Hazardous Materials Incident Response Essay

In order to mitigate exposure to harmful substances, first responders are trained to be familiar with hazardous substance identification systems. These two systems are the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) 704 system, and the Department of Transportation (DOT) HAZMAT identification system (Weekly reading; Unit 2: Hazardous Materials Identification Systems). Deadly threats exist in the aftermath of any terrorist attacks, so first responders should be aware of these systems, and the dangers they will face.

*tell the employees about any potential hazards from the work they do, chemicals and other substances used by the business, and give employees information, instructions, training and supervision as needed (COSHH)

The first step to any emergency action plan is to conduct a hazard assessment and the best way conduct to do that is to conduct a walk-through of the facility or area (Haight, 2012). In this scenario, our facility is a service station with fuel holding tanks and convenience store items which is located in close proximity to the center of town, a housing development, an elementary school, playground, baseball field, and wooded area. The nature of the business makes it a hazard, the location of it makes it a hazard to the community. Using the General Behavior Model, possible hazards and their reactions, as well as ways to prevent them are discussed.

Hazard: A hazard is any source of potential damage, harm or adverse health effects on something or someone under certain conditions in the environment. An example would be a wet floor the service user or staff could fall and causing themselves an injury such as slipping or falling.

| The potential harm by the statement of fact is that injury or death could occur due to an explosion.

Hazards are referred to as anything that can cause harm to someone. Hazards can be found everywhere, for example, people will be able to spot hazards when travelling to work and when they are present in the workplace. Additionally, there are three main types of hazard, these are health hazards, safety hazards and security hazards. A health hazard would be a risk of somebody becoming ill from an incident. A safety hazard would associate with someone becoming injured, however a safety hazard could also relate to an incident that can be caused by broken equipment or a

2. Explain how and when to report potential health and safety risks that have been identified

Intro –What is a hazard? - Human and Physical Factors – How to manage with events

An assessment of the risks to health arising from the use of hazardous substances at work and deciding what precautions are needed,

Events which interfere with the normal operations of Hennepin Technical College (HTC) are unavoidable. The purpose of this document is to explain the actions, roles, and responsibilities that are to be taken by individuals and departments in the event of a spill or release of a hazardous chemical or waste. (Homeland Security, 2011)

Hazardous chemicals include flammable liquids, acids, gases and solvents. This should all be included in the Production Risk Assessment for each performance and should state each substance that is to be used. The substances should be used in accordance with requirements set out in the Safety Data Sheet included in the risk assessments.

Local protective measure planning equips first responders with the knowledge needed to organize efficient response results in the event of an emergency. Structured open dialogue between local emergency jurisdictions enables responders to delegate the appropriate individuals and equipment resources to the impacted local areas requiring the most aid following a terror event. By establishing a streamlined communication framework, local emergency responders can collaborate their efforts and resources to promote collective well-being. When a local emergency plan specifies what responders and resources belong where and at what time, response overlap and shortages can be avoided. Unionized response action established prior to a terrorist incident, serves to mitigate the risks, hazards and threat of injury or harm the people and property of the US face when a terrorism event occurs. Furthermore, a structured local emergency operations plan for a hazardous materials incident involving a terrorist is imperative to public health and safety, as the blueprint outlines protective measures the public can follow to minimize their exposure to dangerous substances. The people of a community affected by a terror event can be warned and notified of the event’s associated dangerous materials, which threaten their well-being, through a variety of methods such as warning sirens or horns, emergency alert systems, automated

• Investigate reasons for hazard and what preventative measures may need to be taken in thefuture

Today, the Incident Command System (ICS) is a major component of NIMS and is widely used in emergency management response. However, this was not always the case. According to David A. McEntire and Gregg Dawson, authors of the article, “The intergovernmental Context,” ICS was originally developed by the fire service in 1970. Its purpose was to assist in the command of wildfire events. It was unique because it standardized operations, yet offered flexibility so that it could be used on any number of events, regardless of size or type (McEntire & Dawson, 2007, p. 63).

The plant shall, as far as practicable, be designed to reduce the risk for any hazardous event to arise and develop into a major accident. In this context, a hazardous event will typically be release of hydrocarbons to the atmosphere, with potential to develop into a fire or explosion if ignited.