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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
D. Kevin Horton, MSPH1, Zahava Berkowitz, MSc1, and Wendy E. Kaye, PhD2. (1) Division of Health Studies/Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch, The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), 1600 Clifton Rd. NE, Mailstop E-31, Atlanta, GA 30333, 404-498-0571, DHorton@cdc.gov, (2) U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Division of Health Studies, Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch, 1600 Clifton Rd. NE, Mailstop E-31, Atlanta, GA 30333
Chlorine, a highly reactive gas, is one of the top ten chemical substances produced in the U.S. Approximately 25 billion pounds are produced annually. It is widely used as a water disinfectant, a bleaching agent, as well as an intermediate in the manufacture of many organic products including rubber, cleaning agents, and pharmaceuticals. When mishandled, chlorine can lead to adverse public health consequences including evacuations, injuries, and death. Data from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry's (ATSDR) Hazardous Substances Emergency Events Surveillance (HSEES) system were used to conduct a descriptive analysis on the public health consequences from acute chlorine releases in 16 states during the years 1993 through 2000. Chlorine was one of the most frequently released substances, and was involved in 952 (2.2%) of 44,164 total events. To assess the adverse public health consequences of chlorine, the analysis included events where only one substance (chlorine) was released (n=865). Chlorine events resulted in the highest percentage of victims when compared with all other events involving one substance (relative risk=4.5, 95% confidence interval=4.1-5.0). There were 1,071 persons who sustained injury in 275 (31.8%) of these events. Most victims were employees (70.9%) and members of the general public (21.9%). Respiratory irritation was the most frequent injury reported. Evacuations affecting at least 20,469 people were ordered in 39.5% of events. The two factors most frequently leading to events were equipment failure and human error. Strategies to lessen adverse public health consequences from chlorine-related events will also be discussed.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to
Keywords: Environmental Health Hazards, Surveillance
Related Web page: www.atsdr.cdc.gov/HS/HSEES/
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.