Essentials of Fire Fighting and Fire Department Operations, 5 th Edition Chapter 23 — Operations...

Essentials of Fire Fighting and Fire Department

Operations, 5th EditionChapter 23 — Operations at

Haz Mat Incidents

Firefighter I

Firefighter I23–2

Chapter 23 Lesson Goal

• After completing this lesson, the student shall be able to summarize the basic operations at haz mat and terrorist incidents and perform emergency decontamination and defensive procedures following the policies and procedures set forth by the authority having jurisdiction (AHJ).

Firefighter I23–3

Specific Objectives

1.Summarize incident priorities for all haz mat and terrorist incidents.2.Discuss the management structure at haz mat or terrorist incidents.3.Describe the problem-solving stages at haz mat and terrorist incidents. (Continued)

Firefighter I23–4

Specific Objectives

4.Explain how the strategic goal of isolation and scene control is achieved.5.Explain how the strategic goal of notification is achieved.

(Continued)

Firefighter I23–5

Specific Objectives

6.Explain how the strategic goal of ensuring the safety of responders and the public is achieved.7.Summarize general guidelines for decontamination operations.8.Describe the three types of decontamination. (Continued)

Firefighter I23–6

Specific Objectives

9.Discuss implementing decontamination.10. Discuss rescue at haz mat incidents.11. Explain how the strategic goal of spill control and confinement is achieved.

(Continued)

Firefighter I23–7

Specific Objectives

12. Discuss crime scene management and evidence preservation.13. Explain actions taken during the recovery and termination phase of a haz mat or terrorist incident.14. Perform emergency decontamination. (Skill Sheet 23-I-1)

(Continued)

Firefighter I23–8

Specific Objectives

15.Perform defensive control functions – Absorption. (Skill Sheet 23-I-2)16. Perform defensive control functions – Diking. (Skill Sheet 23-I-3)17. Perform defensive control functions – Damming. (Skill Sheet 23-I-4)

(Continued)

Firefighter I23–9

Specific Objectives

18. Perform defensive control functions – Diversion. (Skill Sheet 23-I-5)19. Perform defensive control functions – Retention. (Skill Sheet 23-I-6)

(Continued)

Firefighter I23–10

Specific Objectives

20. Perform defensive control functions – Dilution. (Skill Sheet 23-I-7)21. Perform defensive control functions – Vapor dispersion. (Skill Sheet 23-I-8)


Incident Priorities

• Life safety• Incident stabilization• Protection of property


Management Structure

• Firefighters will initiate/operate within their standard incident command system at haz mat incidents; may be some differences from other incidents

• Firefighters must operate in accordance with predetermined procedures (Continued)


Management Structure

• According to 29 CFR 1910.120, Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response, all organizations that respond to haz mat incidents are required to have an emergency response plan


Four Elements of Problem-Solving, Decision-Making Models

• Information gathering, input, analysis stage

• Processing and/or planning stage• Implementation or output stage• Review or evaluation stage


Analyzing the Situation

• Size-up• Incident levels

Courtesy of Tom Clawson, Technical Resources Group, Inc.


Planning Appropriate Response

• Strategic goals and tactical objectives

• Modes of operation• Incident action plans


Implementing the IAP

• After strategic goals have been selected and IAP formulate, the IC can implement the plan

• Strategic goals are met by achieving tactical objectives

• Tactical objectives accomplished or conducted by performing specific tasks


Reviewing or Evaluating Progress

• Final aspect of problem-solving process

• If IAP is effective, IC should receive favorable progress and incident should begin to stabilize

(Continued)



• If mitigation efforts failing or situation getting worse, plan must be reevaluated and possibly revised

• Plan must be reevaluated as new information becomes available/circumstances change

(Continued)



• If initial plan not working, must be changed by selecting new strategies or changing tactics used to achieve


Isolation and Scene Control

• One of primary strategic goals at haz mat incidents; one of most important means by which responders can ensure safety of themselves/others

