| U.S. Department of Transportation 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20590 |
PHMSA SAFETY ADVISORY: Unsafe Cylinders Being Sold Online by Major Retailers to Consumers and HVAC Contractors
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is issuing this safety advisory notice to request that consumers, retailers, shippers, and DOT-regulated entities ensure their cylinders containing hazardous gases are in compliance with the hazardous materials regulations (HMR; 49 CFR parts 171-180) by verifying their cylinders are marked in accordance with a DOT specification or United Nations (UN) standard, and shipped in accordance with the HMR prior to entering into transportation. Users of cylinders should be aware of the practice of filling unauthorized cylinders with hazardous materials and transported in commerce in support of a business operation, which could cause significant damage to property, physical injury, or death. PHMSA has found several instances of empty cylinders being sold to consumers, shippers, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) personnel and service technicians that were not manufactured to a DOT specification or UN standard and lack certification markings. See Safety Advisory for full details. ### The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration develops and enforces regulations for the safe, reliable, and environmentally sound operation of the nation’s 3.3-million-mile pipeline transportation system and the nearly 1.2 million daily shipments of hazardous materials by land, sea, and air. Please visit https://www.phmsa.dot.gov for more information.
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