Fire Ops 101 Hazardous Materials Team

Welcome to a new year, 2011 promises to be one full of excitement, good health, and a return to better times! The next team up for review is our Hazardous Materials team. In 2005 the Middletown Fire Department determined it was in the City’s best interest to form a team. There were gaps in the State and City as it related to Hazardous Materials response and mitigation. In the fire service there are many talented individuals who are HAZMAT experts. The department decided to tap into those resources and form a team. Through a grant, the team was formed and the hard work began. Because hazardous material responses can be dangerous to the public and responding agencies, it was decided that we move from operational level to technician level. Gaining the equipment for the team was a small hurdle. Training the team was the number one priority, while making sure everything was in place for their safety along with the public.

Training began with a 40 hour technician class, certified by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The entire department was trained to this level. After that was completed, it was decided to add 120 hours of Technician training. 24 firefighters became hazardous materials technicians through training provided by the International Association of Fire Fighters through a federally funded grant. By becoming Hazardous Materials Technicians, the department was able to mitigate any and all hazards which happen in the City. Most fire departments are at the operational level which allows them to keep the public safe while dealing with most small incidents. Middletown Fire is capable of stopping and reversing incidents which threaten the health and well being of our community. Today the department has 29 hazardous materials technicians and operational personnel on the team. These technicians can enter any hazardous atmospheres and mitigate the incident.

Each year the team members must maintain their skills by completing a minimum of 32 hours training on mock incidents. The team averages around 40 training hours per member annually. Five new technicians for the year 2010 put in over 200 hundred hours of training. These hours are separate of the almost 750 combined hours the team trained this year. Through cooperation from the department, the City of Middletown, and Local 1073 of the International Association of Fire Fighters these hours meet and exceed NFPA 472. For those who are unfamiliar with this standard, it is the National Fire Protection Associations standard which governs Hazardous Materials teams and their training. Along with a very strong cache of equipment, this team is well trained and ready for any incident which may happen. The department has a Hazardous Materials response vehicle along with a Mass Decontamination Trailer to respond with. This trailer is capable of decontaminating almost 100 people per hour under perfect conditions. Combined with other units strategically located around the state we are well prepared for any terrorist act or emergency. Level A entries (fully encapsulating suits) can be performed by our team for all types of chemical emergencies.

The goals for the team in 2011 are very technical and rigorous. We will be planning to get some of our technicians the Chemistry of Hazardous Materials training through the National Fire Academy. This is an 80 hour course held in conjunction with the Unites States Fire Administration at their Emmitsburg Maryland facility. This training is provided free to all fire departments nationwide. We have scheduled training with the Middletown Water Department, and the Mattabasset Waste Water facility. There will be training with the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection HazMat unit, along with the United States Army Chemical Response Unit detailed for the State of Connecticut. The team will also be pursuing a relationship and training with the Capital Region HazMat team. This will be a very busy year for our HazMat unit.

This completes the series on our technical response teams. If you have followed from the start you have witnessed the dedication of the members of the Middletown Fire Department. Each individual puts in many hours of training on these specialty teams, along with their required training for their everyday job duties. Our department is highly motivated and very well trained in all aspects of fire suppression, technical rescue, emergency medical response, and fire prevention. It is a credit to the department, the City of Middletown, and her residents. We would like to especially thank our citizens, the city and department administrations and response partners, Middletown Police, South Fire, Westfield Fire, Hunters Ambulance, and Middlesex Paramedics who continue to dedicate themselves to making our city a safe and healthy community.

If you have any questions regarding this team, please feel free to contact any of the following people. Chief Gary Ouellette, Deputy Chief Robert Kronenberger, Battalion Chief Steven LaRosa, or Lieutenant Albert Leary at (860) 343-8004. We will be glad to assist you in any questions you may have.

The next part of our series will detail the entire department and all of our services which are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Again special thanks go out to our customers, the citizens of Middletown. Without you, none of this would be possible.