The Dangers and Procedures of HAZMAT Diving

The Dangers and Procedures of HAZMAT Diving

Hazardous materials (Hazmat) diving can be exceptionally dangerous. Divers work in precarious conditions and regularly expose themselves to radioactive or other dangerous material. But the dangers these divers face are minimized through intense training, durable commercial dive gear, and a thorough decontamination processes.   HAZMAT Dangers   Many bodies of water contain some sort of contamination. HAZMAT divers face a high level of contaminant exposure. They require specialized commercial dive gear, as well as intensive decontamination procedures, to ensure their general safety.   For divers working in mildly-contaminated water, gloves, a utility belt, and a simple dry suit with a sealed neck should suffice. For water that is 'lightly' contaminated, a full face mask is recommended.   Divers working in exceptionally dirty and/or hazardous conditions require a full dive helmet, a stronger suit, and other specialized commercial dive gear. For example, the Thor Contaminated Water Diving Suit is built for highly contaminated water, and features vulcanized rubber that is strong enough to resist contaminants, and pliable enough to accomplish critical underwater tasks.   For full-on hazardous material tasks, like those involving radioactive material, a full HAZMAT-ready suit may be required.   The Decontamination Process   No matter how strong your protective suit, and commercial dive gear may be, decontamination procedures are crucial. Not only are these processes necessary to ensure the diver’s safety, but they also protect the team, and anyone else who may be within chemical or radioactive reach of the decontamination area.   Decontamination procedures vary from job to job as the chemical, and HAZMAT profile for each dive area will be different. The more hazardous the elements in the water, the more thorough the decontamination process will be. However, the process also depends on the type of equipment used, and the level of protection the equipment offers.   Here are a few things to remember about the decontamination process:     Decontamination areas should be set up in zones: High-contamination zones to remove the bulk of HAZMAT materials; Low-contamination zones to work as a buffer; and a final safe zone, ideally located upwind, that will be entirely free of hazardous materials. The high-contamination zone needs to be in a water-impermeable area where potential contaminants can be captured, and properly disposed of. During this stage, the diver will be rinsed with fresh water from a high-pressure system. If fresh water is unavailable, salt water can be used as a substitute. A cleaning solution may be required. Although the exact mixture depends on the contaminants present, a 5% bleach solution is most frequently used. Either long or short-handled wire brushes are used to clean the diver. Short-handled brushes are ideal for more intricate cleaning. Generally, the decontamination process involves more than one person—one to spray and clean the diver, and another to look for holes or other compromises in the dive suit fabric.   Ready, Set, Dive Although HAZMAT divers face several dangers within their profession, safety risks can be minimized through proper HAZMAT commercial dive gear, and decontamination procedures. With the proper training and certification, potential issues or concerns can be put at ease.   To learn more about HAZMAT diving equipment, and the options currently available, be sure to give us a call at Aqua-Air Industries today. We have a wide range of commercial diving products that can aid in HAZMAT and other diving jobs.

Why Do Department Dive Teams Need Public Safety Training?

General Information about ERDI Training

A Typical Scenario:

It is 4 am when the dispatcher turns in the call for a car overturned in the river. Two local firemen who are also divers jump in a pick up truck loaded with the dive gear from yesterday's recreational diving and drive to the scene. Upon arriving they immediately suit up and jump into the river to effect rescue. As soon as they step into the water they notice that the current is much faster than they expected and that the water is much colder.

The first diver uses the current and drifts to the car and grabs on, the second diver follows. The first diver crawls inside the open passenger door to search for the victim. As the second diver reaches the car his recreational gear becomes entangled. His weight causes the car to shift and roll in the current. He travels down stream in the current and catches an overhanging tree branch. The first diver is effectively trapped in the car only three feet from the surface. When public safety officials arrive they immediately commence a surface rescue procedure to retrieve the second would be rescuer from the tree branch. They also called for a dive team from a neighboring county to rescue the diver in the car.

Unfortunately by the time the dive team arrives their rescue is a body recovery. The driver of the car comes back to the scene with the Highway Patrol Officer just as they pull the body of the first diver from the water. The driver had escaped from the vehicle and walked to a neighboring house to call the Highway Patrol.

