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Cyanide & Toxic chemical News
WSMV-TV, NBC, Nashville, TN (05/20/08)
Live-Saving Drug Not Available To EMS;
Cyanokits Used To Save Victims Of House Fires
An increasingly popular drug that is being used in major cities around the country is allowing paramedics to save lives, but it is currently not available to Nashville emergency personnel.
Called a Cyanokit, the drug is administered by personnel to people who have suffered cyanide poisoning.
Related Broadcast News Segment
Press Release: University of Minnesota Academic Health Center
Fast-acting Cyanide Antidote Discovered
University of Minnesota Center for Drug Design and Minneapolis VA Medical Center researchers have discovered a new fast-acting oral antidote to cyanide poisoning. The antidote has potential to save the lives of those who are exposed to the chemical — namely firefighters, industrial workers, and victims of terrorist attacks. The antidote is said to be much faster than current antidotes and has been exceptionally effective when tested on animals. The antidote is also unique because it can be taken orally (current antidotes must be given intravenously) and may be administered up to an hour prior to cyanide exposure. Human clinical trials are expected to begin during the next three years.
Rollover, chemical leak slows I-59 at "S" curve
The Laurel Leader Call (Mississippi) reports that an 18-wheeler landed on its side in the middle of an "S"-curve on Interstate 59 on Nov. 2. The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) responded to the accident, as the big rig contained the chemical methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI). Lance Chancellor, public information officer for the Jones County Emergency Management Agency, said if the truck had caught fire, the chemicals would have produced deadly cyanide.
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (11/2/07)
Fort Knox gets final permit for cyanide extraction process
A local mine just received the final permit it needed to continue to run its mine using a cyanide leaching process. The permit, issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Alaska, allows Fairbanks Gold Mining Inc. to start building a heap leaching facility at the Fort Knox gold mine, 26 miles northeast of Fairbanks. This process provides a cost-effective way to extract fine mineral particles from extremely low-grade ore by sprinkling the rocks with a weak cyanide solution. Because cyanide is highly toxic, many citizen groups and governments around the world, the country and Alaska have opposed its use in mining.
The Daily Post, New Zealand (11/1/07)
POISON SCARE: Illegal trail of deadly cyanide closes reserve
The Daily Post in New Zealand reports that locals were shocked to find a deadly 900m trail of cyanide laid out on a popular Tikitapu Scenic Reserve track near Lake Okareka. The cyanide was in the form of a blue-green paste and laid out like bait about 35m apart over 900 meters of track. Cyanide is extremely dangerous, and the area has been closed down so as to avoid harming humans or animals.
Reno-Gazette-Journal (10/26/07)
Activists say state mines underreport emissions
Three environmental groups charge that two Nevada gold mines have substantially underreported mercury emissions and threaten court action unless they get an explanation. Mercury typically is released in mining operations today when ore is heated to oxidize sulfur and when cyanide is used to extract gold, noted Glenn Miller, a University of Nevada, Reno scientist and a member of Great Basin Mine Watch and other environmental groups.
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Fires in the News
USFA Releases New Firefighter Autopsy Protocol (04/24/08)
The U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) has issued an updated edition of the Firefighter Autopsy Protocol manual. Extensively revised since the original 1994 edition, the manual addresses additional areas related to the conduct of autopsies and considers emerging issues and new technologies, including cyanide poisoning. This protocol provides general background related to the conduct of autopsies as well as additional information where current autopsy practices may be supplemented to ascertain causes and mechanisms of firefighter fatalities. It includes discussion on the examination of personal protective clothing as well as toxicological evaluations. The manual recommends that autopsies be performed for all firefighter fatalities where a line-of-duty death has occurred. Download the protocol.
Deadly fires expose disorder in Putin's Russia
This article reports that more than 17,000 people died in fires in 2006 in Russia, nearly 13 for every 100,000 people. This is more than 10 times the rates typical of Western Europe and the United States, according to statistics from Russia's government, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States, and the Geneva Association, a Swiss organization that analyzes international fire statistics. Russia's Ministry of Emergency Situations has engaged Western firefighting organizations and has tried to adopt standards that have succeeded elsewhere. In Soviet times, for example, medical units were part of the Emergency Ministry and did not work closely with firefighting units, which were part of the Interior Ministry. After studying U.S. fire departments, Russia combined both services under the Emergency Ministry's command about five years ago, and fatalities from fires began to fall.
This article reports that residents suffered smoke inhalation and were treated on the scene by paramedics following a flat fire in St. Albans (UK). The article describes the firefighters wearing breathing apparatus
Four in hospital after house fire
This article report that four people were taken to the hospital suffering the effects of smoke inhalation following a house fire in Helston (UK). The article describes the firefighters wearing breathing apparatus.
Russian Nursing Home Fire Kills 31
The Associated Press reports that a fire broke out Sunday afternoon in a two-story nursing home in the Tula region, south of Moscow, in Russia. The fire quickly burned the nursing home, a 55-year-old brick building with wooden walls, before the flames were extinguished. A reported 31 people were killed in the fire, while more than 250 people escaped or were evacuated from the building and hospitalized or placed in other nursing homes. Russia records nearly 18,000 fire deaths a year, several times the per capita rate in the United States and other Western countries.
