SIMPLIFYING MATERIAL SAFETY DATA SHEETS
MANAGEMENT
As a result of SARA Title III, many fire departments have received material safety data sheets (MSDS) from industries and businesses that deal with hazardous chemicals. You may not be sure about the best way to handle these sheets. They
seem too valuable to throw away, yet they may be too numerous to store on the first-responding vehicle. So you probably store them in a file cabinet with the hope that either someone will remember to pull the MSDS in an emergency or someone at the emergency scene will meet the first-arriving vehicle with one in hand.
Most likely the greatest difficulty fire department personnel have with an MSDS is understanding it. First, the format of an MSDS can vary. Keep in mind that the information on the chemicals will be the same no matter what the format. Some even have sections color-coded for easy reference. Nevertheless, the slight differences in format, especially on the first page, sometimes make them frustrating to use.
Second, the information on the chemicals may seem too technical. This also adds to the frustration. Some information on the sheet, such as cleanup procedures, really isn’t important to fire departments as far as a hazardous-materials incident is concerned. Also, some sheets have information that others do not —the NFPA 704 rating, for example.
Finally, because of the various MSDS types, it is very’ time-consuming for a company officer on a responding piece of fire apparatus to pick out the information that is most important to the proper handling of a hazardousmaterial incident. With his adrenalin flowing and with the mental processing of other information (weather conditions, preplans, possible occupancy), the officer cannot locate and utilize the needed information from the MSDS quickly.
USING A SUMMARY SHEET
Since the MSDS does contain some valuable information, 1 have developed a summary sheet that is easier to use. The top portion contains the generic name of the chemical, important classification names and numbers, and the NFPA 704 rating. Since the main concern in any fire or rescue incident is life safety, important health hazards are included in the next section, along with other hazards. The third section lists the physical properties of the chemical that are most important in terms of affecting lives and the environment if the chemical were involved in a fire, leak, or spill.
If a particular property is not applicable to a chemical, the notation “N/ A” is used. l*he notation “N/D” (No Data) is used if a particular property is not known. These terms eliminate any confusion that could arise if the space were left blank.
The section on fire extinguishment shows the officer what options he has. Thus if a large amount of foam or some other extinguishing agent other than water is needed, the request for this material can be made quicker. Hopefully this will result in controlling the fire in a shorter period of time.
The section on first-aid treatment gives emergency medical personnel information for the immediate treatment of those exposed to the chemical. This information allows them to concentrate on standard operating procedures, make secondary assessments, or treat complications arising from the chemical exposure rather than spend valuable time searching for information.
The bottom section of the summary sheet deals with other information that would be immediately helpful, such as type of protective clothing to use, chemical reactivity, evacuation recommendations, and containment information.
OBTAINING INFORMATION
We obtain the information for these summary sheets primarily from the MSDSs we receive. Whenever the information on these sheets seems to be inadequate, we seek additional information from one or more of the following sources: Condensed Chemical Dictionary, DOT Emergency Guidebook, Emergency Action Guides, Emergency Handling of Hazardous Materials, NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards, CHRIS Manual, Dangerous Properties of Industrial Materials, and the NFPA Guide to Hazardous Materials. We also make summary sheets for chemicals that are likely to be transported through our fire protection district either by highway or rail.
When we complete the summary sheet, we duplicate it and place it alphabetically into a yellow’ three-ring hazardous-material notebook. This notebook is divided into nine sections, with the chemical summary sheets in the last section. A notebook is placed in each ambulance, squad, and engine that responds initially to a hazardous-material incident. The firefighters and officers have been trained in the use of these notebooks.
It is easy to add to the chemical section of these notebooks. The summary sheets are duplicated on colored paper, corresponding to the color of the DOT placards whenever possible: explosives on goldenrod; nonflammable gases on green; flammable gases, liquids, and solids on pink; oxidizers on yellow; poisons on blue (indicating a health hazard); radioactive materials on purple; corrosives on white; and other regulated materials on tan.
The hazardous-material summary sheets have proven to be a ready source of information for the firstresponding officer in a hazardousmaterial incident. The logical order of these summary sheets is very similar to the strategic priorities of attacking a fire: rescue, exposure, confinement, extinguishment, and overhaul.
These sheets are not intended to completely replace the MSDS, other chemical references, or referral agencies, nor are they intended to replace communicating with contact people listed on chemical contingency plans. The sheets are not intended as a guide for any cleanup operations. Although the summary sheets give the officer pertinent information regarding the initial steps of handling a hazardousmaterial incident, proper training still dictates that these decisions be made with caution and from a distance.
