Hazardous materials regulations govern the packaging and transportation of hazardous materials by highway, rail, vessel, and air. Given that these regulations have changed significantly over the last several years – and continue to evolve – it has become more important than ever for HazMat professionals to keep up to date on them. This effort becomes easier with the publication of Mancomm’s March 2019 edition of Hazardous Materials Regulations.

The Ethiopian plane crash and its potential ramifications for aviation safety worldwide; tobacco product regulations; and help for employers whose workforces are affected by the opioid crisis. These were among the top stories featured on ISHN.com this week.

The new kid on the block – Tesla – is tops when it comes to equipping its vehicles with automatic emergency braking (AEB), although several other manufacturers aren’t far behind, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will ground the type of aircraft involved in the Ethiopian Airlines crash on Sunday and a Lion Air accident in October, according to an announcement made today by President Donald Trump. The Ethiopian incident claimed the lives of 189 people while the Lion Air crash killed 346.

A pilot’s failure to perform a go-around when his plane became unstable on its approach to Teterboro Airport in New Jersey caused the plane to stall at a law altitude and ultimately, to crash into a commercial building and parking lot about a half mile from the intended runway. Both pilots, the only occupants aboard the aircraft, died in the crash.

OSHA is asking a lot of questions about powered industrial trucks – in an effort to gather information that may useful in a possible updating of standards for the vehicles. The standards became effective in 1971, and were based on industry consensus standards from 1969. Since then, national consensus standards have been updated several times.

After the second crash of a Boeing 737 Max 8 jet in two years, China, Ethiopia and Indonesia as well as Cayman Airways, a carrier that flies to the U.S. and Caribbean countries, have all suspended use of 737-8s. The move follows last week’s crash of an Ethiopian jet bound for Kenyway – an incident that occurred shortly after takeoff, just as a crash off Indonesia last year.

An MD-83 airplane ran off the end of the runway during a rejected takeoff March 8, 2017, because of an undetected mechanical malfunction, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said in a report released yesterday. Seconds after reaching the takeoff decision airspeed of 158 mph at about 5,000 feet down a 7,500-foot runway in Ypsilanti, Michigan, the captain’s attempt to raise the nose and get the plane airborne was unsuccessful and he called “abort.”

After a Florida driver was killed in a crash in 2016 while his Tesla was in “Autopilot” mode, regulators assured the public that Tesla’s autonomous driving system was safe. An investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) found that after a key component called Autosteer was added, crash rates in Tesla cars had dropped.

The fracking boom that’s made the U.S. the world’s top oil producer shows no signs of slowing down. But in Texas, the boom’s had what the state is calling an “unintended consequence," as oilfield highways have become overwhelmed with heavy truck traffic, there’s been an uptick in the number of deadly crashes. Officials are exploring solutions to this ongoing problem.