• Separating people from potential source of harm necessary to protect life safety of all (Continued)


Isolation and Scene Control

• Necessary to prevent spread of hazardous materials through cross contamination

• Isolation involves physically securing/maintaining emergency scene by establishing isolation perimeters and denying entry to unauthorized persons


Isolation Perimeter

• Boundary established to prevent access by public and unauthorized persons

• May be established before the type of incident/attack is positively identified

(Continued)


Isolation Perimeter

• If incident is inside a building, isolation perimeter might be set at outside entrance, accomplished by posting personnel to deny entry

(Continued)


Isolation Perimeter

• If incident is outside, perimeter might be set at surrounding intersections with response vehicles/law enforcement officers diverting traffic and pedestrians

(Continued)


Isolation Perimeter

• Isolation perimeter can be expanded/reduced as needed; used to control both access and egress from scene

(Continued)


Isolation Perimeter

• Law enforcement officers are often used to establish and maintain isolation perimeters

• Once hazard-control zones are established, isolation perimeter is generally considered to be boundary between public and cold (safe) zone


Hazard-Control Zones


Additional Zones

• Additional areas may be required• Decontamination zone• Area of safe refuge• Staging area• Rehabilitation area • Triage/treatment area


Notification Process

• Emergency response plans must ensure responders understand their role in notification processes and predetermined procedures

(Continued)



• Notification may be as simple as dialing 9-1-1 (in North America) to report an incident and get additional help dispatched

(Continued)



• Strategic goal of notification may also include such items as incident-level identification and public emergency information/notification

(Continued)



• Better to dispatch more resources than necessary in an initial response to ensure appropriate weight of attack to combat incident conditions


Other Agencies

• Notification involves contacting law enforcement whenever a terrorist or criminal incident is suspected

• Notify other agencies that an incident has occurred

(Continued)


Other Agencies

• Procedures will differ between military and civilian agencies as well as from country to country

• Always follow SOPs/OIs and emergency response plans for notification procedures


Process for Notification

• Because some haz mat incidents and terrorist attacks have potential to overwhelm local responders, it is important to know how to request additional resources

(Continued)



• Process should be spelled out through local, district, regional, state, national emergency response plans

(Continued)



• In the U.S., notification process is spelled out in National Response Plan (NRP); all local, state, federal emergency response plans must comply with these provisions

(Continued)



• Local emergency response plan (LERP) should be first resource a responder in U.S. should turn to if they need to request outside assistance


Protection

• Overall goal of ensuring safety of responders and public

• Includes measures taken to protect property and environment

• Accomplished through various tactics


Protection of Responders

• First priority at any incident

• Accountability systems• Buddy systems• Evacuation/escape

procedures• Safety Officers


Protection of the Public

• Includes isolating area and denying entry, conducting rescues, performing mass decontamination, providing emergency medical care/first aid

• Evacuation• Sheltering in place• Protecting/defending in place


Decontamination Operations

• Performed at haz mat incidents to remove hazardous materials from victims, PPE, tools, equipment, anything else that has been contaminated

• Done to reduce contamination to a level that is no longer harmful

(Continued)


Decontamination Operations

• Prevent harmful exposures and reduce or eliminate spread of contaminants outside hot zone

• Provides victims with psychological reassurance


Determining Factors for Type of Decontamination Operation

• Size of incident• Type of hazardous materials

involved• Weather• Personnel available• Variety of other factors


Decontamination Rules

• Basic principles– Get it off– Keep it off– Contain it

• Other decon rules


Emergency Decontamination

• Removing contamination on individuals in potentially life-threatening situation with or without formal establishment of decontamination corridor

(Continued)


Emergency Decontamination

• Can consist of anything from removing contaminated clothing to flushing a person with water


Emergency Decon — Implementation

• Goal• May be necessary for victims and

rescuers• Victims may need immediate

medical treatment• Several situations in which it may

be needed(Continued)


