1 Pilot Killed in Fatal Midair Collision Between Two Crop-Duster Airplanes in Yolo County, CA

Federal investigators are probing a fatal midair collision between two crop-dusters Saturday morning near Zamora in Yolo County that left one pilot dead.

The collision near County Roads 99E and 13, about 3 miles east of Zamora, happened about 7:45 a.m., killing a pilot of one of the aircraft, said Yolo County sheriff’s Sgt. Charles Hoyt. A second pilot escaped injury but was taken to a nearby hospital as a precaution, Hoyt said.

The name of the deceased pilot has not been released, pending notification of family. The pilot’s plane crashed in a rice field on private land off of County Road 13, tucked out of sight of the roadway. Yolo County sheriff’s deputies blocked off entry to the crash site as investigators went about their work.

The second plane landed safely in an open field just south of the wrecked plane off Road 99E, near farmland thick with rows of corn and sunflowers.



Officials from the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board have taken over the investigation into the fatal collision. Officials at both agencies could not be reached for comment later Saturday

===========================
by FOX40 Web Desk, Updated at 11:28am, July 23, 2016



YOLO COUNTY, CA — Two crop-duster airplanes crashed Saturday morning around 7:45 a.m.

The crash happened in the air in the area of County Road 99E and county Road 13.

One pilot was pronounced dead on the scene. The other pilot seemed unharmed but was transported to the hospital as a precaution.



Date:

23-JUL-2016
Time: 07:45
Type: Ag plane(s)
Owner/operator:

Registration:

C/n / msn:

Fatalities: Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Other fatalities: 0
Airplane damage: Unknown
Location: Yolo County, NW of Woodland, CA - United States of America
Phase: Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.)
Nature: Agricultural
Departure airport:

Destination airport:

Narrative:
A collision between two agricultural crop-dusting aircraft has been reported in Yolo County between Zamora and Knights Landing northwest of Woodland, California. One fatality and one injury, severity unstated, have been reported.


Sources:
http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2016/07/23/crop-duster-plane-crash-near-woodland/
http://fox40.com/2016/07/23/fatal-collision-between-two-crop-duster-airplanes-in-yolo-county/

1 injured after small plane crashes into Connecticut house in Hadaam

(WTNH )

Eyewitness News
Saturday, July 23, 2016 05:34PM

HADAAM, Connecticut (WABC) -- Police tell WTNH in Connecticut that 1 person has been injured after a small plane crashed into a house in Connecticut on Saturday afternoon.

According to the FAA, the experimental fixed-wing aircraft crashed into a house on Little Meadow Road near Eagles Landing in Hadaam around 4 p.m.

The plane crash damaged power lines in the area, and there are reports of outages.

The FAA is investigating the cause of the crash. 

Date:

	23-JUL-2016
Time:	16:00
Type:	Airplane
Owner/operator:
Registration:
C/n / msn:
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Other fatalities:	0
Airplane damage:	Substantial
Location:	Haddam, NW of Goodspeed Airport (42B), East Haddam, CT -   United States of America
Phase:	Unknown
Nature:	Unknown
Departure airport:
Destination airport:

Narrative:
The aircraft experienced an apparent stall/spin and impacted a residential structure in Haddam, northwest of Goodspeed Airport (42B), East Haddam, Connecticut. The airplane sustained substantial damage and the sole pilot onboard received serious injuries. No other reported injuries.
Sources:
http://patch.com/connecticut/thehaddams-killingworth/breaking-small-plane-crashes-haddam
http://www.courant.com/breaking-news/hc-haddam-plane-crash-0724-20160723-story.html

36 people displaced after five-alarm fire broke out Saturday afternoon in Hempstead, Long Island

CeFaan Kim has the latest from Hempstead.

CeFaan Kim
Updated 2 hrs 47 mins ago
HEMPSTEAD, Long Island (WABC) -- Approximately 36 people have been displaced after five-alarm fire broke out Saturday afternoon in Hempstead.


The fire broke out at an apartment on 36 Cathedral Ave around 3 p.m.

There are reports of up to 5 injuries, mainly due to the heat.

Fire officials are still working to identify the cause of the fire, but do not believe it is suspicious.

17 injured when New York Waterway Ferry makes hard landing in Jersey City

Eyewitness News
Updated 15 mins ago
JERSEY CITY, New Jersey (WABC) -- Seventeen people were injured when a New York Waterway Ferry from World Financial Center to Paulus Hook in Jersey City made a hard landing Saturday evening around 7:15 p.m.

Waterway crews reported bumps and bruises when the ferry made a hard landing at the pier at 30 Hudson Street.

The cause of the incident is under investigation.

There were 57 people on board the ferry. Three of the injured were removed on stretchers.

