The holiday season is here and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is urging consumers to keep safety in mind as they decorate for the holidays. Flickering candles, blinking holiday lights, and fragrant evergreens are beautiful staples of the holiday season, but when used improperly, these holiday decorating "must haves" can pose deadly dangers.
The Centers for Disease Control and Preventions' Emergency Communication System (ECS) has redesigned its entire Emergency Preparedness and Response Web site, www.emergency.CDC.gov.
With the new technology, leaks are displayed on a video screen similar to the way night vision goggles are used to show the heat signature of objects.
More commercial vessels must have the systems, and notice of arrival requirements also are being expanded to cover more vessels, the agency said in Tuesday's NPRM. Comments are due by April 15.
Based on proposed amendments, if a refinery relies upon flaring more than expected, the facility would be required to take corrective action.
The presentation, which includes slides, focuses on hot work and arc flash hazards and how to protect oneself against shock and arc flashes or blasts.
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology have demonstrated that this method is about 35 percent better than adding conventional fire retardants to these foams used in upholstered furniture.
Talk of shifting FEMA back to an independent agency is short-sighted, the outgoing chief of DHS said in a bloggers' roundtable Dec. 9. He said unified response to disasters could be harmed, and DHS' structure is more cohesive than the public perceives.
A study examined factors contributing to occupational deaths in East Attica, Greece, in the five years preceding the 2004 Olympics. A 2002 increase to 19 deaths was linked with construction of large-scale public works projects, the investigators concluded.
A new report from the National Research Council finds serious weaknesses in the government's plan for research on the potential health and environmental risks posed by nanomaterials, which are increasingly being used in consumer goods and industry.
University of Utah researchers have developed an automobile ignition key that prevents teenagers from talking on cell phones or sending text messages while driving. The university has obtained provisional patents and licensed the invention--Key2SafeDriving--to a private company that hopes to see it on the market within six months at a cost of less than $50 per key plus a yet-undetermined monthly service fee.
According to the agency, by 2050, the population of people age 45 and over in the United States is projected to grow to more than 170 million people, from 93 million today.
After a follow-up inspection, OSHA issued the company seven failure to abate notices carrying $168,000 in proposed fines and then further issued the company one serious citation with a $1,500 fine for not medically evaluating employees' fitness to wear respirators.
The Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory (RoMeLa) of the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech won the grand prize at the 2008 International Capstone Design Fair with a trio of pole-climbing serpentine robots designed to take the place of construction workers tasked with dangerous jobs such as inspecting high-rises or underwater bridge piers.
"An unguarded excavation is always an imminent danger situation since its walls can collapse suddenly and with great force, crushing or burying workers before they can react or escape," said Patrick Griffin, OSHA's area director in Providence.
Angie Shepherd, general engineer at NIOSH's National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory in Pittsburgh, is one of the first two recipients of the President's Leadership Award from ASTM International.
The current draft standard aims to keep workers safe on the road worldwide by specifying legal and other requirements for an organization's RTS management system.
"We need to be creative," said former NIOSH Director Dr. John Howard. "For instance, the new head of OSHA should meet with the head of Commerce in the next administration and say 'you need to incorporate an overall workplace safety, health, and environmental program for the proposed new infrastructure programs the President has called for'; this includes all the new highway and bridge construction projects. Start there and show them how.
During the holiday season, employers and workers frequently get together to unwind and celebrate. Typically, workplace parties involve plenty of food and drinks. If the drinks include alcohol, however, there is potential for unfortunate consequences.
Terumo Cardiovascular Systems (Terumo CVS) has issued an urgent, nationwide/worldwide recall of its Tenderflow™ Pediatric Arterial Cannulae involving 21 lot codes.