Biological Spill

 

Important Contacts

Key Contacts

UC Police Department (UCPD) & UCLA Fire:          9-1-1

Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S):                  (310) 825-9797

Division of Laboratory Animal Medicine (DLAM): (310) 825-2200

DGSOM Security:                                                        (310) 267-7100 

Facilities Management (FM):                                      (310) 825-9236

  • If you are experiencing a life-threatening emergency, please call 9-1-1 immediately.
Prepare 
  • Ensure laboratory contacts for emergencies are up to date
  • A spill kit should be readily available and should include the following items:
    • Chlorine bleach or other Institutional Biosafety Committee-approved disinfectant
    • Package or roll of paper towels, or other disposable absorbent
    • Biohazard labeled red bags and waste containers
    • Latex or Nitrile gloves, lab coat and safety glasses
    • Forceps for picking up broken glass and biohazard sharp containers
  • See the UCLA Institutional Biosafety Plan. 
Respond 

Immediately report all incidents, injuries, and potential exposures to your Principal Investigator (PI) and Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) hotline at (310) 825-9797 Option 3.

  • Remove all contaminated clothing and dispose of it in a biohazard bag or decontaminate using bleach
  • Ensure your shoes are not contaminated with hazardous material to prevent spreading outside of the immediate area
  • Wash the exposed area thoroughly with soap and water for 20 minutes
  • Obtain medical attention, if necessary.
  • Immediately rinse the eyeball and inner surface of eyelid with water for 20 minutes (use faucet or eye wash)
  • Hold eye open so your eyelids are washed thoroughly
  • Obtain medical attention
  • Report incident to your Principal Investigator (PI).
  • Wear disposable gloves, lab coat and safety glasses
  • Cover the spill in paper towels and absorb all the liquid
  • Soak paper towels in 10% bleach or use disinfectant wipes to disinfect affected surfaces
  • Place the materials you used to disinfect spill in a biohazard red bag for disposal
  • Clean spill area once again with fresh towels soaked in 10% bleach or disinfectant wipes.
  • A major spill is one involving an infectious agent that is airborne, or one involving more than 4 liters of an infectious agent culture
  • Alert everyone in immediate area to leave the lab
  • If assistance is needed to clean the spill, call 9-1-1. Notify responders that this is a biohazard spill at UCLA
  • Close doors to affected area, wait 30 minutes to allow aerosols to settle
  • To clean the spill: 
    • Wear disposable gloves, lab coat and safety glasses
    • Cover the spill in paper towels and absorb all the liquid
    • Soak paper towels in 10% bleach or use disinfectant wipes to disinfect affected surfaces
    • Place the materials you used to disinfect spill in a biohazard red bag for disposal
    • Clean spill area once again with fresh towels soaked in 10% bleach or disinfectant wipes.
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