Difference between revisions of "Response to Hazardous Materials Incidents"

Revision as of 14:29, 25 November 2024

Section 2 - EMERGENCY OPERATIONS

230.05 Response to Hazardous Materials Incidents

PURPOSE:

To establish the Fire Department’s response, control and abatement procedures for any hazardous material release. In addition, the procedure will describe the method for handling all hazardous materials information collected for emergency response.
Establish procedures for crews operating at the scene of an incident involving hazardous materials.

PROCEDURE:

Procedures addressed in this policy are intended to be parallel to those of partner agencies for the purposes of continuity. Unless otherwise specified, Maitland Fire Department personnel will respond to reports of hazardous materials incidents to level of first responder operational level as defined by NFPA.

Definitions

• Hazardous Materials- any explosive, flammable, oxidizer, poison, Etiologic agent, radioactive, corrosive, or other substance or material that has escaped its container, in a quantity or form that may pose an unreasonable risk to health, safety and the environment. These are commonly known as Nuclear, Biological or Chemical (NBC).
• Hot Zone- the hot zone is the area immediately surrounding a hazardous materials incident, extending far enough to prevent adverse effects from hazardous materials release to personnel outside the zone.
• Warm Zone - the warm zone is the area where personnel and equipment decontamination and hot zone support take place. It includes control points for the access corridor and thus assists in reducing the spread of contamination.
• Cold Zone - The cold zone contains the command post and such other support functions as are deemed necessary to control the incident.
• Level-A Protection- Total encapsulating, vapor proof suit constructed of materials that are resistant to the chemical(s) involved, with SCBA.
• Level-B Protection – Non-encapsulating, splash proof, and suit constructed of materials, which are resistant to the chemical(s), involved, with SCBA.
• Level-C Protection - Splash resistant suits constructed of materials, which are resistant to the chemical (s), involved, with SCBA.
• Level-D Protection - Structural fire fighting clothing, with SCBA.
• EMS/HM Level-1 Responder- those persons who, in the course of their duties, might be called on to perform patient care activities in the cold zone at a hazardous materials incident. EMS/HM Level-1 responders shall provide care only to those individuals who no longer pose a significant risk of secondary contamination.
• EMS/HM Level-2 Responder- those persons who, in the course of their duties, might be called on to perform patient care activities in the warm zone at a hazardous materials incident. EMS/HM Level-2 responders might be required to provide care to those individuals who still pose a significant risk of secondary contamination. In addition, personnel at this level are able to coordinate EMS activities at a hazardous materials incident and provide medical support for hazardous materials response personnel.

Dispatch

• The dispatch center will attempt to obtain any and all information from the person reporting a hazardous materials incident. The information should, if possible, include material name and/or type, amount and size of container(s), problem (leak, spill, fire, etc.) and dangerous properties of the materials as well as the number of persons injured or exposed. The call taker should remain on the telephone with the caller to gain additional information after entering the call for the dispatch.
• Any additional information shall be relayed to responding units after dispatch. This should include the safest approach or best access to the incident if available.
• If the call comes from a person with particular knowledge of the hazardous situation, that person should be instructed to meet and direct the arriving units.
• The dispatch center will dispatch the appropriate Hazardous Materials response assignment. Dispatch shall relay that person's location and level of knowledge to responding units.
• Dispatch will inform responding units as to the prevailing wind speed and direction from the monitoring station nearest the incident.

General

• All Maitland Fire Department Emergency Operating Procedures, unless superseded by a specific part of this plan, remain in effect for Hazardous Materials incidents.
• The first unit must consciously avoid committing itself to a dangerous situation. When approaching, slow down or stop to assess any visible activity taking place. Evaluate effects of wind, topography and location of the situation and route any other responding companies away from any hazards
• Initial responding crews shall not enter a vapor cloud or contaminated area or place themselves in a hazardous position or situation. Once Command is established, and the different hazard zones are identified, crews will operate within the guidelines of this SOG and as directed by Command.
• Initial responding crews operating in any area suspected of being hazardous, at a minimum, must be in full PPE including SCBA, until otherwise directed by command.

First Arriving Unit

• The first arriving officer will establish Command and begin a size-up.

Size-Up

• Command must make a careful size-up before making a commitment. It may be necessary to take immediate action to make a rescue or evacuate an area. This should be attempted only after a risk/benefit analysis is completed.
• The objective of the size-up is to identify the nature and severity of the immediate problem and to gather sufficient information to formulate a valid action plan. Hazardous materials incidents require a cautious and deliberate size-up.
• Avoid premature commitment of companies and personnel to potentially hazardous locations. In many cases, evaluation by hazardous materials team members before committing is the safest and best approach.
• Identify hazardous area(s) based on potential danger, taking into account materials involved, time of day, wind and weather conditions, location of the incident, and degree of risk to unprotected personnel.
• The primary objective is to identify the type of materials involved in a situation, and the hazards presented, before formulating a plan of action. Look for labels, markers, DOT IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS, NFPA DIAMOND or shipping papers, etc. Refer to pre-fire plans and ask personnel at the scene for additional information (plant management, responsible party, truck drivers, fire department specialist). Use reference materials carried on apparatus and have Dispatch contact other sources for assistance in sizing up the problem (state agencies, fire department specialists, manufacturers of materials, etc.).

