NCJ Number
191015
Date Published
1997
Length
29 pages
Annotation
This document presents the recommended practice for responding to hazardous materials incidents.
Abstract
The development of both facility response plans and community emergency plans is required by numerous State and Federal laws. An annual review and update of the hazardous materials emergency plan should be conducted. At a minimum, a training exercise should be conducted annually to determine the adequacy and effectiveness of the plan. An incident management system should be implemented at all incidents and should include a standard personnel identification system to maintain accountability for each member engaged in activities at an incident scene. The incident commander should make suitable provisions for rest and rehabilitation for members operating at the scene. Ignition sources should be eliminated whenever possible at incidents involving releases, or probable releases, of ignitable materials. The hot zone is the area immediately surrounding a hazardous materials incident. The warm zone is the area where personnel and equipment decontamination and hot zone support take place. The cold zone contains the command post and such other support functions as are deemed necessary to control the incident. An effective means of communications should be established. Radios should be “dedicated” and not used or shared by other agencies. This should be supplemented by a prearranged set of hand signals and hand-light signals. All monitoring equipment should be operationally checked prior to use. All personal protective equipment, respiratory protective equipment, air purifying respirators, chemical protective clothing, and thermal protection gear should meet appropriate standards. Standards for incident mitigation, decontamination, medical monitoring, and referenced publications are also included. 3 appendices and index