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Sep 15, 2023

Beaumont Fire Rescue hazmat emergency preparedness

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BEAUMONT, Texas — In less than a month's time, Southeast Texas first responders have dealt with three hazmat emergencies.

On Saturday, April 8, 2023, three people were injured in an explosion at AmSpec, LLC near Nederland.

On Thursday, April 13, 2023, a tanker truck dumped an 'unknown substance' on a property on Old Highway 90 near Interstate 10 in Vidor. Those tests results came back inconclusive.

On Tuesday, April 25, 2023, two people were taken to a hospital after Trimac Transportation employees were washing out trucks carrying hazardous material and opened a valve, which led to a leak on Washington Boulevard in Beaumont.

Beaumont Fire Rescue's Hazmat 68 truck is one firefighters use when called to a hazmat emergency.

The truck stores life-saving equipment inside, such as a kiddie pool that is used when a person needs to decontaminated from a liquid or powder.

Pads and kitty litter are also kept on-hand to help absorb hydrocarbon.

The truck also has a built in operation center where first responders can go on their device and research hazardous materials.

What first responders see, smell and hear on the scene can help them make split second decisions, like choosing between four different hazmat suits with varying coverage levels.

"We have crews that are investigating the product. What is it? How does it react? What type of clothing do we need. What type of respiratory protection do we need," said District Chief Scott Wheat of the Beaumont Fire Department. "How long can we be inside of the atmosphere safely with our PPE. So, it's pretty intense and it's pretty in-depth."

The suits were used during the Washington Boulevard leak.

"We road in with the operations side, specifically hazmat set up an entry team, and a backup team. and we went inside with protective suits and isolated the valves to basically keep that product contained where it was supposed to be," Wheat said.

Hazmat training happens several times a year. Once on scene of a contamination, firefighters refer back to their training.

"Plugging and patching is basically stopping the product where it's at. Damming and diking is holding the product back, or letting it flow a certain direction," said Hazmat B Team Shift Leader Captain T.J Thornton.

Overpack is taking a product of something that's leaking and putting it in somewhere, like a container, so they can dispose of it safely, according to Thornton.

Beaumont Fire Rescue workers say their main hazmat calls are to truck crashes.

If you are ever in an accident where you suspect a hazardous leak, you may think you should call 911 first, but firefighters say, give yourself some distance before you call 911.