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Latest NewsWellbeingOccupational Health

HPA records 5% rise in chemical incidents

by Nic Paton 20 Jun 2008
by Nic Paton 20 Jun 2008

The government’s health watchdog, the Health Protection Agency, recorded 1,015 chemical incidents in England and Wales last year, up 5% on the previous year.

Fires were the most common cause of releases, accounting for 28%, followed by chemical spills (14%) and chemical leaks (14%). Releases of vapours and gases (including carbon monoxide) were higher, at 15%.

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Incidents varied in seriousness, from a major fire at a plastics factory in Corby, Northamptonshire, to broken mercury thermometers in people’s homes, the HPA said.

Report editor Dr Patrick Saunders said: “The database shows that chemical incidents don’t usually cause fatalities in England and Wales but there is a risk of short-term symptoms and health effects in some cases.”

Nic Paton

Nic Paton is consultant editor at Personnel Today. One of the country's foremost workplace health journalists, Nic has written for Personnel Today and Occupational Health & Wellbeing since 2001, and edited the magazine from 2018.

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