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Hydrofluoric acid is a colorless, corrosive gas that can cause severe harm if inhaled or touched
Hydrogen fluoride gas, even at low levels, can irritate the eyes, nose, and lungs. Breathing in hydrogen fluoride
at high levels, or exposure to high levels on the skin, can cause severe tissue damage or death.
Even splashes of hydrogen fluoride on the skin can be fatal.
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 More information about Hydrogen Fluoride
What to do if you are exposed to hydrogen fluoride
Get fresh air by leaving the area where the chemical was released. Remove your clothing, rapidly wash your entire body with water, and get medical care as quickly as possible. - Removing your clothing
- Quickly take off clothing that may have hydrogen fluoride on it. Any clothing that has to be pulled over the head should be cut off the body.
- If you are helping other people remove their clothing, try to avoid touching any contaminated areas, and remove the clothing as quickly as possible.
- Washing yourself
- As quickly as possible, wash any hydrogen fluoride from your skin with large amounts of water.
- If your eyes are burning or your vision is blurred, rinse your eyes with plain water.
- If you wear contacts, remove them after washing your hands and put them with the contaminated clothing. Do not put the contacts back in your eyes (even if they are not disposable contacts). If you wear eyeglasses, wash them with soap and water. You can put your eyeglasses back on after you wash them.
- Disposing of your clothes
- After you have washed yourself, place your clothing inside a plastic bag. Avoid touching contaminated areas of the clothing. If you can't avoid touching contaminated areas, or you aren't sure which areas are contaminated, put the clothing in the bag using tongs, tool handles, sticks, or similar objects. Anything that touches contaminated clothing should also be placed in the bag.
- Seal the bag, and then seal that bag inside another plastic bag. Disposing of your clothing in this way will help protect you and other people from any chemicals that might be on your clothes.
- When local or state health department or emergency personnel arrive, tell them what you did with your clothes. The health department or emergency personnel will arrange for further disposal. Do not handle the plastic bags yourself.
If someone has swallowed hydrogen fluoride, do not induce vomiting. Do not give the person activated charcoal. If the person is alert and able to swallow, have them chew several calcium- or magnesium-containing antacid tablets or take a magnesium-containing liquid antacid along with 1 to 2 glasses of water or 1 to 2 glasses of milk to dilute their stomach contents. Contact the Mississippi poison control center (1-800-222-1222), or call a physician.
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