Emergency Decon — Implementation

• Quick fix• Removal of all contaminants may

not occur• Can harm environment• Procedures may differ depending

on circumstances/hazards present


Mass Decontamination

• Conducting rapid decontamination of multiple people at one time

(Continued)


Mass Decontamination

• May be conducted with or without formal decon corridor; usually involves removing clothing and flushing individuals with large quantities of water


Mass Decon — Implementation

• Mass decon is physical process of rapidly reducing/removing contaminants from multiple persons in potentially life-threatening situations, with or without formal establishment of decon corridor

(Continued)



• Initiated when number of victims/time constraints do not allow establishment of in-depth decontamination process

• Availability of ideal solutions in sufficient quantities cannot always be insured

(Continued)



• Can be most readily/effectively established with simple water shower system

• Recommended that all victims undergoing mass decon remove underclothing at least down to undergarments

(Continued)



• To prioritize, responders must consider factors related to medical triage/decontamination

• Triage• Ambulatory victims• Nonambulatory victims


Technical Decontamination

• Using chemical/physical methods to thoroughly remove contaminants from responders/their equipment

• May also be used on incident victims in non-life-threatening situations

(Continued)


Technical Decontamination

• Normally conducted within formal decon line

• Type/scope determined by contaminants


Technical Decon — Implementation

• Absorption• Adsorption• Brushing and scraping• Chemical degradation• Dilution • Neutralization

(Continued)


Technical Decon — Implementation

• Sanitation, disinfection, sterilization

• Solidification• Vacuuming• Washing• Evaporation• Isolation and disposal


Decon Implementation Considerations

• Appropriate site must be selected• Number of stations/setup of

corridor or line must be decided• Methods for collecting evidence

must be determined• Termination procedures must be

followed


Site Selection Factors

• Accessibility• Terrain/surface material• Lighting/electrical supply• Drains/waterways• Water supply• Weather


Decon Corridor Layout

• Establish decontamination corridor before performing any work in hot zone

• First responders are often involved with setting up and working in decontamination corridor

(Continued)



(Continued)



• Types of decontamination corridors vary as to numbers of sections or steps used in decontamination process

• Emergency responders must understand process and be trained in setting up type of decontamination required by different materials

(Continued)



• Decontamination corridor may be identified with barrier tape, safety cones, other items that are visually recognizable

• How firefighters are protected when working in the decontamination area depends on hazards of the material


Cold Weather Decon

• Conducting wet decon operations in freezing weather can be difficult to execute safely

• Run-off water can quickly turn to ice

(Continued)


Cold Weather Decon

• If pre-warmed water is not available, susceptible individuals can suffer cold shock or hypothermia

• If temperatures are 64 degrees or lower, consideration should be given to protecting victims from cold


Rescue at Haz Mat Incidents

• Due to potential of extreme hazards at haz mat incidents and defensive nature of actions at Operations Level, rescue can be a difficult strategy to implement for firefighters, particularly in initial stages of a response

(Continued)



• Search and rescue attempts must be made within framework of incident action plan with appropriate PPE, backup personnel, other safety considerations in place

(Continued)



• In many emergency incidents, rescue of victims is IC’s first priority, but it is important to balance vulnerability of firefighters against lives of victims

(Continued)



• Hesitation to rush into a situation to assist casualties may directly conflict with fire fighting strategic priority of rescue first as well as with many firefighters’ natural desire to help victims as quickly as possible

(Continued)



• Because of dangers presented by hazardous materials, responders who rush to the rescue may quickly require the need to be rescued themselves


Factors to Consider

• IC makes decisions about rescue based on a variety of factors at incident

• Several factors affect the ability of personnel to perform a rescue

• Decisions about rescue may differ depending on country and jurisdiction (Continued)


Factors to Consider

• Responders must understand what actions are appropriate for them given their SOPs, training, available equipment and resources

(Continued)