Jersey City Spokesperson Jennifer Morrill says that most of the injuries appeared minor. Five of the 17 passengers were transported to Christ Hospital and the other 12 went to the Jersey City Medical Center-Barnabas Health.

OSHA Fines Community Health Services on Albany Avenue in Hartford, CT $24,750 For Mishandling Bloodborne Pathogens

Community Health Services on Albany Avenue in Hartford. (Patrick Raycraft / The Hartford Courant)


HARTFORD, CT – Community Health Services, a clinic on Albany Avenue that serves some of the city's neediest patients, has been fined $24,750 by federal workplace regulators for substandard infection-control practices involving bloodborne pathogens, records show.

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Hartford office last month issued four citations – for two "serious" violations and two "repeat" violations. The clinic was ordered to correct the problems by last Tuesday, records show. Warren Simpson, director of the Hartford office, said Friday that he was awaiting confirmation that the clinic has complied.

Community Health Services, one of the city's oldest and busiest clinics, was fined $9,945 by OSHA for similar violations last year.

The state Department of Public Health in November had placed the clinic's license on probation for one year and fined the clinic $2,500 for other infection-control problems that DPH had noted in inspections. Then, last spring, DPH notified the clinic that it had conducted another inspection and found additional violations – namely that clinical staff had failed to assure that some vaccines were stored properly and that staff members had failed to weigh all nine of the patients whose medical charts the DPH inspectors had reviewed.

Coleman Prison in Florida cited, again, for ‘unsafe’ working conditions OSHA recommends prison buy new gloves

Coleman Prison in Florida cited, again, for ‘unsafe’ working conditions
OSHA recommends prison buy new gloves after WESH 2 investigation
Published 7:13 PM EDT Jul 21, 2016



Federal officials have cited Central Florida’s Coleman Federal Prison, the largest in the country, for the second time in six months for creating an “unsafe and unhealthful” working condition.




Coleman is a maximum security prison. Behind the barbed wire are murderers, rapists and gang leaders. WESH 2 News spoke with guards, who said they want gloves to keep them safer.

This comes two months after WESH 2 Investigates uncovered issues with the gloves the correctional officers are forced to wear. Several officers have said the gloves are so thick they can’t detect contraband, including hidden weapons, making the gloves useless.

“These gloves they gave us, there’s no way we can do our job correctly,” a Coleman correctional officer told us in May. “If I had the intel that there was an inmate walking this compound right now with a knife in his pocket, I would pat them down without these gloves because I know I would not be able to find them with that glove on.”

Investigators with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration gave the prison a repeat violation for not requiring the officers to wear puncture-resistant gloves and for not having enough for all of the officers to wear; in violation of the prison’s own policy. The gloves put officers at risk, several told us in interviews, because they are too “boxy” to detect hidden weapons and too “bulky” to push the small yellow emergency panic button on the officers' side radios.

OSHA recommended Coleman buy new gloves, which the union has asked for, “in the interest of workplace safe and health,” according to a letter obtained by WESH 2. Officials said the prison should pick something that is “appropriate for employee protection and capable of detecting contraband.”

Federal officials also recommend Coleman “revisit” its workplace violence program to “ensure that needs for detecting contraband are met” and provide training on the use of the gloves.

Coleman has until Aug. 4 to correct the violations. Prison officials did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

A Bennington, VT man recently won a $450,000 settlement for skin injuries he suffered from coming in contact with wet cement after the business failed to warn the consumer

Lawyer: Injuries from wet cement bring settlement
Jul. 21, 2016, 1:52 pm by Kelsey Neubauer


A Bennington, VT man recently won a $450,000 settlement for skin injuries he suffered from coming in contact with wet cement, according to his lawyer.

The lawyer, David Silver, of Bennington-based BarrSternberg Moss Silver & Munson, wouldn’t identify the client or the company allegedly involved. He said the man wanted to educate the public about the risks of working with wet Portland cement.

In November 2014 the man was helping his son-in-law put in a new floor in a crawlspace, according to Silver. There wasn’t room to stand up, so the man got on his knees to spread the wet concrete.

The son-in-law was then given a receipt by the delivery person. On the bottom of the receipt was a warning that the product could cause skin irritation. Hours later, third-degree burns covered the man’s kneecaps, leaving him with scars and medical bills, said Silver.

The man decided to sue, and Silver said the concrete company’s insurers agreed to settle. If a product is potentially dangerous, a business must tell the consumer, Silver said.

Portland cement is in almost every form of concrete. When wet, Portland cement can damage the skin because it is caustic and abrasive and absorbs moisture, according to the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration. OSHA says the effects can range from mild and brief to severe and chronic.

Burns may not be felt immediately, according to OSHA. That’s the most dangerous part, said Silver, who warned that the effects are not evident until hours after contact.

