Source: http://www.thedailysound.com, September 11, 2009 Hazardous materials crews responded to the Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital pathology lab yesterday evening after three gallons of Formalin, a formaldehyde-based preservative, spilled. City fire Capt. Gary Pitney said 15 to 20 employees were present when the spill occurred just before 6:30 p.m., and all evacuated quickly, limiting exposure to […]

Source: http://www.lawyersandsettlements.com/, February 2, 2010 About 500 people, including 90 children, have been evacuated from a hospital campus in Denver, CO, this morning, following an accident involving hazardous chemicals. A spokesperson from National Jewish Health said that most people evacuated were staff. Approximately 35 people were hospitalized to treat respiratory problems and nausea. Reportedly, chlorine […]

Source: http://www.wtkr.com/, March 10, 2010 Officials at Chesapeake Regional Medical Center say 15 patients and 16 staff members have been diagnosed with Norovirus this week. Norovirus is a gastrointestinal or stomach illness that leaves its victims with symptoms like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle aches, and fatigue. “It’s spread through the stool and vomit of someone […]

Source: CBS News, Canada, July 7, 2009 Officials have isolated a unit on the third floor of the Alberta Children’s Hospital in Calgary because of three swine flu cases. The hospital has stopped admitting new patients to the unit, which usually treats children with kidney problems, because one staff member and two children are confirmed […]

Read here how a Michigan oil spill has led to various health issues.

Acknowledgement to Great American A mechanical contractor was hired to perform HVAC repairs at a hospital. No medical procedures were performed during the actual renovation activities and proper measures were taken to ensure proper encapsulation. Despite the controls, one year after completion of the project, the contractor was notified that several aspergillus (a type of […]

Acknowledgement to Great American Legionella was discovered in the water supply of a major metropolitan hospital. An entire wing of the hospital needed to be vacated and patients removed while the water system went through treatment for the legionella. In addition to the remediation costs, several patients sued the hospital claiming bodily injury from exposure to […]

A street and road contractor was hired to apply a sealing coat to a new concrete parking garage next to a hospital. During the application of the sealant, fumes migrated into the hospital’s air intake system. Several patients and hospital staff were overcome by the fumes and became ill. Lawsuits were filed alleging bodily injury […]

Acknowledgement to Ironshore Environmental Santa Cruz Sentinel, Calif. Apr. 17–SANTA CRUZ — The owner of the Brookdale Inn and Spa will pay nearly $17,000 after one of his employees poured chemicals into a storm drain in 2008, killing about 50 endangered steelhead trout as they swam through Clear Creek in the lodge’s famous dining room. But […]

Acknowledgement to Ironshore Environmental By David Brown and Maria Glod Washington Post Staff Writers Saturday, January 20, 2007 The Hilton Washington Dulles Airport hotel closed yesterday for the weekend so crews could scrub and sanitize every surface after about 120 employees and guests were sickened by the highly contagious norovirus, which officials say is particularly […]

Acknowledgement to Ironshore Environmental A five-star hotel in Dubai is testing for Legionnaires’ Disease after three guests contracted the illness. One of the guests of the Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi, British cricket scorer and broadcaster Bill Frindall, died on Thursday after leaving Dubai. A spokeswoman for the hotel said all tests for the bacterium that causes […]

Acknowledgement to Ironshore Environmental By Barbara De Lollis, USA TODAY In the last three months, a European tourist who’d stayed at the luxury EPIC Hotel in downtown Miami died from Legionnaires’ disease, while two other prior guests had fallen ill with the same serious form of pneumonia, according to the Miami Herald. Because all three […]