Ch. 1 Intro to HAZMAT

Question 1

Substances that possess harmful characteristics are called …

Answer 1

… hazardous materials in the US and dangerous goods in Canada and other countries.

Question 2

CBRNE

Answer 2

Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, or Explosive

Question 3

When CBRNEs are used as weapons, they are referred to as …

Answer 3

…WMDs

Question 4

A hazardous materials/WMD incident is an emergency involving …

Answer 4

… a substance that poses an unreasonable risk to people, the environment, and/or property

Question 5

Potential causes of hazmat incidents …

Answer 5

Human error
Mechanical breakdowns/malfunctions
Container failure
Transportation accidents
Deliberate acts (Chemical suicide, WMD incidents)

Question 6

Often, hazardous materials/WMDs are involved in …

Answer 6

… fires, explosions, and criminal or terrorist activities

Question 7

Hazardous materials may …

Answer 7

Present a variety of dangers, sometimes in small quantities
Be extremely difficult to contain and/or control
Require specialized equipment, procedures, and PPE to mitigate safety
Be difficult to detect, requiring sophisticated monitoring and detection equipment to identify and predict their severity

Question 8

Awareness Level Personnel …

Answer 8

… are typically at the incident when it occurs. They perform limited defensive actions, such as calling for help, evacuating the hazard area, and securing the scene

Question 9

Operations Level Personnel …

Answer 9

… are dispatched to the scene in order to mitigate the incident. They are allowed to perform defensive actions, but, with some exceptions, they are not expected to come into direct contact with the hazardous material

Question 10

Operations Mission Specific Personnel …

Answer 10

… may be trained beyond the set of core competencies to perform additional defensive tasks and limited offensive actions. These may include using specialized equipment and performing tasks where they might come into contact with the hazardous material

Question 11

HAZMAT Tech

Answer 11

Performs offensive tasks, including controlling releases at hazmat incidents and may supervise the activities of Operations level responders performing Mission-Specific tasks

Question 12

HAZMAT Tech w/Specialty

Answer 12

Provides additional expertise in areas, such as radiation, monitoring and detection equipment, or certain container types

Question 13

HAZMAT IC

Answer 13

Manages the incident by making command decisions to utilize resources and determine strategies and tactics to mitigate the emergency

Question 14

HAZMAT Officer

Answer 14

Manages the hazmat personnel and operations under the direction of the IC

Question 15

HAZMAT Safety Officer

Answer 15

Ensures that recognized safe practices are followed at hazmat incidents

Question 16

Specialists

Answer 16

Provide expertise in specialized areas, such as chemicals, processes, containers, and special operations, typically in an advisory capacity

Question 17

APIE

Answer 17

Analyze the incident
Plan the initial response
Implement the response
Evaluate progress

Question 18

Analyze the Incident

Answer 18

Problem solving process, personnel and responders attempt to understand the current situation. Identify the hazmat involved, what containers are present, quantity of materials released, number of exposures, potential hazards, and other relevant information needed to plan a safe and effective response

Question 19

Plan the Initial Response

Answer 19

Use information gathered during the analysis phase to determine what actions need to be taken to mitigate the incident

Question 20

Implement the Response

Answer 20

Perform the tasks determined in the planning stage. When implementing the response, responders direct actions to mitigate the incident

Question 21

Evaluate Progress

Answer 21

Continues throughout the incident until termination

Question 22

Operations Level Responders …

Answer 22

… are expected to protect individuals, the environment, and property from the effects of the release in a primarily defensive manner.

Question 23

Operations level include Awareness level responsibilities …

Answer 23

… as well as
Identify potential hazards involved in an incident
Identify response options
Implement planned response to mitigate or control a release from a safe distance by performing assigned tasks to lessen the harmful incident and keep it from spreading
Evaluate the progress of the actions taken to ensure that response objectives are safely met

Question 24

Operations Mission Specific Level

Answer 24

PPE
Mass Decontamination
Technical Decontamination
Evidence preservation and sampling 
Product control
Air monitoring and sampling
Victim rescue and recovery
Response to illicit laboratory incidents

Question 25

Acute exposure

Answer 25

Single exposure or several repeated exposures to a substance within a short time period. Appear within hours or days such as vomiting or diarrhea Example: phosgene

Question 26

Chronic exposure

Answer 26

Long term, reoccurring. May take years to develop, such as cancer

Question 27

Routes of Entry

Answer 27

Inhalation Ingestion Absorption Injection

Question 28

Three Mechanisms of Harm

Answer 28

Energy release Corrosivity Toxicity

Question 29

Energy Release

Answer 29

``` Heat (Thermal hazards) Mechanical Energy Pressure Electricity Chemical Radiation ```

Question 30

Mechanical Energy ...

Answer 30

... possessed by objects due to their position or motion. Can be injured by flying or falling objects, such as the failure of a pressurized container, an explosive detonation, a shifting container, or the reactivity of the hazardous material itself. Friction injuries can cause skin abrasions, blisters, and burns

Question 31

Radiation ...

Answer 31

... is energy emitted in particles or waves. Can occur at medical centers, certain industrial operations, nuclear power plants, and research facilities. Possible exposure from terrorist attacks

Question 32

Corrosives ...

Answer 32

... are chemicals that destroy or burn living tissues and have destructive effects by virtue of their corrosively (ability to cause corrosion, particularly to metals) With the exception of liquid and gas fuels, corrosives comprise the largest usage class (by volume) in industry

Question 33

Toxic ...

Answer 33

Chemicals or biological substances that cause sickness, illness, or injury by doing damage on the molecular scale when in contact with the body