According to OSHA, if skin comes into contact with wet cement, it should be washed with cool water and acidic soap immediately. Skin softeners such as Vaseline should not be used.

Silver identified the lawyers he said represented the concrete company; they did not return VTDigger’s calls or emails.

=========================

 

Cement Burns 

May 29, 2010

Contact with wet concrete can do serious damage to skin.
By Gwenyth Laird Pernie
Skin burns caused by direct contact with wet concrete are a routine hazard faced by precasters. Preventing these burns, which are caused by the caustic nature of cement once it is mixed with water, can be accomplished through proper training and a safe environment, both at work and at home.

In 2002 there were more than 274,000 workers in the concrete and masonry fields, and the numbers are expected to increase more than 20 percent by 2012 (U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)). And, according to Ed Sullivan, chief economist with the Portland Cement Association (PCA), 90 million tons of cement, which is utilized in concrete, mortar, plaster, stucco, terrazzo, tile grout and other products, was consumed in the United States in 2004.


Lost workdays due to skin problems caused by direct contact with wet concrete are significant. The BLS reports that lost workdays in the masonry fields are 2.5 times greater and in the concrete fields are seven times greater than the U.S. national average. In addition, concrete workers report four times more lost workdays for skin problems than other construction workers. Consequently, workers suffer reduced earnings, medical bills and, in cases where an allergy is diagnosed, loss of trade while employers must deal with workers’ compensation disability claims and lower productivity.

When cement is dry it contains calcium oxide, which is not particularly dangerous. However, when water is added to cement, calcium hydroxide is formed, which is extremely alkaline with a pH of 12 to 13. Normal human skin has a pH of 5.5; therefore, wet cement can produce alkaline (caustic) skin burns which progress and get worse without more exposure. A worker may have wet concrete on his or her skin for hours without feeling any discomfort; however, the cement is damaging the skin microscopically. Early identification of changes to the skin is important so steps can be taken to treat the affected area.
Don’t assume the burn will not get worse. By the time a worker becomes aware of a burn, much damage has already occurred and further damage is difficult to stop.

Cement burns frequently produce discoloration of the skin, gradually changing to a deep purple-blue color, eventually progressing to painful burns, ulcerations and, in the worst cases, amputation. Some patients report red inflamed skin near the affected area followed by severe blistering. Cement burns can also lead to allergic dermatitis.

Wet concrete has additional characteristics that are harmful to human skin: hygroscopic (draws moisture from skin); abrasive (physically damages the skin surface, making it a less effective barrier); and contains sensitizing chemicals and metals, such as hexavalent chromium (can cause allergic contact dermatitis).

Once the eyes or areas of the skin have been directly exposed to wet concrete, immediate steps should be followed to slow the burning process:

1. Remove any contaminated clothing, being careful not to touch unexposed areas. Promptly rinse clothes in clean water.
2. Gently brush any dry chemicals off the skin and flush the affected area with clean running water for at least 20 minutes. To help neutralize the alkalinity, add vinegar, citrus or a buffer to the water.
3. If the eyes are involved, rinse eyes with clean water for 20 minutes.
4. Seek professional medical attention without delay. Provide the medical personnel with a product Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) and a Physician Alert brochure (available from The Center to Protect Workers’ Rights), which explains the skin hazards of concrete work.

In some circumstances, when an employee suffers a cement burn, the employer is required to make a one-line entry on the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) Form 300 (Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses) and complete an OSHA Form 301 (Injury and Illness Incident Report), or equivalent form.

According to Kevin O’Barr, standards officer for North Carolina Department of Labor, these circumstances include work-related accidents that require medical treatment above first aid or that result in lost or restricted work time. All records must be kept for five years. These forms can be found on the OSHA website at  www.osha.gov/recordkeeping.

Training 
 
Proper training on the safe handling of wet concrete both at work and at home are key to preventing cement burns.

According to experts at OSHA, prevention of cement burns begins with the front-line foreman instructing employees of the hazards associated with wet concrete and the necessary safety precautions to avoid injury.

“Hands-on experience with cement products is fundamental to educating workers on cement burn dangers and thus reducing occurrences of burns,” explained one OSHA training official. “In addition, it is important to institute workplace inspections to insure all employees are following safety precautions.”
OSHA created the Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) to encourage businesses to establish effective safety and health management systems. 

The VPP encourages participants to develop and implement safety plans that effectively identify, evaluate, prevent and control occupational hazards. As a result the average VPP work sites have 50 percent fewer lost workdays than others in their industries.

In 2003 Oldcastle Precast, located in Manchester, N.Y., was the first precast concrete facility to receive the OSHA Merit VPP award for commitment to safety. In 2004, it was the second precast concrete facility to receive the Star Site award – the highest VPP award available. The first to receive the Star Site award was Utility Vault, an Oldcastle facility in Auburn, Wash.