30 Dead in Argentine Prison Fire
The Associated Press reports that 30 prisoners have died as a result of a fire in a Buenos Aires prison. In what appears to have been an escape attempt, inmates lit mattresses, causing perhaps the worst prison fire in Argentina since 2005. At least 14 other inmates and prison guards were treated for burns, smoke inhalation and other injuries.
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Chemical Disaster & Terrorism preparedness news
Anti-terror exercise starts Oct. 15: Dirty bomb-blast
drill here aimed at bolstering agencies' cooperation
The Tucson Citizen reports that the largest federal "terrorism preparedness exercise" ever staged will take place in Tucson and Phoenix, AZ later this month. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security will conduct terror response drills with area law enforcement, emergency medical, hazardous materials and fire crews from Oct. 15-19. Phoenix and Portland, Ore., along with the territory of Guam, will be the central locations for "TOPOFF 4," the fourth in a series of exercises by federal, state, county and municipal agencies to coordinate responses to apparent terror-related events.
WPRI.com Eyewitness News (10/1/07)
Providence holds emergency disaster drill
This article reports that emergency personnel from around Rhode Island will be honing their response skills at a large-scale emergency disaster drill on September 30. The drill will simulate a full-scale emergency in which toxic chemicals are released into the air resulting in hundreds of injuries. This training exercise will put the state's Greater Providence Medical Response System, Weapons of Mass Destruction and Mass Casualty Drill plans into practices. The exercise will involve first responders from Providence, Pawtucket, East Providence, Warwick, Cranston, Central Falls, West Warwick, North Providence and Johnston.
Ashbury Park Press (10/1/07)
Volunteers take part in rescue drill in Brick
This article reports that nearly 120 volunteers turned out to practice a firefighting and rescue drill conducted by the Herbertsville Fire Company (NJ). Fire companies and first aid squads used their equipment and rescue skills to practice scenarios that involved pulling six people from a burning building and freeing trapped firefighters.
McClatchy-Tribune Regional News (9/19/07)
Fire department trains to handle terror attack:
Firefighters learn to deal with weapons of mass destruction
The International Association of Firefighters will be teaching classes this week at the Owensboro Fire Department in Kentucky to instruct local officials on how to use much of their prior hazmat training to respond to situations involving chemical, biological and nuclear attacks. Battalion Chief David McCrady commented that Owensboro must be prepared to treat any kind of attack or threat, as terrorism is not just limited to New York City. The department is looking at how to prepare for situations involving attacks with anthrax, gases, solids, pesticides or cyanide.
US Fed News (9/14/07)
Department of Health Helps Wyoming Prepare for Health Emergencies
The W yoming Department of Health is taking steps to help the state prepare for possible future public health emergencies and is encouraging Wyoming citizens to prepare their homes and communities. In effort to prepare Wyoming, Public Health & Terrorism Preparedness Program Manager Angela Van Houten oversees activities such as hands-on laboratory training on bioterrorism and chemical terrorism for clinical laboratorians and stockpiling for chemical nerve agent antidotes.
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Press ReleaseS
Press Release (5/15/07)
King Pharmaceuticals Receives DHS Safety Act
Designation and Certification for AtroPen®
King Pharmaceuticals's AtroPen® Auto-Injector (atropine injection) has been designated a Qualified Anti-Terrorism Technology under the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies (SAFETY) Act of 2002. AtroPen® is a prefilled, ready-to-use, auto-injector containing atropine - an antidote for organophosphorus poisoning. Atropine is widely known and trusted by the medical community and clinically accepted worldwide as a nerve agent antidote. AtroPen® currently is used by the U.S. Department of Defense and allied nations, as well as emergency medical services (EMS) personnel in the United States. As part of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, Congress enacted the SAFETY Act to encourage the development and installation of anti-terrorism technologies that significantly improve the protection of our country.
Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD-18
January 31, 2007
Subject: Medical Countermeasures Against Weapons of Mass Destruction
Read on White House Web Site
Download PDF
FDA Approves Drug to Treat Cyanide Poisoning
December 15, 2006
FDA Press Release
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today approved Cyanokit® (containing the drug hydroxocobalamin, intravenous tubing and a sterile spike for reconstituting the drug product with saline) for the treatment of known or suspected cyanide poisoning. The approval, which is based on evidence of the drug's effectiveness when tested in animals, improves the nation's ability to respond to emergencies, including a potential attack by terrorists.
FDA Approves Cyanokit® for Treatment of Cyanide Poisoning
December 15, 2006
Dey, LP Press Release
EMS Pharmaceuticals and Dey, LP, U.S. Affiliates of Merck KGaA of Darmstadt, Germany, jointly announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Cyanokit® (hydroxocobalamin for injection), for the treatment of known or suspected cyanide poisoning. EMD Pharmaceuticals completed the submission of a New Drug Application (NDA) for Cyanokit® (hydroxocobalamin for injection) to the FDA in June 2006. Dey, LP is located in Napa, CA, and will market Cyanokit® in the U.S. market. Dey, LP expects Cyanokit® to be available early in 2007.