Whenever you have to deal with chemical spills, safety will always be a top priority around your business.
Whenever you have to deal with chemical spills, safety will always be a top priority around your business. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has laws put in place that are designed for the purpose of keeping employees safe, keeping them from suffering exposure to hazardous chemicals. However, even with these laws in effect, a chemical spill could happen. Learn all about the dangers of a chemical spill and what you can do to keep yourselves safe.
What Makes a Chemical Spill Dangerous?
A chemical spill is a serious concern for any business. Your workers will be exposed to hazardous substances that could end up causing severe health problems. Chemicals harbor many unsettling traits. They can be flammable, corrosive, toxic, and explosive. If you aren’t prepared to come into contact with these chemicals by having the proper safety gear, many adverse reactions could occur. There are a few ways that a chemical could get into someone’s body. It could be inhaled through the air. The skin could absorb it. It can also be ingested.
If these chemicals come into contact with you, these are some of the effects that could occur as a result:
- Damage to respiratory organs
- Chest pain
- Death
- Burning/irritation to throat, lungs, nose, eyes, mouth, and skin
- Blindness
What Are Your Responsibilities as the Employer?
In accordance with OSHA’s safety regulations, employers have an obligation to keep spill control materials nearby, just in case, a chemical spill should occur.
There should be personal protective equipment (PPE) available, which includes gloves, shoe covers, plastic aprons and/or suits, and chemical splash goggles. In addition, absorption materials will be needed. These include items such as pails, spill socks and pillows, loose absorbents, and polyethylene liners. Lastly, clean-up tools have to be on hand. Such tools include waste stickers, pH test papers, dustpans, polypropylene bags, danger signs, sealing tape, and a polypropylene scoop.
We advise you to consider hiring the services of a professional chemical spill cleanup company. Not all businesses have staff on hand with the expertise on how to handle a chemical spill to the degree that a professional can. It’s generally a safer option to bring in the help of a third-party company because they spend all of their time dealing with situations such as these, as opposed to the staff around your business who likely don’t deal with these types of problems regularly.
Choose AEG Environmental as Your Chemical Spill Cleanup Company
Our team can handle any type of waste you put in front of us. Don’t risk your safety and health! If there has been a hazardous mess of any kind, call us today and get the best chemical spill cleanup services available!