“In the precast industry, cement burns are not a major occurrence; however, they are still a concern when employees are involved in finishing work or cleaning out mixers,” said Bonita Petti, safety manager for the New York Oldcastle plant. “The success of our safety program is attributed to good training and employee commitment to ensuring a safe work environment.”

Petti attributes the employees’ positive response to safety participation to an interactive approach to safety training, where employees participate in group discussion and hands-on training. “In addition, Oldcastle Precast developed a safety training computer program which has a quiz at the end that all prospective employees must pass,” she said. “To accommodate the increasing number of Spanish speaking employees, all training materials and workplace signs are bilingual.”

Institute a safe work environment
 
Creating a safe work environment by minimizing skin contact with wet concrete – both directly and indirectly – from contaminated surfaces is essential to preventing cement burns.

A safe environment begins with instituting a safety plan, which includes creating a best practices checklist (such as a listing of best protective practices at home and work, a symptom checklist and a pH testing checklist) and an MSDS for each job site.

According to Tom Carter, director of environment, health and safety with PCA, an MSDS is required for each product at the job site and should include its physical and chemical properties; the physical and health hazards and roots and means of exposures associated with it; precautions of safe handling and use; emergencies and first aid procedures; and control measures to prevent exposure. Individual MSDSs for cement and cement products should be available from the vendor.

“The Portland Cement Association is in the process of revising its guidance on developing a material safety data sheet,” Carter said. “Our member companies can utilize this document as they see fit for developing their own Material Safety Data Sheet. We expect to complete the document by early fall 2005.”
Proper supplies at the job site are vital to insuring a safe environment. These items include:

• At least 5 to 7 gallons of clean running water per day
  per worker
• pH-neutral soap to help neutralize the effect of caustic cement (prohibit workplace cleaners that are caustic and abrasive or contain sensitizers like lanolin, limonene or perfume, and irritants like alcohol)
• Buffering spray or solution, such as Mason’s Hand Rinse or Neutralite to normalize surface skin pH
• Clean towels
• Full range (pH 1-14) pH indicator papers to get reasonably accurate measurements of the pH of the skin, work areas, work clothes, skin surfaces, car interior surfaces and other potential contact areas. It is equally important that workers be dressed appropriately in order to avoid contact with the caustic substances.
  

Protective equipment should include:

• Full-cover goggles or safety glasses with side shields to protect against blowing dust (the moisture in the eyes will mix with the dust, making it caustic), splattering concrete and other foreign objects
• Snug-fitting alkali-resistant gloves, such as butyl gloves or nitrite gloves
• Long-sleeve buttoned shirts taped inside gloves
• Overalls or long pants taped into water-repellent boots
• Waterproof pads to be worn between the fresh concrete surfaces and the knees, elbows and hands – the areas of the body most frequently burned.
• Remove all jewelry, watches, belts, etc., since the wet concrete can become trapped against the skin.

Workers need to be especially careful when removing gloves, boots and other work clothes so as not to contaminate themselves or other areas routinely exposed to the caustic product. Each time gloves or boots are removed, workers should wash and thoroughly dry hands with clean towels. It is crucial that gloves and boots are cleaned daily and stored in a dry place away from tools and other work or home items.

Employers should provide on-site skin inspections at regular intervals throughout the workday. Inspections should be conducted by an occupational health physician or nurse who is competent to recognize the signs and symptoms of cement burns. The responsible persons must record and report all findings.

At the end of the day, work clothes should be removed at the job site and placed in a separate container, such as a trash bag. This will help prevent contamination away from the job site, including cars, homes, etc.

Home safety 
 
Preventing skin damage due to exposure to wet concrete doesn’t end at the job site. At home, workers should always wash with pH-neutral or acidic soaps and avoid lanolin, petroleum jelly and other skin-softening products since they can seal cement to the skin and increase the skin’s ability to absorb contaminants.

In addition, cautionary steps should be taken to avoid contamination at home. Most importantly this includes laundering work clothes separately from other clothes and keeping other items such as boots and gloves isolated from the home environment.

Routine safety procedures will greatly reduce the risk of cement burns and consequent lost workdays:

• Educate workers on the hazards of direct contact with wet concrete
• Follow procedures needed to avoid direct contact (e.g. wearing appropriate protective equipment/clothes)
• Provide proper immediate first aid when contact occurs

In addition, establishing best practice guidelines, along with routine safety inspections, should further limit injuries caused by direct contact with wet concrete.

