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PHMSA Releases Rail Incident Response Tool

DOT developed these resources to offer a flexible approach to training responders to prepare for rail incidents involving flammable liquids; the materials offer information on best practices related to rail incidents involving Class 3 flammable liquids, such as crude oil and ethanol.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease is a term for progressive lung diseases such as emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and in some cases asthma. It affects an estimated 24 million Americans, according to the COPD Foundation. CDC reported COPD was the third-leading cause of death in the United States in 2011.

Task Force Recommends Against COPD Screening of Asymptomatic Adults

Exposure to cigarette smoke or toxic fumes increases the risk for COPD. Epidemiological studies have found that 15-50 percent of smokers develop COPD, while occupational exposures to toxins, dusts, and industrial chemicals causes an estimated 15 percent of all COPD cases.

FDA Rule to Ensure Food Safety During Transport

The rule will require those involved in transporting human and animal food by motor vehicle or rail to follow recognized best practices for sanitary transportation, such as properly refrigerating food and adequately cleaning vehicles between loads.



Toyota Connected, Inc. Debuts, Building on Automaker's Microsoft Partnership

"Toyota is taking a bold step creating a company dedicated to bringing cloud intelligence into the driving experience," said Kurt DelBene, executive vice president of Corporate Strategy and Planning at Microsoft. "We look forward to working with Toyota Connected to harness the power of data to make driving more personal, intuitive, and safe."

Judge Issues Final Order in BP Case

U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier's April 4 order confirms the company's $18.7 billion settlement of federal and state claims announced last July.

The institute

Revolutionary Fibers and Textiles Manufacturing Innovation Institute Announced

The institute's participants will integrate fibers and yarns with integrated circuits, LEDs, solar cells, and other devices and advanced materials to create textiles and fabrics that can sense, communicate, store energy, regulate temperature, monitor health, change color, etc.

Blue Bell Says Listeria Likely Spread Via Plant Drainage

The company also said it couldn't identify a single source of Listeria bacteria that contaminated equipment.

Panama Canal Opens Scale-Model Training Facility

The training facility fills 35.3 acres and features two lakes connected by a channel modeled after the canal's Culebra Cut. It has docking bays, replicas of the new and existing locks, and gates, all at a 1:25 scale, and is equipped with scale-model tugboats and ships.

Anhydrous Ammonia Release Lands Candy Company in SVEP

Russell Stover Candies Inc. faces $193,600 in penalties and has been placed in OSHA's Severe Violator Enforcement Program because of process safety management violations involved in an anhydrous ammonia release at its Iola, Kansas, plant on Sept. 23, 2015.

Rx Drug Abuse Summit Maps Solutions for 'Community Problem'

Dr. Patrice Harris, chair-elect of the American Medical Association and chair of its Task Force to Reduce Opioid Abuse, said progress is being made: From 2014 to 2015, opioid prescriptions decreased 6.8 percent nationally, following a 2.9 percent decline the year before.

Annually in the United States, more than 480,000 people die from tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke, making it the leading cause of preventable death in the country, according to the American Lung Association.

Partnership Aims to Reduce Smoking Rates in Nine States

The American Lung Association announced it is partnering with the Anthem Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Anthem, Inc., to help smokers in nine states -- Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Wisconsin, Colorado, and Nevada -- quit smoking.

Amtrak Accident Reportedly Caused by Maintenance Mistake

Two construction workers were performing maintenance on an active line that was not the line on which they were supposed to be working, according to a report.

Maryland's Largest Health Care Provider Recovering from Hack

As of Friday morning, "we are approaching 90 percent functionality of our systems," MedStar Health reported.

Auto Dealers Association and MyCarDoesWhat Partner to Educate Drivers

The partnership aims to close the consumer education gap, NADA President Peter Welch said.

OSHA Renews Electrical Partnerships

The partnerships are with the National Electrical Contractors Association of Central Ohio and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.

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