Training targets haz mats

The Cayman Islands Government is well on its way to forming a multi-agency plan to handle emergencies involving hazardous substances.

The HAZWOPER course included a practical exercise involving a scenario in which a chemical spill has occurred and participants must follow procedures to identify, isolate and remove the contaminating substance. Twenty-plus participants from eight local agencies were involved in the exercise under the guidance of the Texas A & M National Spill Control School. Here, Paul Clayson (MRCU) and Derrick Williams (DEH) enter the decontamination area where possible contaminants are cleaned from their suits by the decontamination team of Andrew McField (DEH) and Shawn Stewart (DEH). Photo: Submitted

Last week, 30 government personnel representing seven agencies attended the Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response certification training programme hosted by the Department of Environmental Health, said a GIS press release.

Facilitated by instructors from the Texas A & M National Spill Control School, the course covered oil and hazardous substances spill prevention, response and safety.

Representatives from the DEH, Water Authority Cayman, Accident and Emergency Services, HSA Public Health, the Fire Department and the Mosquito Research and Control Unit completed the full eight-hour course that emphasised team-building and contingency planning.

In addition, 12 participants completed the full 40-hour certification course which covered such topics as hazard and risk evaluation, spill response techniques and materials and personal protective equipment amongst others, the release said.

‘Developing a multi-agency team has been one of our goals from the beginning,’ said Ms. Antoinette Johnson, DEH Laboratory Senior Research Officer.

‘Our first objective was to equip our own staff to deal with hazardous materials encountered on the job as well as to respond to spills or disposal involving hazardous materials in a controlled and safe manner. Secondly, and equally importantly, was the goal of developing a national plan for responding to hazardous waste emergencies. To this end we invited participants from other agencies to take part in the training.’

Chief Environmental Health Officer, Roydell Carter added, ‘We are developing a team that will be able to respond on a national level to various types of hazardous materials incidents or related emergencies even following hurricanes. Building this team requires a multi-agency approach and the DEH is leading this effort by hosting training courses and coordinating resources.’

Instructors Roy Coons, Dr. Stephen Barnes and David Jensen from Texas A & M NSCS have a 10-year history with the Cayman Islands Government and have previously taught four courses, starting in 1999. Early this year the NSCS also assisted the DEH, DoE and other agencies in recovering more than 10,000 gallons of used oil that spilled into a canal near the George Town Landfill during Hurricane Ivan.

The NSCS is internationally recognised as a leader in its field and offers a variety of training courses in the United States and throughout the world.