RMP) regulations to reduce the likelihood of accidental releases at chemical facilities and improve emergency response activities when those releases occur.
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) is investigating the chemical release Friday in Atchison, Kansas that forced thousands of residents to shelter in place and caused at least 85 people to seek medical attention for respiratory problems.
Individuals who are exposed to high temperatures or flames and those who must handle flammable liquids are at increased risk for burns of the hand and wrist. Burns are most frequently sustained at home (72%), whereas 5% occur in relation to motor vehicle accidents and 9% are work-related, The most common type of burn injury to the wrist and hand is a scald injury, usually from a hot water source, followed by flame burns, flash burns from explosion of flammable gases or liquids, and contact burns.
General requirements: Employers shall select and require employees to use appropriate hand protection when employees' hands are exposed to hazards such as those from skin absorption of harmful substances; severe cuts or lacerations; severe abrasions; punctures; chemical burns; thermal burns; and harmful temperature extremes.
CSB: Communication, maintenance shortcomings behind 2014 Freedom Industries chemical spill
September 28, 2016
The Chemical Safety Board’s (CSB) final report into the massive release of chemicals into this valley’s primary source of drinking water in 2014 concludes Freedom Industries failed to inspect or repair corroding tanks, and that as hazardous chemicals flowed into the Elk River, the water company and local authorities were unable to effectively communicate the looming risks to hundreds of thousands of affected residents, who were left without clean water for drinking, cooking and bathing.
A team of risk experts who have carried out the biggest-ever analysis of nuclear accidents warn that the next disaster on the scale of Chernobyl or Fukushima may happen much sooner than the public realizes.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to revise its Risk Management Program (RMP) regulations to improve chemical process safety, assist local emergency authorities in planning for and responding to accidents, and improve public awareness of chemical hazards at regulated sources.
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) received awards for two safety videos at the annual Television, Internet, and Video Association of DC (TIVA DC) dinner on Saturday, November 14. Award recipients included Shock to the System, a safety video detailing key lessons for preventing hydraulic shock in ammonia refrigeration systems based on the CSB’s Millard Refrigerated Services investigation, and the computer-generated animation of a massive explosion and fire at the Caribbean Petroleum terminal facility.