HAZWOPER training preps responders for chemical spills, other hazardous situations

EARLY ON NOV. 27, 2017, the Monday after Thanksgiving, nine cars on a CSX train hauling molten sulfur derailed in the area of Kathleen and Strickland roads in Lakeland, Fla. That’s just a few miles northwest of the Safety Solutions & Supply headquarters in Mulberry, Fla.

As a result of the derailment, two of the rail cars leaked. One was carrying the molten sulfur; the other contained cooking oil. Emergency responders, which included hazmat (hazardous materials) personnel from Polk County Fire Rescue, reported that several thousand gallons of the sulfur leaked onto the ground.

The accident was a stark and close-by reminder of the dangerous environment in which we live, an environment that includes hazardous chemicals passing right through our neighborhoods on any given day — sometimes several times during a single day. The incident was a reminder, too, that accidents of his magnitude can happen at any time and that emergency responders have to be ready to quickly deal with them. It was a reminder of the crucial responsibility we have at Safety Solutions & Supply to train people for hazmat situations and to train them well.

Our professional and certified instructors routinely lead classes in emergency response, with eight of those classes dealing directly or indirectly with hazmat situations, requiring HAZWOPER-trained personnel. (HAZWOPER stands for Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response. HAZWOPER training is covered under federal OSHA Standard 29 CFR Part 1910.120.) Those classes are:

  • HAZWOPER Incident Command

  • HAZWOPER Incident Command Refresher

  • HAZWOPER Operations 8 Hours

  • HAZWOPER Site Worker 40 Hours

  • HAZWOPER Technician 24 Hours

  • HAZWOPER Site Worker Refresher 8 Hours

  • HAZWOPER Technician 8 Hours — Hazmat Technician Refresher

  • Ammonia Suppression Training

Details about each of these classes can be found on our website. A good place to start would be https://solutionsinsafety.com/training/emergency-response/.

The team here at Safety Solutions & Supply understands that the most active and challenging regulatory standards to maintain compliance with are those dealing with commercial vehicle operation and shipment of hazardous materials. Our team of professionals continuously monitor the regulations to ensure that our training programs meet company and emergency responder needs. From general driver training and updates to hazardous materials transportation, our team will develop curriculum to ensure that hazmat workers, technicians, and emergency response personnel are fully trained, knowledgeable, qualified, and certified by all relevant regulatory agencies, including OSHA.

For details about the wide-ranging safety training offered by Safety Solutions & Supply in Mulberry, Fla., and Gonzales, La., go to https://solutionsinsafety.com/training/. For an up-to-date class schedule, go to https://solutionsinsafety.com/upcoming-events/.