Get the Answers Now by Planning For Hazardous Materials Incidents
There is an old nursery rhyme which goes,
“Pussycat, pussycat, where have you been?”
“I’ve been to London to see the Queen.”
“Pussycat, pussycat, what did you see there?”
“I saw a little mouse under the chair.”
Now, before you turn back to the front cover to check if you picked up the right magazine, let me hasten to explain how this fits with hazardous materials.
In the nursery rhyme, we have a cat whose objective is to go and visit the queen. Yet, the thing he did and what he remembers is that he saw a mouse. If you are a cat, the thing you are trained to look for is a mouse. You are conditioned to see only that and not the surroundings.
Look for the trees
Fire officers tend to do the same thing. They have become conditioned to expect a particular set of events and do not see the larger scene being presented. Another way of saying this, is, “You didn’t see the forest for the trees.”
As an example, think of the number of truck fires your department has run. Have you become complacent with this type of call or do you think on the way to each one about the possibility of a hazardous material being involved? Accident statistics at hazardous materials incidents indicate that many fire service personnel look only at what they are accustomed to seeing. They never learn to see the big picture. One solution to the problem is to develop a detailed pre-incident plan for your hazardous materials locations. This plan should cover the information detailed in the remainder of the article.
Each department must make a study of the possible locations for a hazardous materials incident. These studies must include not only the obvious manufacturing or storage facilities, but also the highways, railroads, and pipelines which run through your community.
For each location, the department will have to look at the response route, traffic patterns and road construction and develop alternatives in case of blockage due to the incident. Planning only one route is fine until the tank car derailment cuts off the approach from the regular direction. Apparatus coming from two different directions will also aid the officer by providing size-up data from another angle.
The general topography of the land must be studied in case of runaway spill. In addition, streams which can carry spilled liquids great distances should be added to the pre-incident plan.
A reliable, long-term water supply will be needed at many hazardous materials incidents. This means not only pressure sources from the utility, but the private systems, static sources such as ponds and streams, as well as tankers. Since hazardous materials incidents invariably happen in out-of-the-way places and quick water application is essential, the location of the water supply must be plotted in advance.
In addition to locating the supply, the officer must know how much water will be available. If the supply varies with the season, then this must be noted. Hydrant flow should be determined. If long lays to a water supply are necessary, then a relay must be planned. The availability of pumpers from surrounding communities, as well as large-diameter hose, should be noted so that a dispatcher does not have to go hunting for the information during the incident.
Special extinguishing agents
Some particular chemicals require special extinguishing agents. For example, if you needed a foam that was compatible for an alcohol spill, where would you get it? Can you quickly obtain backup supplies of protein foam or AFFF? Where are extra amounts stored near you? What is the telephone number of the armed forces base that stockpiles this material? Whose permission is needed to obtain the local airport crash truck on a mutual aid basis? How long will it take for this supplemental equipment to arrive? The answers to these questions must be included in your pre-incident plan.
Reference sources have to be located well in advance of the incident. They range from books to the telephone numbers of technical experts to state and local agencies that can assist with spill, to private contractors with heavy machinery, to medical personnel for specialized treating of exposures.
Technical reference books can provide information on the health hazards, flammability and reactivity of the materials. They will also provide the common name and properties for many substances when only the trade name is known. Many reference texts provide initial attack suggestions for both fires and spills. First aid information is given in various books.
The key point is that these materials must be puchased and studied in advance. Some of the tables are complex, using a great deal of cross-referencing. An individual must be familiar with the technique used to explain the hazard before the incident occurs. In addition, each reference text covers a different amount and type of material. The fireground officer must know in advance which text will provide the particular piece of information needed for the incident.
CHEMTREC assistance
In many hazardous materials spills and fires, technical advice is an absolute necessity. This is particularly true when none of the reference texts contains information on the involved substances. The telephone numbers of possible sources of information must be known. A dispatcher cannot spend time looking for the man during the incident.
One of the major sources of information is CHEMTREC. The service, provided by the Manufacturing Chemists Association, is a toll-free, 24-hour telephone number where a fireground officer can get a great deal of information. The CHEMTREC communicators have a great many chemical experts and manufacturers available at all times. They will put these experts in touch with you. However, to provide the best possible information, you must be prepared to give them certain information. As part of your pre-incident plan, you should prepare blank forms for the required information. The accompanying table lists the basic information which CHEMTREC needs to know.
CHEMTREC INFORMATION
Name of caller and organization Callback and number and location Products involved:
Quantity
Container type
Type of incident
Accident location
Shipper:
Carrier name
Rail car or truck/trailer number
Consignee
Origin/destination
Bill of lading number
Way bill number
The telephone number for CHEMTREC is 800-424-9300.
Technical advice
Technical advice also can be obtained locally. Contact manufacturers and and others who handle hazardous materials and see what kind of technical expertise they offer you. Get the telephone numbers where they can be reached on an around-the-clock basis.
For specialized information, other telephone numbers will be needed. If you have pipelines through your area, record the emergency telephone number listed on the marker at a road crossing. Keep the United States Public Health Service number handy in case of a biological spill or leak. The Public Health Service can be reached at 404-633-5313 in Atlanta, Ga.
There are many government agencies that can assist at a hazardous materials incident. Locally, contact your environmental protection agency, health department and civil defense agency so you can determine what resources they can make available to you. Many of these organizations also exist on the state level. They are usually very willing to lend assistance. In addition, another state agency which can help is the department of transportation. Some individuals in this agency usually work in the area of transportation hazards.
Aid from contractors
One of the concerns of the fire officer on the scene is the containment of a spill. It will be necessary to stop a running spill fire, prevent poisons from entering the water system or contain a corrosive. To do this, heavy construction equipment will be needed. How will you improvise a dike? Where will the dirt or sand for impoundment come from? How will you dam a stream to prevent runoff?
In addition to answering these questions, do you know whom to call to get special entry suits? Can you get water tankers from a garden supply place? Do any contractors in your area have specialized extinguishing agents?
Once you have answered these questions and know the whereabouts of all these specialized pieces of equipment, you will have taken a giant step toward safely handling an incident.
Now that you have done the planning for a possible incident, you also have to prepare a pre-incident plan for your manufacturing and storage facilities.
The basic types of information which you should record are:
Name
Address
Materials and their trade names
Type of materials
Solid, liquid or gas
Flash point
Specific gravity
Hazard
NFPA 704 marking
Type of storage
Location of storage in building
Quantity stored
Method of movement in building
The increasing use of hazardous materials in our daily lives has also increased the chances of an incident. Big city, small town or out-of-the-way crossroads all have the potential for a disaster. Fire officers should be prepared for this eventuality.
One of the best ways to prepare is by pre-incident planning. I hope that each of you begins work on just such a program. Remember, don’t be like the cat in the nursery rhyme and only look for the obvious. Learn to go beyond and see what else lies around the corner. Perhaps, this will help you out of a difficult situation and lives and property can be saved.
