Hazardous Materials Operations Level In-Service Training

Haz Mat In-Service Better understanding of Haz-Mat emergencies. Roles and Responsibilities at a Haz-Mat. Basic Knowledge of Emergency Response Guide. Levels of Haz-Mat Responses in your County.

Why Training Make Fire/EMS personnel more aware of the potential that hazardous materials may be involved in emergency responses. Importance in recognizing the presence of a Hazardous Material, so not to become victims.

What is a Hazardous Material? Department of Transportation- “Any substance or material in any form or quantity which poses an unreasonable risk to health and safety and to property when transported in commerce.” EPA – “Any material when discharged into the environment may be harmful to the public health and welfare of the United States.”

In Plain Language Any substance which jumps outs of it’s container, when something goes wrong and hurts or harms the thing it touches.

Training to Respond OSHA definition: Responders including Fire/EMS at the First Responder Operations Level. This is 8 hours for original training. Command Personnel – First Responder Operations Level and a minimum of 16 hours of Incident Command training.

First Responder Level Recognize potential incident. Defensive operations - outside release area. Evacuate all non-emergency personnel from incident site. Call for additional assistance and standby. Decon assistance.

Lead Agency In NYS, the Fire Department will normally be the lead agency for Haz Mat Incidents. Will designate an Incident Commander. If a crime is in progress, law enforcement having jurisdiction will have to participate in the joint command operation. In very serious incidents, the lead agency may escalate to the Town Supervisor or County Executive.

Fire Department Responsibilities Identification of materials involved. Bringing fires under control. Defensive containment of spill. Coordinates safe removal of a spilled material. Monitors cleanup and site decontamination.

EMS Responsibilities Establish a medical sector. Triage, treatment and transport of victims. Communicate with hospitals. Monitor of rescue personnel in Rehab area. Assist with movement of impaired and special needs citizens. Provide updates and information to IC. Work in unified command system.

Law Enforcement Securing immediate area outside the hot zone. Rerouting of traffic. Limiting access to the incident to emergency personnel. Work in unified command system.

Haz Mat Team Identify the hazard and potential implications. Provide information to IC. Provide Technical assistance as required. Work with other qualified personnel to mitigate the situation. Work in unified command system.

Working Thru An Incident Information gathering starts with the call to 911. When gathering information try to get: Type of material involved. Quantity of material. Name of Material (proper spelling). Shipper’s name. Type of container.

Evaluation Considerations of an Incident: Is is stabilizing? Is it increasing in intensity?

Prudent to Withdraw from the Incident No way to mitigate the situation. Situation about to deteriorate.

Resources Available North American Emergency Response Guide. Your County Haz Mat Team. Chemtrec. Manufacturers Safety Data Sheets.

Emergency Situations That Could be Haz Mat Related Traffic Accidents. Some Suicides. CO Incidents. Returning from incident and observe a potential Haz Mat.

Traffic Accidents One of vehicles maybe transporting hazardous materials. May have released before arrival. Maybe releasing while approaching scene. Patient may have been exposed already.

Make Sure The Scene Is SAFE!

Remember: Order of Priorities is: Life, Property, Then the Environment

Incident Command System The Incident Command System is implemented at all haz-mat incidents. The Incident Commander (IC) is ultimately in charge and responsible for the incident. The IC will make their decisions based on input from the SAFTEY OFFICER and the OPERATONS OFFICER. The IC should work out of the command post that is established a safe distance from the scene and clearly marked. The access to the command post should be controlled to keep unnecessary people out.

ICS

Incident Commander The IC should be at least at the Operations Responder Level. Full training in is available and required for using the Incident Command System. Personnel who will be expected to be in charge of a Haz-Mat incident will need to have more in-depth instruction in the ICS.

Operations The Operations Officer will handle the control of the team entering the hot zone. Operations is to monitor their procedures and evaluate the situation. Operations, should be at the same level of training as the entry team or higher. This might be handled by the Haz Mat Team Leader.

Safety The Safety Officer will only operate as the safety officer. Safety will handle the overall safety of the operation within the warm and hot zones.

Level A Suits Fully Encapsulated. Utilizes SCBA. Provides best protection from airborne chemicals. Some limitations are: Limited dexterity. Increased heat stress. Limited vision. Claustrophobia

Class “B” Suits 1. Same level of respiratory protection, but a lesser level of skin protection. 2. Commonly referred to as a splash suit. Used where liquids are present as the hazard. 3. Should not be used if engulfment is a possibility.

Level C Designed for splash protection. Utilizes cartridge respirator, with proper cartridge for hazard. Provides good protection for materials not absorbed thru skin. Used only when Oxygen level has been determined and toxicity levels are known.

Level D Street Clothes. May utilize cartridge respirator. No Chemical protection.

Firefighter Protective Gear Firefighter Bunker gear is “limited protection” level of chemical protective clothing. It is intended for use at fires. It may be used at the scene of flammable gases or liquids though, as long as direct contact with the product is not anticipated.

Container Shape & Types

Materials Used in Containers Metal Glass Paper and/or Cardboard Plastic

Placards Placards – required for rail/road transportation only. Required for any quantity of poison gas, explosives, radioactive materials, and any material dangerous when wet. Also required for 1000# or more of other products being transported.

