Recovery Hazards After Texas Wildfires
Posted:
Wednesday, October 26th, 2011
Category:
OSHA and Safety
After days of cruel conditions creating firebreaks to contain the unprecedented wildfires in Texas, firefighters have finally caught a break—the winds have died down, and firefighters, local authorities, and nervous residents hope that they stay down. The chances of that are good (considering that Tropical Storm Lee, which had been fanning the flames, has dissipated), and already about 30 percent of the big wildfire (the biggest one in the outbreak so far) in Bastrop has been contained following three successive blustery days that brought the number of destroyed homes to 800 from 600.
The task of recovery is daunting because of the scale of the disaster, and hazardous because of the significant dangers that will remain after the fires are extinguished. Search and recovery teams and cleanup crews that will be sent in will face such hazards as smoldering fire, CO2 poisoning, electrical dangers, extreme heat and cold, respiratory hazards, and hazardous materials.
For this reason, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) protocols and OSHA training—specifically, HAZWOPER training—will play significant roles in the cleanup and recovery operations in the weeks after the fire crews finally stand down. HAZWOPER is Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response, a program designed and implemented by the OSHA to protect workers at hazardous sites.
Oshacampus.com, the largest provider of OSHA training, offers online the following HAZWOPER training courses: 8-hour HAZWOPER, 24-hour HAZWOPER, and 40-hour HAZWOPER. The last is especially relevant to the Texas cleanup crews because it covers cleanup operations, emergency-response operations, and storage, disposal, or treatment of hazardous substances or uncontrolled hazardous waste sites.