Command

• Establish a Command Post (CP) in a safe location (upwind/uphill) that best supports the command functions. Command should allow enough distance and shielding from the hazards of the incident so the CP remains safe should the wind direction or hazardous conditions change.
• Establish a Level-2 Staging location that is in a safe location. Once established, all responding units will report directly to staging unless otherwise directed by command.
• Take immediate action to evacuate and/or rescue persons in critical danger, if possible, providing for safety of rescuers first.
• Identify the material(s), the quantity of product and type of containers involved in the incident. Utilize all available resources to properly identify the product(s) involved and determine the appropriate actions to take to safely mitigate the incident. Locate any available shipping papers or facility documents such as chemical inventory lists, Material Safety Data Sheets, etc.
• Identify and mark the hot zone, warm zone and cold zone and communicate that to all members operating on the incident.
• Establish an evacuation zone and assign resources to manage it.
• Ensure that all proper notifications are made to the respective local, state and federal agencies as necessary. (Red Cross, State Warning Point, EPD, etc.)

Utilize Maitland Police or other law enforcement officers to:

• Establish and maintain an evacuation route for citizens and emergency responders should the incident escalate requiring an evacuation.
• Conduct evacuations as directed by command, maintain evacuation areas, and provide crowd control.
• Escort the delivery of any equipment, materials, and or equipment requested by command.

Mitigation Efforts

• The mitigation team will be limited to those crew members specially trained in handing hazardous materials incidents as defined in NFPA 472. All other members will perform duties in support of the mitigation efforts as assigned by command such as decontamination, diking, equipment set up, etc.
• A minimum number of personnel assigned to any mitigation team shall be two. Prior to any mitigation efforts, a RIT shall be in place that is equally trained and in the same or higher level of PPE.
• Efforts will be made to minimize the number of personnel and the amount of equipment used in the Hot Zone.
• Prior to any Fire Department personnel entering a contaminated area, command shall cause a decontamination area to be established.

Decontamination

• A Decontamination Group shall be established by Command anytime a decontamination process is established.
• The Decontamination Group Supervisor shall determine the proper type of decontamination procedures necessary based on the hazardous material(s) involved and inform Command.
• The two basic decontamination approaches include Mass Decontamination and Technical Decontamination (Decon).
  • Mass Decontamination (Decon) involves the use of copious quantities of water and is used to provide a rapid decontamination process that can handle a large group of people at one time.
  • Technical Decontamination is a very methodical process that involves one or more people to decontaminate each person in need.
• Due to inclement weather or other pertinent factors, on-scene decontamination may not always be possible. In this situation, another suitable area shall be designated for the decontamination of personnel, apparatus and equipment.

Medical/Rehab Group or Unit

• Command shall establish a Medical/Rehab Group (or Medical/Rehab Unit if the Logistics Section Chief position is staffed) anytime members are engaged in mitigation efforts that requires any form of decontamination.
• The Medical/Rehab Supervisor shall insure the group is properly staffed to perform all required functions to include:
  • Vital signs taken for each member involved in the mitigation process before and after each entry.
  • Rapid transport capability utilizing a Maitland Fire Rescue unit, and initiate a Haz-Mat alert.
  • Fluid and nutrient replenishment capabilities for all incident scene members.
• Only fire department EMS personnel (EMS/HM Level-2) will be allowed to treat patients in the warm Zone. All other EMS personnel (EMS/HM Level-1) shall be assigned to treat patents in the Cold Zone.

Decontamination, Treatment and Transportation of Civilian Casualties:

• Command shall ensure adequate resources are assigned, to include the establishment of a civilian decontamination Group (if required to be separate from the FD Decontamination efforts), and the establishment of Groups to manage any MCI needs as defined in SOG #220.02, Mass-Casualty Incidents.
• Local hospitals shall be notified if there is a likelihood of contaminated patients showing up at the hospital by POV, without the FD’s knowledge.
  • The hospitals shall be informed of the hazardous materials involved, the precautions to be taken, and type of decontamination recommended.
• All patients shall be properly decontaminated prior to being transported to the hospital. Any exceptions will require the approval of Command and the hospital shall be properly noticed prior to the Rescue’s arrival.

References:

• NFPA 471, Recommended Practice for Responding to Hazardous materials Incidents
• NFPA 472, Standard for Professional Competences of responders to hazardous materials Incidents
• NFPA 473, Standards for Competences for EMS Personnel Responding to Hazardous Materials Incidents