Markings Labels – required n packages and containers. Signage or stenciling. Color coding, but not always a reliable indicator.

Occupancy Type of business. Processes or activities. Known location of hazardous materials.

Senses Clouds of Vapor Sound of product being released under pressure.

Senses Sight -Runoff, and Damaged Containers.

Senses Smell/Taste – should not be used to detect hazardous presence.

Other Sources of Information Occupant/bystander information. North American Emergency Response Guide. Shipping papers. Dispatch Information. Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)

Shipping Papers Shipping documents are kept in: The cab of the motor vehicle, The possession of the train crew member, A holder on the bridge of a vessel, or An aircraft pilot's possession.

MSDS OSHA required for all chemicals. No standard form required. Looks confusing, but contains much information.

MSDS General Requirements Chemical Properties. Health Hazards. Personal Protection. Fire & Reactivity Data. EMS Recommendations. Spill & Disposal Recommendations. Storage & Handling.

North American Emergency Response Guide

Emergency Response Guide 2000 First produced in Updated every 3-4 years. Produced by USDOT. Produced due to an explosion at construction site that killed several Kansas City FF. Designed to provide GENERAL information during first 30 minutes of incident. Should be in every Emergency Response Vehicle

Purpose of 4 Digit Number System Internationally developed numbers. A user can identify the material, no matter what the language they speak. Developed by the United Nations.

Yellow Section of ERG Identify hazardous materials by four digit UN number on placard or shipping papers. Identify the guide to sue for dealing with an incident that the UN number has identified. Materials listed in numerical order. Approximately 3600 chemicals More than one chemical may have the same ID number.

Blue Section of ERG Hazardous material by name. Identify the guide to be used. Listed alphabetically. Exact spelling of a chemical is important. Many chemicals are spelled almost the same.

Orange Section of ERG. Gives First Responder basic procedures for dealing with incident. Information is very generic and for protective actions. Divided into 62 sections. Guides are divided into groups dealing with specific categories of chemicals.

Green Section of ERG Identify isolation zone for chemicals, that are identified as toxic from vapors. Initial Isolation Zones. Contains list of water reactive materials. Any chemical highlighted in Blue or Yellow section of ERG, refer to Green section.

Explosives

Compressed Gases

Flammable Liquids

Flammable Solids

Oxidizers

Poisons

Radioactive Material

Corrosives

Etiological Agents

NFPA 704 System The 704 marking system is intended to indicate properties/ potential dangers of hazardous materials in facilities. You can get a general idea of the hazards from this symbol, it does not provide you with the name of the material.

The sign is diamond shaped and divided into four sections. The numbers in the three colored sections denote the severity of the hazard and range from 0-4. The least hazardous is 0 with 4 being the worst.

Red - Flammability Blue - Health Yellow - Reactivity White - Special Information The white section contains special information. In the example above this represents materials that are reactive with water. An “OX” in this section would indicate a material is an oxidizer. It is also possible to see the “propeller” symbol here to represent radioactive materials.

Methods of Exposure to Body Inhalation- –Fastest route of entry –90% of all industrial poisonings are through inhaled toxins. Skin contact- –Most chemicals are absorbed slowly through the skin. – Proper protection to eyes, mucus and skin must be used. – Proper levels of PPE must be used.

Methods of Exposure to the Body Injection- Occurs by stepping or bumping into a sharp object. Also, injection or product by high pressure. Ingestion – Through eating, drinking or smoking at incident site. Only do these things at established re-hab sites.

Affects of Chemicals on the Body Toxicity Allergies Delayed Reactions

Decontamination All personnel at the Haz-Mat incident need to be De-con before leaving the area. This is accomplished by several different methods depending on the product involved. The Decon area needs to be established before the entry team moves in. The entry and De-con areas need to be at the same location for accountability and safety.

Emergency De-con Remove victim from affected area. Remove helmet and flood with water. Remove SCBA, but leave mask in place. Remove contaminated clothing. Move to “CLEAN” area. Inform EMS of type of exposure,

Levels of Haz-Mat Responses Level Zero Level One Level Two Level Three

Level Zero Controlled by first responding agency. No evacuation required, other than the involved structure. Haz-Mat Team response for technical assistance. Materials spilled are contained within the site boundary.

Level One Incident controlled by first response agency and limited Haz-Mat response. Single jurisdiction and limited agency involvement. Does not required evacuation, except for the area effected by the release or potential release. Limited to a confined geographical area. No immediate threat to life, health or property.

Level Two Potential threat to life, property or health. Expanded geographical area. Limited evacuation of nearby residents. Involvement of two or more jurisdictions. Specialist or Technical Team required to scene.

Level Three Serious hazard to life, property or health. Large geographical impact. Major community evacuation. Multiple agencies involvement. Possible State or Federal involvement.

Know your County Haz-Mat Apparatus.

What it brings to the party.

Rail Cars

Road Trailers

Review Approach Incident from upwind direction, if possible. Move & keep people away from incident scene. DO NOT walk into or touch any spilled material. Avoid inhaling fumes, smoke and vapors.

Review Do not assume that gases or vapors are harmless, because of a lack of smell. Establish perimeters. Identify the material(s) involved. Establish Incident Command System. Determine a level of the incident.