Natural gas leaked from an abandoned gas line Thursday at the Sinclair refinery in Evansville, Wyoming after construction crew broke a gas line

No injuries at Sinclair Casper Refinery after leak from abandoned gas line

Heather Richards 307-266-0592, Heather.Richards@trib.com
Updated 19 hrs ago

There are several construction projects going on at the refinery and at 9 am Thursday, an excavator accidentally punctured a gas line, that was thought to be abandoned.
It turns out, it wasn’t and there was a gas leak, and the plant alerted the Emergency Response Team. They were able to isolate area and stop the leak.
During that time, no one could enter the facility, and even railroad traffic was halted. The accident was on the company property, but not in the refinery itself.
No one was injured, and refinery operations were not interrupted.


Read More: Accident at Casper Sinclair Refinery | http://k2radio.com/accident-at-casper-sinclair-refinery/?trackback=tsmclip

Vapors leaked from an abandoned gas line Thursday at the Sinclair refinery in Evansville, the company said.


No injuries have been reported, and the seepage has since stopped, said Clint Ensign, senior vice president of government relations for the company.


Workers were excavating on the refinery property when they discovered the unused line. During an attempt to remove the line, employees detected escaped vapors.


Sinclair’s emergency response unit was called, entry to the refinery was shut down and a passing freight train was held up, Ensign said.



The Salt Lake City-based company is meeting with Tall Grass Energy, a nearby company, on Monday to address the abandoned line.


The Evansville refinery has not had a lost time injury for about four years, refinery manager Jim Ruble told the Star-Tribune in April. The facility opened in 1923.


Sinclair was fined by the Wyoming Occupational Safety and Health Administration multiple times between 2012 and 2014 after a number of safety violations, explosions and fires at the company’s Rawlins refinery.

SUFFOCATING MOTHER NATURE: A huge toxic blue-green algae bloom in Utah Lake has closed one of the largest freshwater lakes west of the Mississippi River, sickening more than 100 people

Toxic Algae Closes Utah Lake, Sickens 100

by Associated Press







A huge toxic algae bloom in Utah has closed one of the largest freshwater lakes west of the Mississippi River, sickening more than 100 people and leaving farmers scrambling for clean water during some of the hottest days of the year.

The bacteria commonly known as blue-green algae has spread rapidly to cover almost all of 150-square-mile Utah Lake, turning the water bright, anti-freeze green with a pea soup texture and leaving scummy foam along the shore.
Bryce Larsen, environmental health director at the Utah County Health Department, looks at dried algae on the shore of Utah Lake on July 20 near Spanish Fork, Utah. Rick Bowmer / AP

"It smells like something is rotting," said Jason Garrett, water quality director for the Utah County Health Department. "We don't have an idea of how long this event will last." "It smells like something is rotting."

Toxic algae is a problem around the country. An enormous bloom in Florida is now fouling beaches on the Atlantic coast, and a 2014 outbreak at Lake Erie left more than 400,000 people in the Toledo area without tap water for two days.

Utah Lake doesn't provide drinking water, but its closure is causing big problems for people who use the lake for swimming, fishing and other activities and for farmers with thirsty crops.

Utah Poison Control says it has fielded hundreds of calls related to the bloom, including 130 involving people who have reported vomiting, diarrhea, headache and rashes.

The contamination has now spread to the Jordan River, which supplies irrigation to dozens of farmers around Salt Lake City, about 45 miles north of the lake. The problem has occurred amid days of triple-digit temperatures as growers prepare for farmers markets and try to nurture crops such as corn and fruit trees at key points in their development.

"We've spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on this crop, maxed out every dollar we have," said Luke Petersen, who farms about 100 acres of tomatoes, summer squash and other produce in Riverton. "We're real worried about it."

Meanwhile, the Bonneville School of Sailing has had to cancel more than a dozen groups since the lake was closed.

"This will be a real hit," said co-owner Todd Frye. He loves the mountain-rimmed lake and has worked to change the decades-old perception that it's murky and polluted. New efforts to clean out bottom-feeding carp are improving the water quality, but he worries the algae bloom will be a blow to its image.

The lake is largely fed by treated wastewater as well as agricultural runoff, said Erica Gaddis, assistant director for the Utah Division of Water Quality. "We've been loading the Utah Lake in one form or another for 150 years, and it's catching up with us."

Long-standing drought conditions have made the water especially low and stagnant. Combine that with hot summer weather and Utah Lake became a perfect petri dish for the cyanobacteria.

There are chemical and biological treatments for the problem, but using them on such a large bloom would be unprecedented and possibly harmful, Gaddis said.

For now, authorities are waiting for the bloom to run its course and clear, hopefully aided by a drop in temperatures or a storm that could stir up the water and reduce stagnation.

One bit of good news is that early test results indicate levels of dangerous toxins produced by the bacteria may not be as high as feared, though the state is still waiting for more data.

To stave off new blooms in coming years, the state is looking to reduce the levels of toxic algae-feeding phosphorous and nitrogen in wastewater that's pumped into the lake. That could be difficult, however, because cities served by those plants include some of the fastest-growing in the country.

