Can you believe this shit? Is t-butyl-Li dangerous? Is this the end of organic chemistry in american schools? She was a grad student for shit's sake. j_sum1 - 4-4-2016 at 23:14
That story is three years old and the incident seven years ago.
It may yet have an impact on decision-makers but probably only when considered along with other events.
I have heard of this tragic story before. It is probably better fuel for the Occupational Safety Brigade than the Ban Chemicals Guild at this late
stagechemrox - 5-4-2016 at 10:39
I didn't realize this was so old. It came in on an acs feed. I guess there's new news. The tragedy, aside from the incident, is the tort claim. I made
phenethyllithiumbromide for an experiment a few years ago. I did geophysics at UCLA so I don't know what the chem labs are like but when I was in
chemistry at UCB the organic labs were sorely under equipped. I've seen better labs in junior colleges. What, they didn't have a sand bucket?Metacelsus - 5-4-2016 at 15:08
A sand bucket probably wouldn't have helped much. Working alone with pyrophoric compounds while wearing improper (flammable) clothes is a recipe for
disaster. If, as the incident board found, the professor didn't properly train the people working in his lab about safe practices, then he is also to
blame.
As far as the lawyers part goes, I believe they were trying to make an example out of the incident, to scare everyone else into improving lab safety. blogfast25 - 5-4-2016 at 16:39
