All spills shall immediately be contained and cleaned up by employees properly trained and equipped to work with potentially infectious materials.  If the spill is an unknown agent, an inhalation hazard, and/or the quantity spilled is greater than one liter, immediately evacuate the area and contact the University Police at extension 123 or 702-8181.   If the spill occurs in the Medical Center, contact Public Safety at 702-6262.

If applicable, refer to the Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) that can be found with Health Canada.
 

If the spill is an unknown agent, an inhalation hazard, and/or the quantity spilled is greater than one liter, immediately evacuate the area and contact the University Police at extension 123 or 702-8181.  If the spill occurs in the Medical Center, contact Public Safety at 702-6262

If a spill of infectious agent occurs that does not meet any of the aforementioned  criteria, respond as follows:

1. Warn people in the immediate area of the PIW spill;

2. Allow sufficient time for aerosols to settle (15 minutes);

3. If your clothing is contaminated, remove the contaminated clothing with care to avoid contamination of exposed skin and fold the contaminated area inward;

4. Wash all contaminated body parts, including arms, face and hands with soap and water and flush any contaminated mucous membranes with water immediately or as soon as feasible following contact with PIW;

5. Change into clean clothing, laboratory coat or disposable tyvek suit;

6. Obtain spill response equipment including plastic liners, reusable containers, sharps containers to contain all contaminated material, ten percent bleach solution (made fresh daily), paper towels, broom, dust pan and personal protective equipment;

7. Put on personal protective equipment including disposable gloves (interior), utility gloves (exterior), disposable apron, goggles and disposable mask to prevent exposure to the skin and mucous membranes while cleaning up the spill;

8. Enter the contaminated area and carefully pour, avoiding any splashing, or mist using a spray bottle with a bleach solution over the entire contaminated area, cover it with paper towels, and allow thirty minutes of contact time;

9. Pick up the paper towels, disinfectant and spilled material working toward the center of the spill in a manner which will minimize splashing, spraying and splattering of the spilled material;

10. Place the material into a plastic liner and then into a reusable container;

11. If broken glass or other sharp objects are present the in the spill, they shall be handled with the aid of a mechanical device (e.g., brush and dustpan, tongs, forceps);

12. Dispose of all spilled material and paper towels into a plastic liner and reusable container;

13. Remove all personal protective equipment such as tyvek suits, aprons and gloves with care to avoid contamination by folding the contaminated area inward;

14. Dispose of all personal protective equipment inside a plastic liner and reusable container for disposal; 

15. Close all plastic liners and reusable containers;

16. Wash all body parts, including arms, face and hands immediately;

17. Notify your supervisor of the spill at the earliest possible time; and

18. Contact the appropriate facility manager for pick-up and disposal in campus buildings or Environmental Services for areas in the Medical Center. 

Small Laboratory Equipment

Liquid spills on small laboratory equipment shall be contained as follows:

1. Drain excess liquid with Kimwipes and/or paper towels;

2. Immerse the contaminated equipment in a ten percent bleach solution and allow to penetrate for five minutes;

3. Remove equipment from the decontaminant, blot off excess liquid with Kimwipes and/or paper towels;

4. Repeat immersion and soaking in a ten percent bleach solution;

5. Blot off excess liquid with Kimwipes and/or paper towels;

6. Spray with a seventy percent isopropyl alcohol solution, wipe clean; and

7. Dispose of paper towels and Kimwipes as biohazard waste. 

                  Large Laboratory Equipment

Liquid spills on large laboratory equipment (e.g., centrifuge, incubator, autoclave) shall be contained as follows:

1. Drain excess liquid with Kimwipes and/or paper towels;

2. Spray the contaminated equipment in a ten percent bleach solution (made fresh daily) including area surround the spill;

3. Allow to penetrate for five minutes;

4. Wipe with paper towels;

5. Repeat decontaminations steps;

6. Spray with a seventy percent isopropyl alcohol solution, wipe clean; and

7. Dispose of paper towels and Kimwipes as biohazard waste.