"We've been loading the Utah Lake in one form or another for 150 years, and it's catching up with us," Gaddis said.



=============================




Utah Lake’s Poop-Driven Algal Bloom Is a Crappy Situation




Boats sail through bright green water caused by an algae bloom near the Lindon Marina in Utah Lake.Rick Egan/AP

Algae swamped Utah Lake last week, stretching over 134 square miles. The bright green bloom is mesmerizing — and possibly toxic. And, turns out, poop is partly to blame.

This stunning (and kind of gross) aerial captured by Salt Lake Tribune photographer Rick Egan shows the algae choking the water near the Utah Lake’s marina. The bloom was discovered around July 12, and at its peak covered 90 percent the water’s surface, spreading north up the Jordan River toward the Great Salt Lake. High levels of cyanobacteria caused public health officials to close the lake for further testing, and posted signs warning unsuspecting visitors to keep out.
 

So what made the green goo? The Utah Department of Environmental Quality blames the bloom on a possible combination of high temperatures and low lake levels that increased the concentration of phosphorus, which helps algae grow. Over 76 percent of that phosphorus arrives to the lake through discharge from eight nearby wastewater treatment plants. As UDEQ spokesperson Donna Spangler kindly puts it, “It comes from people using the bathroom.”

Public health officials closed the lake on Friday. Spangler says they’re waiting on test results to show whether or not the algae cells are actually releasing toxins in the water. There have been 500 calls to poison control, mostly from people who were out on the water and later experienced symptoms like vomiting, headache and skin rash.

Utah Lake is no outlier. According to David Caron, professor of biological sciences at the University of Southern California, freshwater blooms are becoming more frequent as temperatures warm. One solution would be for cities to upgrade their sewage treatment plants to remove nutrients before they ever hit the water. But it’s expensive, so some choose to dump algae-killing toxic chemicals like copper sulphate into lakes or add clay that binds up phosphorus at the bottom, where it sits indefinitely.

The UDEQ plans to let the bloom clear up by itself. It typically takes a week or two, though the toxins can persist for days afterward—just something to think about next time you flush.
==============================

Utah Lake Closed Due To Harmful Algae Bloom

Utah Lake Algea Bloom | CTSY: Utah Dept. of Environmental Quality

SALT LAKE CITY (DEQ) – Public health officials have decided to close Utah Lake, effective immediately, due to a large, harmful algal bloom that may pose a serious health risk to the public and animals.

The Utah Department of Health (UDOH) and Utah County Health Department (UCHD) say lab results for samples collected by the Utah Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) show the concentration of algal cells in the water are three times the threshold for closing a body of water.

According to Dr. Joseph Miner, Executive Director of the Utah Department of Health, “These types of algae release neurotoxins and hepatotoxins, that can affect brain, nervous system, and liver function.”

Sign for Utah Lake Algae Bloom

“Water with these levels of concentration in the algal bloom pose serious health risks,” says Ralph Clegg, Executive Director of UCHD. “To protect the health of people and animals that use the lake, it is necessary for the lake to remain closed until it is safe for recreation.”

UDOH and UCHD will issue an order to close the lake until further notice. DEQ and State Parks and Recreation support the closure of Utah Lake. State and local health departments have the legal authority to close public places, such as a lake, to protect the health of the public.

UCHD has previously issued advisories regarding algal blooms on Utah Lake due to public health concerns, but this is the first time the entire lake has been closed. Efforts have been made to post signs at harbors and known public access locations around the lake noting that the lake is closed. Even if no signs are present, the closure of Utah Lake is still in effect.

WORKER AT HARVEYS LAKE BOATHOUSE WAS ELECTROCUTED AND DROWNED IN PA

updated: July 22nd, 2016 - 5:08 pm.
Updated: Officials say a man’s body was recovered from Harveys Lake Thursday
 


  By Eileen Godin  egodin@timesleader.com





Police said the body of a 24-year-old man who was working on a Harveys Lake boathouse at Pole 131, shown above, was recovered from the lake Thursday.


HARVEYS LAKE — Police Chief Charles Musial confirmed a man’s body was recovered from the lake Thursday evening.

The man, who was identified as 24-year-old Dakota Watkins by the Luzerne County Coroner’s Office, had been working on an addition to a boathouse along Lakeside Drive at Pole 131 and was found unresponsive in the water by the homeowner, Musial said.

Musial said police and emergency services were dispatched to the residence at 5:20 p.m. Thursday.


Officials at the coroner’s office said Watkins’ cause of death was drowning complicated by electric shock, and the manner of death was accidental.

An engineer with Barry Isett & Associates, Harvey Lake Borough’s third-party building code service, found the electrical wiring in the new structure was installed incorrectly, which caused the electrical shock Watkins received from a boat lift, Musial said.

