Emergency response personnel

Reportable releases under CERCLA must be reported to the National Response Center, at (800) 424-8802. Reporting under EPCRA requires notifying the facihty s LEPC (or relevant local emergency response personnel if there is no LEPC) and the SERC of any state likely to be affected. If a faciUty is near the border of another state, that state may have to be notified as well. Notification is required to be immediate, which is usually defined as within 30 minutes of the release. State or local authorities may have additional or different reporting requirements. Eailure to report release in a timely manner can result in severe penalties from the regulatory authorities. 

This section provides an overview of important definitions and terminology that the Hazardous Materials Worker and Emergency Response Personnel should know. Emergency response at sites other than hazardous waste clean-up sites are emphasized. Under OSHA s 29 CFR1910.120 emergency response personnel (that will take some action to control the situation other than call for help) shall be trained to a competence to protect themselves and other employees in ... 

TABLE 8-2 Summary of Training Requirements for Emergency Response Personnel. 

The exhaust duct of each ventilated containment cabinet must be fitted with an adjustable low flow sensor. Audible and visible alarms must be located near the cabinet, and the silence switch should energize an indicator at the status board. These are local alarms which should not automatically trigger a call for emergency response personnel. 

Conclusion Toxicity data are available for many thousands of solid, liquid, and gaseous chemicals and other materials. The data for inhalation toxicity provide guidance for concentration and duration limits, for protection of the public, chemical plant employees, and emergency response personnel. Similar data for ingestion and skin contact with toxic materials are not as readily available. Investigation into toxic effects is continuing, so that toxic materials can be handled safely. 

Each of these steps might be performed either by direct action of operations or emergency response personnel or by automatic systems. An example of the latter might be an array of toxic or flammable gas detectors that might trip an emergency shutdown system that closes remotely actuated block valves and vents off the process pressure to a flare if two adjacent sensors read above a predetermined vapor concentration. 

Stand alone fire or gas detection and alarm panels are normally provided in the main control facility for the installation. Recent trends also incorporate the transmittal of fire and gas alarms through the DCS into the main process alarm real time control panel. When alarm panels are located within a protected building, they should be located for easy access for emergency response personnel and proximity to manual electrical power shut off facilities. 

Some local emergency response personnel and hazardous materials response teams have had to deal with numbers of copycat anthrax hoaxes since October 15 media attention to the Senator Daschle letter. What follows represents some basic information on anthrax to local hazardous materials response crews. 

For this reason, NCRP recommends that emergency response personnel and first response vehicles should be equipped with radiation detection equipment to alert them for a radiologically compromised environment. Furthermore, this equipment should be designed to alert the responders when unacceptable ambient dose rates or dose limits are reached. Responders should wear appropriate personal protective equipment (e.g., chemical safety suits, respirators). 

Emergency response personnel assigned to respond to a scene with this equipment should receive training that includes the operational characteristics of the equipment, the operational quantities to be measured, and the risks associated with exposures that correspond to the preset levels of the alarms. 

Potassium bicarbonate has greater extinguishing capability on Class B fires than sodium bicarbonate and is usually foam compatible. This characteristic permits emergency response personnel to fight fire more effectively. 

Reduce potential fire hazards to operating personnel and to emergency response personnel. 

The term fire pre-planning describes the actual process of developing fire response tactics for emergency response personnel as well as the actions taken by operations. A fire pre-plan provides emergency fire responders an inventory of essential information necessary for developing tactical response at the onset... 

Explosion investigator—for expertise in understanding the ignition source and physics involving explosion Research technical personnel Emergency response personnel such as fire chief Technical consultant or equipment specialist... 

First responders/emergency response personnel Quality control personnel Research scientists... 

Emergency response personnel If the QRA involves consequence estimation, the team will probably need data on the emergency response procedures and capabilities. For example, how quickly could the neighborhood be evacuated, what fraction of the release would be neutralized, and can firefighters extinguish a blaze in that location Expect to commit a few staff-days of effort over the life of the project. 

Assure that firefighters and other emergency response personnel are trained, equipped, and available to react promptly and correctly to emergency incidents arising in the plant. 

Work with emergency response personnel and the public in plant communities to assure preparedness in the event of a chemical-related emergency. 

Provide trained, equipped emergency response personnel to assist in dealing with transportation incidents involving the plant s product. 

Emergency response personnel now have access to excellent training for controlling transportation accidents. 

Automatically calls emergency response personnel based on incident specific information. 

The purpose of the RMP is to reduce chemical risk at the local level. This information helps local fire, police, and emergency response personnel (who must prepare for and respond to chemical accidents) and is useful to individuals in understanding the chemical hazards in communities. Ideally, making the RMPs available to the public stimulates communication between industry and the public to improve accident prevention and emergency response practices at the local level. 

The public, emergency responders, and medical personnel often respond inappropriately to radiological incidents and emergencies, owing to widespread misunderstanding of the risks posed by radiation and radioactivity. In particular, members of the public often panic and tend to attribute all real and perceived health problems to the effects of radiation. Emergency response personnel sometimes hesitate to approach the scene of... 

Perform bioassay measurements as necessary (probably at end of shift or the following day) to determine uptake of radionuclides by medical and emergency response personnel. 

The PHN and other emergency response personnel may harbor concerns about their ability to respond in a clinically responsible way. A survey entitled, Ready and Willing revealed that 80% of nurses and physicians polled are willing to respond to a disaster while only 20 % feel that they have the knowledge and skills to do so safely [Health Affairs, 2003). Preparing public health professionals to respond to incidents that they have never seen before and may encounter very infrequently requires new and creative approaches to education and training. (See chapter 28, Directions for Nursing Education, for further discussion.)... 

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