Tyco Worker Recovering from Hydrogen Sulfide Exposure
By: Kristen Kennedy
Updated: June 10, 2009
A 45 year-old man remains in critical condition Wednesday night at UMC after he is exposed to deadly chemicals on the job at Tyco. Tyco's Director of Operations says their employee has regained conciousness and they're hoping for a full recovery. The worker was exposed to hydrogen sulfide gas - a combination of hydrogen peroxide and sulfuric acid. Doctors say hydrogen peroxide is a common household cleaner, but it's rare for any families to have all the chemicals necessary to make this dangerous gas.
"The peroxide of course is in everyone's home usually, but very few people end up having sulfuric acid around the house. That's not a common compound. It's generally going to be found in chemical sites like chemical labs, industry sites and usually the only time that it becomes a public threat is in spills, disasters, or industrial accidents," says Dr. Joe Sasin with UMC.
Exposure to the chemical at low concentrations can leave people disorientated, confused and suffering from memory loss.