Factors to Consider

• Without coming in contact with the hazardous material, Operations Level firefighters may perform a limited number of tasks with appropriate PPE


Spill Control and Confinement

• Strategic goal of spill control involves controlling product that has already been released from its container (Continued)



• Spill control minimizes amount of contact product makes with people, property, environment by limiting or confining the dispersion and/or reducing the amount of harm caused by contact with the material

(Continued)



• Tactics and tasks relating to spill control are determined by material involved and type of dispersion; generally defensive in nature

(Continued)



• Main priority of spill control is confinement and prevention of further contamination or contact with hazardous material



• Firefighters trained to the Operations Level may perform spill-control activities as long as they do not come in contact with the product or have appropriate training and PPE

(Continued)



• Spill control is a defensive operation with most important issue being safety of the firefighters performing these actions

(Continued)



• Spills may involve gases, liquids, solids, and the product involved may be released into the air, into water, onto a surface such as ground or a bench top


Spill Control and Confinement Tactics

• Hazardous materials may be confined by building dams or dikes near source, catching material in another container, directing flow to a remote location for collection

(Continued)



• Before using equipment to confine spilled materials, ICs need to seek advice from technical sources to determine if spilled materials will adversely affect the equipment

(Continued)



• Confinement is not restricted to controlling liquids; dusts, vapors, and gases can also be confined


Absorption

• Physical and/or chemical event occurring during contact between materials that have an attraction for each other

• Results in one material being retained in other

(Continued)


Absorption

• Some materials typically used as absorbents are sawdust, clays, charcoal, polyolefin-type fibers

• Absorbent is spread directly onto hazardous material or in location where material is expected to flow

(Continued)


Absorption

• After use, absorbents must be treated and disposed of as hazardous materials themselves because they retain the properties of materials they absorb


Blanketing/Covering

• Involves blanketing or covering surface of spill to prevent dispersion of materials such as powders or dusts

• Blanketing or covering of solids can be done with tarps, plastic sheeting, salvage covers, other materials (Continued)


Blanketing/Covering

• Blanketing of liquids is essentially same as vapor suppression

• Operations-Level responders may or may not be allowed to perform blanketing/covering actions


Dam, Dike, Diversion, Retention

• Ways to confine a hazardous material

• Actions are taken to control flow of liquid hazardous materials away from point of discharge

(Continued)


Dam, Dike, Diversion, Retention

• Firefighters can use available earthen materials or materials carried on their response vehicles to construct curbs that direct or divert the flow away from gutters, drains, storm sewers, flood-control channels, outfalls


Dilution

• Application of water to a water-soluble material to reduce hazard

• Dilution of liquid materials rarely has practical applications at haz mat incidents in terms of spill control; dilution is often used during decontamination operations (Continued)


Dilution

• Amount of water needed to reach an effective dilution increases overall volume and creates a runoff problem


Dissolution

• Process of dissolving a gas in water

• Tactic can only be used on such water-soluble gases as anhydrous ammonia or chlorine; generally conducted by applying fog stream to a breach in container or onto spill


Vapor Dispersion

• Action taken to direct or influence course of airborne hazardous materials

• Pressurized streams of water from hoselines or unattended master streams may be used to help disperse vapors

(Continued)


Vapor Dispersion

• Streams create turbulence, which increases rate of mixing with air and reduces concentration of hazardous material


Vapor Suppression

• Action taken to reduce emission of vapors at a haz mat spill

• Fire fighting foams are effective on spills of flammable and combustible liquids if foam concentrate is compatible with material

(Continued)


Vapor Suppression

• Water-miscible (capable of being mixed) materials destroy regular fire fighting foams; require an alcohol-resistant foam agent

(Continued)


Vapor Suppression

• Required application rate for applying foam to control an unignited liquid spill is substantially less than that required to extinguish a spill fire


Ventilation

• Involves controlling movement of air by natural or mechanical means

• Used to remove and/or disperse harmful airborne particles, vapors, gases when spills occur inside structures

