Procedures for IDLH Atmospheres

For all IDLH atmospheres, the company shall ensure that one employee or, when needed, more than one employee is located outside the IDLH atmosphere. Visual, voice, or signal line communication must be maintained between the employee(s) in the IDLH atmosphere and the employee(s) located outside the IDLH atmosphere. The employee(s) located outside the IDLH atmosphere shall be trained and equipped to provide effective emergency rescue. The company or designee must be notified before the employee(s) located outside the IDLH atmosphere enter the IDLH atmosphere to provide emergency rescue. The company or designee authorized to do so by the company, once notified, shall provide necessary assistance appropriate to the situation. Employee(s) located outside the IDLH atmospheres must be equipped with 

Pressure demand or other positive pressure SCBAs, or a pressure demand or other positive pressure supplied-air respirator with auxiliary SCBA. 

Appropriate retrieval equipment for removing the employee(s) who enter(s) these hazardous atmospheres where retrieval equipment would contribute to the rescue of the employee(s) and would not increase the overall risk resulting from entry or an equivalent means for rescue where retrieval equipment is not required. 

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Procedures for IDLH atmospheres. Forall IDLH atmospheres, the employer shall ensure that ... 

A bromine spill would cause bromine vapor concentrations in the unventilated laboratory to reach IDLH values in less than 1 min, an instantaneously dangerous situation. Even if the laboratory were ventilated, the flowrate necessary to keep the concentration of the atmosphere below the TLV cannot be achieved by practical means. Procedures for the prevention of such spills must be carefully developed, and materials necessary to neutralize a bromine spill must be readily available to minimize the danger posed by the use of this chemical. 

Establishing procedures for the use of respirators in IDLH atmospheres or in interior structural firefighting situations. 

This written procedure is prepared for safe respirator use in IDLH atmospheres that may occur in normal operations or emergencies. All Company personnel covered under this program are to be familiar with these procedures and respirators. 

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