Call 911 if there is a potentially life-threatening accident.

Laser eye damage#

  1. Use caution to shut down the laser system or put it in a safe state.
  2. Immediately call Harvard University Operations at (617) 495-5560 for transportation to Mass Eye and Ear Infirmary. Do not drive yourself to the hospital.
  3. Remain in a sitting position to minimize further damage to the retina.
  4. Notify a colleague and ask for assistance.
  5. Ask a colleague to contact Rachel immediately (home phone: 617-487-5301; in case you cannot reach Rachel, leave a voicemail at her home number and also email her).
  6. Report the accident to Harvard Radiation Safety Services (617-496-204, xiaowei_yan@harvard.edu).

Urgent care#

In a non-life-threatening situation, Harvard employees and students should seek urgent care at HUHS in Vanderbilt Hall (M/Th 9–6:30; T/W/F 9–5) During weekends and evenings, urgent care is available from HUHS in Cambridge (huhs.harvard.edu/urgentcare). Lab members who are not Harvard employees or students (e.g., HHMI employees) should go to Brigham and Women’s Emergency Room.

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Accident reporting

Any injuries requiring medical attention should be reported right away to Rachel. If Rachel is not in the lab, please notify her via Slack, and ALSO phone her cell (617-487-5301). Rachel will need to report the incident within 24 hours to HMS, Harvard’s workplace injury insurance provider, and to HHMI (via our SOP Tiffanie Gardner). If the injured person is an HHMI employee, then be sure to tell the medical provider that:

  • The injury or illness is work-related
  • The Howard Hughes Medical Institute is your employer
  • HHMI’s workers’ compensation Insurance company is Sentry
  • HHMI’s Sentry policy number is 90-21073

Fire extinguisher#

The fire extinguisher is located by the door of the main lab. Know how to remove it from the wall and how to deploy it. If there is a fire in the lab and you can fight it safely, then you should do so, rather than running out of the lab and letting the sprinklers take care of it. When the sprinklers turn on, they will not shut off until the fire department shuts them off, after they have dumped huge amounts of water throughout large sectors of the building, likely damaging electrical equipment and potentially also frightening animals. So think in advance about what it would be like to point a fire extinguisher at a small fire, and be ready to do it if the time seems right. You can be that hero!

Eyewash stations #

Eyewash stations are located at both sinks. Look at them now so you know how to use them quickly in case of an eye splash.

Emergency shower#

There is an emergency shower located outside the door to 320. This shower has no drain, so be careful not to pull the cord except in case of emergency.

Formaldehyde #

Formaldehyde is highly toxic. You should use gloves when dealing with concentrated formaldehyde.

Tetrodotoxin#

Tetrodotoxin (TTX) is an extremely toxic (deadly in the quantities we have in lab) “Select Agent” monitored under the USA Patriot Act. Logging of quantities used and on hand are also required. See the TTX SOP page for more information, training is required prior to use.

Picrotoxin #

Picrotoxin is not a controlled agent but is also relatively toxic. Picrotoxin stocks are made up as 5mM in 150mM NaCl, generally in quantities of about 250ml. Picrotoxin is not very water-soluble, so the stock must be stirred constantly while slowly heating the solution. Do not allow the solution to boil—remove from the hotplate when boiling looks imminent. This procedure should be carried out in the fume hood, using the hotplate/stirrer which stays in the hood. Wear gloves. Store the solution at room temperature in a foil-covered bottle (it is light-sensitive).

Safety goggles #

Goggles are located on the shelf with the power tools. Always wear goggles when using the Dremel tool, or doing anything else that could cause eye injury.

Electronics#

  1. All devices that can draw electrical current should be raised at least 1" off the floor, or else stored inside a waterproof tub. This is meant to protect these devices from water on the floor.
  2. Electronic circuits that are not purchased commercially must be plugged into a power strip with a visible indicator light, and this should be turned off when the user stops attending to the device, and especially at night and on weekends.
  3. Electronic circuits that are not purchased commercially should not draw power directly from the wall supply. The connection to the wall should be mediated by a commercial power supply that is certified and that contains a fuse. This power supply should be UL-certified and should be described as providing “over-current protection” and/or should contain a fuse. This is meant to limit the amount of power that the device can draw.
  4. Custom electronic circuits must be designed or approved by Pavel Gorelik (Pavel_Gorelik@hms.harvard.edu, HMS Research Instrumentation Core facility) if these circuits meet any of the following criteria:
  • draw >4 A of current, or
  • produce voltages >50 V
  • handle large volumes of liquid
  • are intended to function as heaters

Electrolysis station#

Users of the electrolysis station: please remember to switch the transformer off when you are done AND unplug the cord. Failure to do so could result in a short or a shock.

Gas cylinder regulators#

Make sure you understand how the gas cylinder regulators work. Please ask whenever you are uncertain. Make sure every cylinder is tightly strapped to the wall. Note that these straps are only secure in one orientation; if the strap is “wrong face out”, the teeth on the strap will not grip it securely, and the cylinder will become a loose torpedo in the event that the regulator malfunctions.

Sharps boxes#

Red sharps boxes are free from EH&S. You can request these online from EH&S.

Signing out#

The last person leaving the main lab for the day should initial a sign-out sheet certifying that the following shared items have been turned off. These items can get very hot and could potentially start a fire if left unattended overnight:

  • hot plate
  • soldering iron
  • Hg lamp on the stereomicroscope near the fly pads
  • wax melters

The last person leaving the Behavior Room for the day should initial a sign-out sheet certifying that all marked powerstrips are turned off.

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Personal checklist

Each person should create a personal checklist for their own equipment to ensure that certain items are turned off when they leave the lab**.** This list must include:

  • the Hg lamp on their rig (and anything else that can get hot)
  • any electronic circuits that are not purchased commercially. This list should be posted at each rig.

Safety officer#

The lab safety officer is Diego Pacheco Pinedo.

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