Musial would not release the name of the contractor who employed the man.

Friday morning, the police chief was at the boathouse along with representatives from Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Barry Isett & Associates.

“A stop-work order is in place for this property,” he said. “Violations were found at the site. That is all I can say right now.”

As of Friday afternoon, the police investigation was complete and the case being handled by OSHA, Musial said.OSHA Investigating Harveys Lake Drowning
Posted 5:33 pm, July 22, 2016, by Matt Petrillo

==================================

HARVEYS LAKE, PA -- Federal officials are trying to figure out how a man who was working on a boathouse by Harveys Lake was shocked and then drowned.

Luzerne County officials said Dakota Watkins, 24, was working to fix an electrical problem on the boathouse Thursday when he was shocked. He plunged into the lake and drowned.

William Streater has a boathouse near the one Watkins was working on.

"It's just a shame, a young man like that? It's too bad" Streater said.

Emergency crews were called to the lakeside home just after 5 p.m. Thursday. When crews arrived, they found Watkins' body in the lake. Now officials from OSHA are investigating possible work-related violations.

"OSHA was very disturbed by what they found today at the scene," Harveys Lake Police Chief Charles Musial said.

What they found included some electrical equipment--like part of a jet ski lift in the water--still running. Investigators are trying to determine who left it that way.

"Electrical work to the whole structure was not done properly," Musial added.

Harveys Lake police say Watkins had told neighbors to stay away from the area because of a possible electrical problem. He tried fixing it, but it was too late.

"OSHA will go forward with this matter and they do whatever they need to bring justice to this family," said Musial.

At this time, police say there is no more work allowed on that boathouse until new permits are applied for. OSHA says this investigation is in the very early stages and it does not know how long it could take to complete.

WEAR YOUR HELMET: Helmet-less boy, 13, dies after he suffered significant head trauma when an ATV crashed in Buckland, Massachusetts

Police at the scene of the fatal ATV accident on Creamery Avenue in Buckland Wednesday evening. RECORDER STAFF/AVIVA LUTTRELL

Recorder Staff
Thursday, July 21, 2016


BUCKLAND, MASS. — Griffin Kearney, 13, of Buckland, has been identified by the Northwestern District Attorney’s office as the victim of an off-road utility terrain vehicle crash Wednesday afternoon off Creamery Avenue.

Kearney, who was the driver and lone rider, was taken by ambulance to Baystate Franklin Medical Center with significant head trauma. He was pronounced dead at about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office said Thursday.

Environmental Police were notified of the accident at 4:41 p.m. Environmental Police, Buckland Police, Buckland Fire and the State Police CPAC unit all responded to the scene, according to Environmental Police.

The incident remains under investigation by Massachusetts State Police assigned to the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office, Massachusetts Environmental Police and Buckland Police.

Wear your helmet at all times.  Your head is not strong enough to withstand all these crashes.  Life is too precious to leave it so early.  RIP.

SPEED KILLS: 2 Killed, 1 Injured In Speeding Boat Crash On Lake Michigan near East Chicago Marina in Indiana

Typical 42-foot Fountain Speedboat like the one that crashed

EAST CHICAGO, IL
JULY 23, 2016

Two dead after boat collides with Lake Michigan break wall

Carrie NapoleonPost-Tribune


Two men were killed early Saturday morning after their boat crashed into the Lake Michigan break wall in East Chicago, officials said.

Richard Wade, 68, of 1235 E. Summer St., Hammond, and Timothy Dunlap, 62, 1924 Lynwood St., Lynwood, Ill., sustained blunt force trauma injuries and died at the scene, the Lake County Coroner's Office said.

Reduced visibility, speed and alcohol are believed to be contributing factors in the crash, which happened at the break wall near Arcelor Mittal Steel and the East Chicago Marina, according to a new release from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, which is handling the investigation.

It's not known if there might have been other victims in the 4:20 a.m. crash. The DNR is using a remotely operated vehicle to search the crash site, the release said.



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July 23, 2016 12:19 PM



(STMW) — An Illinois man and Indiana man were killed and a third person was hospitalized after a boat crash early Saturday on Lake Michigan near East Chicago, Indiana.

The crash happened about 3 a.m. about a mile-and-a-half north of the East Chicago Marina, according to Chris Roggy, an officer with the U.S. Coast Guard in Chicago.

The boat was going at a high rate of speed, 60-70 mph, when it struck something or flipped over, Roggy said. One person in the boat woke up in the water and swam to shore for nearly two hours without a life jacket.

Once at shore, the person contacted authorities, Roggy said. They were taken to St. Catherine Hospital in East Chicago.

The coast guard recovered a second person from the water and the Lake County sheriff’s office recovered a third, Roggy said.