(Continued)


Ventilation

• Same ventilation techniques used for smoke removal can be used for haz mat incidents


Leak Control and Containment

• A leak involves the physical breach in a container through which product is escaping

• Goal of leak control is to stop or limit escape or contain release either in original container or by transferring to a new one

(Continued)



• Type of container involved, type of breach, properties of material determine tactics and tasks relating to leak control

• Leak control and containment are generally considered offensive actions

(Continued)



• Offensive actions not attempted by personnel trained below the Technician Level with two exceptions

• Leak control dictates that personnel enter the hot zone, which puts them at great risk


Crime Scene Management and Evidence Preservation

• Framework for a response to a terrorist or criminal incident is essentially same as that used for a response to any other hazardous materials incident

(Continued)


Crime Scene Management and Evidence Preservation

• Because a crime is involved, law enforcement organizations must be notified and included in response

• Notifying law enforcement ensures proper state/province and federal/national agencies respond to the incident


Recovery and Termination Phase

• Occurs when IC determines all victims have been accounted for and all hazards have been controlled

• Components of recovery/termination

• Incident Termination Checklist• Decontamination/disposal issues


On-Scene Debriefing

• Conducted in the form of a group discussion; gathers information from all operating personnel

• Obtain information from responders

(Continued)


On-Scene Debriefing

• One very important step in this process — Provide information to personnel concerning signs and symptoms of overexposure to the hazardous materials


Post-Incident Analysis/Critique

• Provides responding agencies opportunity to evaluate, review, refine issues

• Can be used to evaluate effectiveness of their response, identify problem areas, correct deficiencies

(Continued)



• Information can be used to modify and improve operations at future similar incidents

• IC responsible for assigning someone to write a post-incident report and provide it to health and safety officer and chief of the agency (Continued)



• Once all the necessary interviews have been made and documents gathered, a post-incident analysis should be scheduled for all agencies involved in incident

(Continued)



• Formal analysis of incident will be based on information gathered for post-incident analysis


Summary

• For firefighters, hazardous materials incidents are similar in many ways to other emergencies to which they respond. The same universal priorities apply: life safety, incident stabilization, and property conservation; and an incident management system is needed.

(Continued)


Summary

• However, there are also some major differences compared to structure fires, for example. In a structure fire, as long as firefighters are located outside of the collapse zone, they are relatively safe.

(Continued)


Summary

• In a hazardous materials incident, personnel can be at risk a considerable distance from the point of release. One major difference between the property conservation priority at hazardous materials incidents is the increased need for environmental protection. (Continued)


Summary

• There are also differences in the size-up process compared to structure fires. Since many hazardous materials are highly toxic and can be spread over a wide area, the initial identification of the materials involved may have to be done from a considerable distance away.

(Continued)


Summary

• Finally, because of the highly toxic nature of some hazardous materials, fire officers and their crews may be untrained and unequipped to mitigate a hazardous materials release. In these cases, they must establish and maintain a safe perimeter around the incident scene and call for hazardous materials specialists who are trained and equipped to handle such incidents.

(Continued)


Summary

• In support of these specialists, firefighters must provide fire protection, and be capable of assisting with containment efforts such as damming and diking, and setting up and operating decontamination stations.


Review Questions

1.What are the three incident priorities at all haz mat and terrorist incidents?2.What information should be gathered by first responders during the initial assessment of an incident?3.Describe incident levels (Continued)


Review Questions

4.What are hazard-control zones?5.What factors must be addressed in large-scale evacuations?6.Define the three types of contamination.

(Continued)


Review Questions

7.What actions can Operations-Level firefighters perform during rescue operations?8.List defensive confinement and spill control actions.


Review Questions

9.Who must be notified and included in the response to a terrorist or criminal incident?10.What information should be given to responders at an on-scene debriefing?

Essentials of Fire Fighting and Fire Department Operations, 5 th Edition Chapter 23 — Operations...

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