Emergency Actions 

In TCU Educational Facilities:

It is the responsibility of the faculty and lab instructors to know the characteristics of the chemicals they work with and to take appropriate precautions to protect themselves and students in containing spills that occur.  Material Safety Data Sheets for Academic areas are maintained in the Sid Richardson Chemical Stock Room.

In TCU Work Areas:

It is the responsibility of employees to know the chemicals they work with and to take precautions to protect themselves in containing spills that occur.  Individual Departments are responsible for maintaining  a current list of Material Safety Data Sheets.

• First priority is First Aid.  Any spill that results in personal exposure should be treated immediately.
  • Eyes or Skin contact:  If chemical is a liquid, assist the person to a sink/eyewash and flush the eyes or affected skin areas with water thoroughly and continuously for a minimum of 15 minutes.  If chemical is a solid, brush chemical off skin gently.  Remove contaminated clothing.  Contact Campus Police (7777) for an ambulance.
  • Inhalation:  Get the person to fresh air.  Perform CPR as needed.  Contact Campus Police for an ambulance.
• When appropriate, evacuate personnel and students from danger.
• Evaluate the severity of the spill:
  • Identify the chemical spilled, the quantity and the location of the spill.
  • Regardless of the quantity, immediately report the following types of spills to Campus Police and to Risk Management (817.257.7220).
    • flammable, toxic, corrosive, unknown
    • compressed gas releases
    • leaking containers
    • radioactive materials

General Cleanup Procedure - for minor spills only:

• Only trained personnel should attempt to clean up spills.  Cleaning up chemical spills is dangerous and should only be performed by professionally trained persons.
• Clear all persons from the area who are not directly involved in the cleanup.
• Obtain a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the chemical that was spilled.
• Place all cleanup materials in a sealed container and contact Risk Management for disposal.

General Information

A. Departmental personnel need to be trained on the hazards associated with chemicals used and the response needed should a spill occur. Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) are an excellent source for this information and should be compiled for all chemicals or products used or stored within that department.

Special clean-up supplies should be available and employees should be trained on how to use these supplies. Departments are responsible for purchasing and maintaining the appropriate supplies. Hazardous waste disposal procedures should be followed for disposal of contaminated clothing, rags, absorbent materials, or other waste from clean-up of spills or leaks.

B. All departments should know campus emergency numbers and develop a response scenario for emergencies and clean-up of minor spills.

C. Emergency numbers in case of spills and/or injuries: