Category
Hazmat
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US, Canadian safety officials looking into train derailment
PORT HURON, Mich. – Safety officials in the U.S. and Canada are looking into a multi-car train derailment in an international tunnel connecting Michigan’s Port Huron to Sarnia, Ontario. The National Transportation Safety Board says investigators have been sent to…
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124 children affected by January gas leak that forced evacuation of Montreal school
Montreal public health officials say 124 children suffered symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning after a gas leak last January forced the evacuation of their elementary school. The report published today by the Montreal public health authority reveals 24 of the…
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CO2 Sensor Now Available for Radius® BZ1 Area Monitor
(May 2, 2019) — Industrial Scientific is pleased to announce the availability of the carbon dioxide (CO2) sensor for the Radius® BZ1 Area Monitor. The Radius BZ1 can detect up to 7 gases simultaneously and now has 18 sensor options, making it…
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Working within safe limits in a confined space
According to Statistics Canada, there were 4,990 deaths associated with carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning between 2000 and 2013. Although this number includes exposure incidents in residences, many CO-exposure cases occur in workplaces. Carbon monoxide is one of the most widespread…
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New series of hazardous refrigeration leak detectors
Bacharach, a provider of HVAC-R gas instrumentation, announced the addition of 22 halogen refrigerants for its MGS-400 gas detectors in commercial and industrial gas leak monitoring applications. The MGS-400 series product family uses three different sensor types, depending on the measurement range, temperature and gas types when detecting for hazardous refrigerant leaks. The variety of sensor types within the…
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Handling gas-detection devices with care
The importance of being gentle with gas-detection devices cannot be underestimated. Monitors are tough enough to withstand harsh work environments and in most cases, these devices can stand a pretty good beating, but that does not mean that one should…
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Cape Breton coal mine to reopen rock face where small methane fire broke out
DONKIN, N.S. – Nova Scotia’s Labour Department has lifted a stop-work order imposed on a Cape Breton coal mine after a methane fire broke out Tuesday afternoon on one rock face. Harold Carroll, the provincial Labour Department’s executive director of…
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Primary and Secondary Defences Against Eye Injuries
Eye injuries cover a gamut of afflictions that range from computer vision syndrome to penetration by foreign objects like flying debris from a moving tool in a workshop. According to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, more than 10,000 Ontarians…
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The Limitations of Water Washing for Managing Corrosive Chemical Injuries
Chemical-exposure injuries occur far too often in workplaces across Canada. There are almost 50 fatalities every year as a result of short and long-term exposure to aggressive chemicals in the workplace. In fact, Canada averages about 2,500 lost-time claims per…
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Eye on Safety
The $124,000 fine slapped against Vale Canada Limited in February for its failure to provide ready access to emergency-eyewash equipment and resulting in a worker’s permanent eye injury in 2016 is a cautionary tale not only of the importance of…
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Debris hurled into air when natural gas blast rips apart Alberta workshop
DE WINTON, Alta. – A man is being treated for serious injuries after a natural gas explosion that tore apart a workshop on a rural property just south of Calgary. Witnesses report seeing chunks of debris hurled several metres into…
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New review of worker safety underway seven years after B.C. mill explosions
VANCOUVER – The union representing four workers who died in two British Columbia sawmill explosions in 2012 says it hopes a new review of worker safety ordered by the provincial government will lead to overdue justice for survivors and families…
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Debris a hindrance in fight to snuff out Calgary industrial blaze
CALGARY – Thick, black smoke greeted firefighters as they arrived at the scene of an early morning fire at a metal recycling business in southeast Calgary. About a dozen firefighters were initially called around 6 a.m. to Calgary Metal Recycling.…
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Out of control Saskatchewan wildfire triggers state of emergency, evacuation
BIGGAR, Sask. – Wildfire smoke and concerns about air quality have sparked a large community and surrounding area in west-central Saskatchewan to declare a state of emergency The Town of Biggar and Rural Municipality of Biggar declared the emergency overnight…
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Precautionary evacuation for Red Deer, Alta., residents due to industrial fire
RED DEER, Alta. – Residents from 80 homes in the central Alberta city of Red Deer have been asked to leave as a precaution due to a large industrial fire. Others in the Oriole Park and Oriole Park West neighbourhoods…
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B.C. to expand firefighter occupational disease coverage to wildfire fighters
VICTORIA – Firefighters who have battled British Columbia wildfires, fire investigators and fire crews working for Indigenous groups will be eligible for greater access to job-related health compensation under legislation introduced Thursday. Labour Minister Harry Bains tabled amendments to the…
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Protect against respiratory hazards with knowledge
A multitude of toxic gases may be present depending on the environment. For those who work in confined spaces, ship repair or mining, workers need to be acutely aware of all hazardous materials to which they might be exposed, and…
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Second Wind
Most of us take breathing for granted. But the simple, instinctive act of respiration may be threatened in work environments where hazardous dust, fumes, gases or vapours may be contaminating the air. Jobs that require respirators include refineries, pulp and…
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Wildfires: Tackling emerging respiratory hazards
In recent years, western Canada has been battling more frequent and severe wildfires, giving rise to safety concerns over the ability of emergency protocols and procedures to protect first responders who attend to such emergency situations. A good case in…
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Comfort a key factor in revised respiratory-protection standards
The latest edition of the CSA Standard Z94.4-18 Selection, Use and Care of Respirators, published last fall, saw the introduction of several significant changes. One of them is making user comfort a key factor when selecting respirators. “While attention to…