Timothy Dunlap, 62, of Lynwood was pronounced dead at 6:55 a.m., according to the Lake County coroner’s office. Richard Wade, 68, of Hammond, Ind., was pronounced dead at 6:49 a.m.

Both men suffered blunt force trauma, according to the coroner’s office. A manner of death was pending Saturday morning.

The investigation is being led by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. A representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire copy; Chicago Sun-Times 2016. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)



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At least two people died and one was injured early Saturday when a powerboat crashed into a breakwall in Lake Michigan near the East Chicago Marina.


The Lake County Coroner's Office was called to the scene at 6:10 a.m. Coroner's officials pronounced two men dead at the scene: Richard Wade, 68, of Hammond, and Timothy Dunlap, 62, of Lynwood, Illinois.



Shawn Brown of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources said the department was using divers and sonar equipment to search the area near where the 42-foot Fountain boat crashed for any additional passengers or any debris that will help officers reconstruct the accident.


In addition to the DNR and East Chicago Police, dive teams from Crown Point, Lake County and Portage responded.

MILLIONS IN DAMAGES AFTER 6-ALARM FIRE DESTROYS 2 BUILDINGS IN CHARLESTOWN IN BOSTON, MASS.

5 BOSTON JAKES INJURED AT 6TH ALARM FIRE

July 23, 2016


Five firefighters were treated and released from the hospital Thursday after battling a vicious six-alarm fire.

Boston firefighters battled the blaze in sweltering heat for several hours, reported the Boston Globe.

The fire broke out in the back of a brick and wood duplex before spreading to an apartment building next door, leaving millions of dollars worth of damage.

“It’s a very stubborn fire. The heat’s been a problem for us,” Boston Fire Commissioner Joe Finn said.

At one point, two firefighters that had jumped from one rooftop to another could not be located, and a mayday call was dispatched. The two were found unharmed.

Officials have not determined the cause of fire.

Mayor Martin J. Walsh praised the firefighters, stating he was, “very proud of the work the Boston Fire Department has done.”



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2 Charlestown buildings destroyed in 6-alarm fire



Jim Davis/Globe Staff

A multi-alarm fire struck multiple buildings on Bunker Hill Street Thursday afternoon.
By Miguel Otarola and Evan Allen Globe Correspondent and Globe Staff July 21, 2016

Ellen Braaten stood in front of her burning home on Bunker Hill Street in Charlestown and wiped tears from her eyes. Her son had called her in a panic, she said — he’d come up the stairs to find the side porch in flames, and then heard an explosion. He fled, she said, screaming “Fire!”

She rushed home from work to find her street choked with thick brown smoke, her building and the one next to it in ruins.

“I’ve lost everything,” she said.

Boston firefighters battled the six-alarm fire in scorching heat for several hours Thursday afternoon, beating back flames that neighbors said leapt in a fireball from one building to another, causing what fire officials estimated was millions of dollars worth’ of damage.

The blaze broke out at 1:45 p.m. Thursday in back of a four-story brick and wood duplex at Bunker Hill and Sackville streets, said Boston Fire Commissioner Joe Finn. The flames spread to the three-unit apartment building next door, fire officials said, leaving both buildings in ruins. Some surrounding buildings were also damaged superficially, Finn said.

“It’s a very stubborn fire,” Finn said at a press conference just past 4 p.m. in front of the scene, where thick brown smoke still billowed in the air and embers still burned in the basements of the buildings. “The heat’s been a problem for us.”


For a brief moment in the chaos, two firefighters who had apparently leapt from one rooftop to another could not be found, triggering a mayday call. The firefighters were found safe.

Five firefighters were treated and released from area hospitals for a variety of injuries, said Steve MacDonald, a fire department spokesman.

No civilians were reported injured. At least 32 people were displaced from their homes. Investigators had not determined the cause of the fire as of Thursday night, MacDonald said.

Karen Stillman-Carey, who lives across the street, said she was coming from lunch when her brother yelled there was a fire. When she turned to look, she said, she saw “a big ball of fire” that appeared to be coming from the roof of one building. Firefighters who were already on scene began screaming, “Run! Get in your houses!” she said, as black debris rained down from the sky.

Mary Howell, 40, who grew up across the street from the building that caught fire, said she was in the area when the fire broke out at Bunker Hill and Sackville streets.

“It’s really bad,” she said. “I went down to look at it, but they’re kicking us all out because the smoke is so bad. One house is completely gone, basically collapsed. Another one is basically gone. Two others are on fire.”

She said many people parked their cars behind the building so that may have inhibited firefighters’ approach.

A crowd of spectators gathered in front of nearby St. Francis De Sales church.

Mayor Martin J. Walsh said he was “very proud of the work the Boston Fire Department has done.”

“They were here fast, and they potentially avoided a lot of problems,” Walsh said.