Fire department fights HAZMAT spill Published May 10, 2007 By Airman 1st Class Ashley Coomes 319th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs GRAND FORKS AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. -- Accidents happen. But when accidents involve hazardous material, things get a little stickier. The 319th Civil Engineer Squadron Fire Department stays ready for those situations by training, like on May 7. 319 CES trains new firefighters and refreshes experienced ones in the HAZMAT technician certification course. The training is the same for military and civilian firefighters, but it is still an especially important to possess in a deployed environment. "We have hazardous materials everywhere and they are constantly being transported," said Master Sgt. Lupe Diaz, 319 CES assistant fire chief. "That's why we need to be prepared." The process to secure a HAZMAT site is a long one. It takes several teams to accomplish; including research, decontamination and the actual HAZMAT technician teams. These teams all report to an incident commander. The first technician team, comprised of two personnel, goes into an incident site in full HAZMAT gear including a self-contained breathing apparatus (oxygen tank). This protects them from any harmful chemicals on the skin and in the air. While the first team evaluates the area, indicating what chemicals are present, the second team is waiting already suited up, keeping time and listening to the first team's assessment. The clock is running, and the first team only has a limited amount of time before their oxygen runs out. Just before the oxygen runs out, the first team must go through a decontamination line. This process removes any harmful chemicals from the outer layer of the suit allowing them to remove it safely. The second technician team heads out to the site continuing what the first team started. Ensuring there are no victims left on the site, they continue working to secure the hazardous material. As the technician teams continue working until their time is up, the research team gives them information to prevent any disruptions or chemical reactions. The technicians have a special video camera linked directly to the research station so they can see what is happening live. "It's a long process, but we always come up with the same result: we mitigate the situation," said Sergeant Diaz. At any given time, there are fuel trucks moving on the flightline, chlorine pumping into the fitness center pool, and various other hazardous materials being transported on base, according to Sergeant Diaz. "When a HAZMAT accident occurs, the 319 CES fire department are ready to respond and take action," said Sergeant Diaz.