Idiot morons freak over swimming pool chemicals

[karlrschneider]

Maybe this kind of all-too-often knee-jerk response is an offshoot of the 9/11 business but it gets worse every goddamn day. This is just another example of how the 'authorities' go ape-shit over nothing. (Last week they sent out the HAZMAT teams for a fucking Sodium Chloride "spill".

This stupidity has to stop.

http://www.kotv.com/news/topstory/?id=123443

[DemBones DemBones]

1. You think breathing chlorine gas is good for you?

You didn't provide quotes from the article, so I will:

"A small chemical release prompts the evacuation of a Broken Arrow neighborhood Sunday afternoon. Firefighters say several containers of swimming pool chemicals were leaking in a man's garage, and when they mixed, it created a potentially dangerous chemical cloud. The News On 6’s Chris Wright reports the toxic cloud did not injure anyone, but firefighters say they see this all the time, and are encouraging homeowners to keep a close eye on their household chemicals."

"Just one box of pool chemicals, not unlike those found in garages throughout Green Country, caused big problems on Sunday. The residents of a Broken Arrow home says a chlorine container leaked, mixed with other chemicals and produced a dangerous vapor cloud."

"After spotting the reaction, the Forsythe’s called 911. Firefighters quickly evacuated the neighbors, and a Tulsa hazmat crew sanitized the garage. Authorities say situations like Sunday’s are common because homeowners often leave too many chemicals too close to one another. Firefighters say especially this time of year, with everyone in the midst of their spring cleaning, it's very important that everyone keep a close eye on all of their household chemicals. "People think because they buy it at Wal-Mart or wherever, that it's safe,” said Broken Arrow Battalion Fire Chief Hal Sisco. “Well it's safe in it's original container, but once it escapes and mixes with others, it can be a problem.""

"To avoid potentially dangerous chemical combinations, authorities recommend separating your household chemicals and exercising caution when moving them. They also say you should check containers to make sure they have not degraded over time. The Forsythe’s say they will follow that advice from now on, so they can avoid apologizing to neighbors again"


There was "a dangerous vapor cloud" involved here and while no one was injured in this case, it's good for people to be made aware of the dangers that ordinary household chemicals can pose.

[Maddy McCall]

4. Similar circumstances happened in a Massachusetts Home Depot, 2005.

The result was millions of dollars in damage to the Home Depot and several FFs injured by the vapors.

I think that the FFs' response was appropriate in the OP's article.

[Dr.Phool]

2. Somebody knocked over the salt shaker?

[Maddy McCall]

3. Looks like an appropriate response to me.

Pool chemicals, when they mix with substances as benign as motor oil, can cause big problems.

I don't know what 9/11 has to do with this. The FFs' response is the procedure that was in place long before 9/11.

[DemBones DemBones]

5. I thought so, too. It was a public service advisory in a sense.

People sometimes freak out too much about "chemicals" -- everything is made up of chemicals! -- but some chemicals are dangerous when combined. Chlorine bleach and ammonia is another example.

Funny foto of the frog with dentures!

[Maddy McCall]

6. My dad was over the water department here when I was a kid.

He inhaled some chlorine at the treatment facility. He almost died from it.

Yeah, lots of chemicals seem benign on their own, but mixed with other "benign" chemicals, bad stuff can happen.

[pnwmom]

7. That kind of "stupidity" is a good thing.

They had a similar chlorine gas leak at a local university chemistry lab a few years ago, and those chemists -- and the hazmat teams -- took it very seriously.

Maybe you should check out the containers you've got sitting in your garage. Some of them might be leaking.