News: Chemical Hazard on Long Island
(Long Island, N.Y.) A hazardous material incident caused over fifty workers to be hospitalized on Long Island. Police and authorities received an emergency call about a female employee at CWG Communications who was unconscious. After investigating the company, which is located in Bohemia, responders found that many had grown sick due to a hazardous chemical.
The company processes used cell phones and deals with corporations like Verizon, Sprint, Nextel, Motorola, and LG. Their previous headquarters was located at a smaller building in Holbrook. About two years ago, the company moved into the two-story ninety thousand square foot Bohemia facility which is also located in an industrial office park.
The Suffolk County Police Department and Emergency Service Section arrived at the scene along with the Suffolk County Chief Surgeon and Medical Director. Fifth Precinct officers also responded, joining the Bohemia Fire Department and Community Ambulance. Members of the Town of Islip Hazmat unit were also among the emergency responders handling the incident.
According to reports, the Islip Town Fire Marshal claimed that an”deral workplace safety regulations. Some of the workers’ complaints included dizziness, nausea, shortness of breath, vomiting, mild convulsing, lightheadedness, trembling, and gastrointestinal distress.
Sources stated that officials and experts on the case claimed that it had been difficult to determine the actual causes of the sickness because the chemicals involved are volatile. However, it was deducted that a new chemical cleaner was likely the culprit. Reports claimed that the old chemical cleaning agent had not been completely removed from the equipment.
Sickening chemical reactions occurred once the chemicals mixed, causing the symptoms experienced by the company’s employees. Luckily, the chemical hazard was non-lethal and the affected workers are expected to make a full recovery. Typically, the company cleans, repairs, and alters parts on the cell phones they refurbish at their Bohemia plant.
Medical staff and emergency responders set up a triage area at the scene as they attended to the sick employees. By nightfall, all victims were in stable condition and some had already been discharged. Others were undergoing tests at Southside Hospital in Bay Shore, Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center, Stony Brook University Medical Center, and Good Samaritan Hospital, located in West Islip.
