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R.J. Reynolds Vapor Company initiated a voluntary recall of Vuse Vibe power units, recalling the battery portion of all Vuse Vibe vape devices. The recall followed consumer complaints of power devices overheating which can create a risk for fire or injury. The recall covers all 2.6 million Vuse Vibe devices sold.

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and co-defendant Imerys were ordered to pay $117 million after losing a trial in New Jersey regarding asbestos contaminated baby powder and talcum powder products. The plaintiff was awarded $37 million in damages by the New Jersey jury. An additional $80 million in punitive damages was awarded today by the jury after arguments that Johnson & Johnson were negligent regarding consumer safety.Talc is a mineral mined from the earth. Powder made fro

A liquid nitrogen tank failure at Pacific Fertility Center fertility clinic in San Francisco occurred on March 4th, 2018. The tanks require constant liquid nitrogen cooling or temperatures rise within the tank. The tank that failed contained “several thousand” eggs and embryos.

The New Jersey Superior Appellate Court moved to reinstate a case against Scotts, the manufacturer of “Turf Builder” lawn fertilizer. Scotts had previously used vermiculite supplied from mines in Libby Montana. Libby mining operations were producing ores heavily contaminated with highly friable tremolite asbestos, a specific form of highly dangerous asbestos that became known as “Libby asbestos”.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has identified 31 Superfund sites for redevelopment. The site list includes locations such as Libby Montana, home to vermiculite mines contaminated with dangerous amphibole asbestos. Superfund sites are places the EPA has deemed particularly dangerous due to environmental contamination.

Retail giant Justice at last recalls its “Just Shine” make-up products after undisputed testing showed the presence of amphibole asbestos fibers in the products marketed to tween girls. Asbestos is a known carcinogen that causes an always-fatal form of cancer called mesothelioma. There is no safe level of exposure to asbestos, particularly to the amphibole class of fibers found in the Just Shine products.

For more information on Sonoma County wildfire events, workshops and news, head to the website sonomacountyrecovers.org. For all wildfire news and events head to our wildfire news page.

Following reports by CurbedSF, The San Francisco naval shipyard is once again in the news regarding the asbestos, radiation, and other hazardous substances present on the property. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found the site to pose a hazard to the health of the public and was designated a Superfund site necessitating extensive clean-up and remediation. It now appears that much of the $1 billion spent to clean up the contamination may need to be redone. The testing of the air and soil for asbestos and radiation were found to be incomplete, falsified, or not able to be verified.

Napa County Board of Supervisors voted in a closed session on December 19, 2017 to file suit and start litigation against an unnamed party. The County has now identified Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) as the defendant to be named in its suit. Napa County joins Sonoma, Lake, and Mendocino counties in announcing a lawsuit against PG&E for its role in the deadly wildfires.

A woman was driving down the street when her e-cip vape exploded in her lap. The exploding battery caught her clothes on fire, continued to explode and spark as the battery continued to burn, and she leaped from her moving truck to escape.