Hazardous Substance Training for Emergency Responders

Details

• Personal Author:
  Morrison PJ
• Description:
  The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) represents more than 300,000 full-time professional fire fighters and emergency medical personnel who protect 85 percent of the nation's population, and who serve as the first line of defense during any hazardous materials incident. According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), fire departments in the United States responded to 402,000 emergency incidents involving hazardous materials in 2010, the most recent year for which data are available. As the number of hazardous materials incidents has increased, the complexity and dangerous nature of responding to such incidents has multiplied. Despite the clear need to ensure that fire fighters and other emergency responders who may respond to incidents involving hazardous materials are adequately trained, in many communities responder training falls far short of what is necessary to ensure a safe and efficient response. In their Third Needs Assessment of the U.S. Fire Service, the NFPA estimated that 65 percent of fire departments responsible for HazMat response have not formally trained all of their personnel. Furthermore, only 35 percent of fire departments involved in HazMat response reported that all of their personnel have received formal training for this duty. It was also noted that approximately 36 percent of the departments in this category provide little to no formal training in HazMat response. Operations level is the minimum level of training needed by first responders. It is specifically designed for the initial emergency response which occurs within minutes of the incident being reported. These emergency responders stabilize the situation and prepare the emergency scene for the HazMat specialists who will undertake direct mitigation. The mission of responders who are trained at the operations level is to protect nearby persons, property and the environment from the effects of the release. They are trained to contain the release from a safe distance, keep it from spreading, and prevent exposures. Clearly, this is the minimum level at which fire fighters should be trained. In its aforementioned Third Needs Assessment, NFPA reports that only 20 percent of fire departments have all personnel certified to the operations level. While it is clear that training is needed for new recruits and personnel who have yet to undergo training, it is also worth noting that hazardous materials response training is not a one-time event. It is essential that all first responders undergo refresher training to ensure continued proficiency. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) Standard 29 Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) 1910.120 requires emergency responders to receive annual refresher training "of sufficient content and duration to maintain their competencies." In addition to providing responders the opportunity to brush up on knowledge and skills that may not be used regularly, refresher training is vital to familiarize responders with new technology which may be used or encountered during a response. The federally-funded training programs currently offered by the IAFF provide an excellent model of a delivery system for training first responders. Using a cadre of instructors who are both certified fire service instructors and certified HazMat responders, the IAFF offers, free of charge, real-world training in hazardous materials response that few institutions can match. Furthermore, because the IAFF brings its training directly to the students in their own communities, the IAFF is able to tailor its presentations to address the unique concerns and challenges facing local responders. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Emergency Responders Firefighters Hazardous Substances Occupational Health Safety Staff Development
• Keywords:
  Emergency Responders Fire Fighters First Responders Hazardous Materials Training
• Series:
  Grant Final Reports
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Final Grant Report
• Place as Subject:
  District of Columbia ; OSHA Region 3
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OEP - Office of Extramural Programs
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-213
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20057557
• Citation:
  Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, T15-OH-009230, 2012 Dec; :1-213
• Contact Point Address:
  International Association of Fire Fighters, 1750 New York Avenure, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20006-5395
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2013
• NORA Priority Area:
  Services ; Public Safety
• Performing Organization:
  International Association of Fire Fighters, Washington, D.C.
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20070930
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20270630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:c45423f6574d62454708bc2b8073e2e48ac5cdbb57194cf528d15aa90c9278e92bec44dd7f4f192b44386e8f50b7228c7d9108dbaaced77053eef4c8c7727821
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/218935/cdc_218935_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 7.40 MB ]