The efforts of these well intentioned but under trained divers resulted in a needless fatality and putting numerous other professionals at needless risk. The scene portrayed here is fiction, but, scenes like it happen every year. The reason is not really a lack of training, that is a symptom. The real reason is the failure of administrators to realize the need for specialized training and equipment in the field of Public Safety Diving.

Before starting a dive team, each department must weigh the cost of accomplishing the task properly versus the benefit for the community. What will your community gain? Are other resources available to accomplish the same goals. If you decide a dive team is necessary then please decide to adequately equip and train that team. This information will give you the questions you should ask about the training you will receive.

Do you need Public Safety Training?

Diving is a specialized activity taking place in a hazardous environment. That is why even recreational divers require certification to access equipment, air fills and dive sites. That recreational certification (called open water) qualifies divers to dive in reasonably calm, clear conditions at depths not to exceed 60 feet. In the recreational diving industry that certification is frequently referred to as a permit to learn, just as a learner's permit is issued to a person completing high school drivers education. We do not allow the learning permitee to drive without supervision, much less operate an emergency vehicle in route to an accident or fire scene. Yet many departments feel that open water training qualifies the diver to dive in the hazardous environments encountered by the Public Safety Dive Team.

Many teams have fallen victim to the Rescue Diver Certification farce. Recognizing the need for additional training the administrator seeks out "professional assistance" from the local dive store. The dive store instructor provides all that he is able to provide, a recreational certification as a Rescue Diver. Most recreational training agencies define their Rescue Diver Course as a self and buddy rescue program. This is adequate for helping your buddy who gets in trouble at 45 feet on the coral reef in the Keys, but not much assistance in the Public Safety Environment.

The diving environment qualifies in every area as a HAZMAT site. Add fuels and oils from a submerged vehicle and we have put multiple hazardous chemicals around the diver. Additionally, those chemicals will destroy the divers life support system if they are inadequate for the job. Place the diver inside the vehicle to do a recovery and we have added confined space rescue in a HAZMAT environment to the picture.

How many department administrators would take a person off the street with no formal training and place them in that situation above water?

Applied to other areas, imagine taking a person off the sidewalk handing them bunker gear and sending them into a burning building or sending a person to do hostage negotiation with only the information found in over the counter magazines. Yet, almost daily departments do just that with department dive team members or even bystanders that happen to dive. Is this an invitation to disaster? Should you ask the members of your department to accept or even volunteer to be a part of this potential disaster?

So how do you select and understand the type of training you are getting?

When contracting the initial training for your dive team you will probably be limited to two sources - sport certification instructors and agencies that specialize in training public safety divers. The other limited but possible resource is technical agency instructors with specialized experience in rescue operations. The advantage to sport instruction is cost and availability. The drawback is an instructional program which generally prohibits the training of professional diving activities or any diving activity outside the traditional recreational limits. The training focuses on avoiding the situations the public safety diver will encounter on 90% of all calls. Additionally the instructor probably lacks any public safety experience.

From a liability perspective, this may place the department in an indefensible position if training is questioned. From a safety perspective we have created an accident waiting for a scene. These factors are addressed by hiring public safety diving instructional specialist with verifiable credentials and experience. The drawback is availability, since local resources frequently don't exist. That lack of availability will probably increase cost. The department must decide if the increased safety and reduced liability are worth a few extra dollars. That is part of the team's obligation.

How do you qualify the instructor?

The first question to ask is what are the instructor’s qualifications?

What technical, rescue or public safety diving certification courses can the instructor teach?

Are those courses certified through a recreational training agency?

If so, does the agency also endorse the training of professional public safety divers?

Is the training NFPA and OSHA compliant (not compliant with some perceived provisional exemption!)?

Next, contact the certifying agency of the instructor. Ascertain:

1) Does the agency endorse the training of professional or commercial divers for Public Safety Operations;

2) Does the instructor’s insurance cover him for teaching these types of activities;

3) If the agency finds that their training is questioned in court does the certifying agency have any training standard or provision which would indicate the Public Safety Diver was diving beyond the realm of his certification and training; and

4) You may also want to verify the certification level and reputation of the specific instructor with whom you are dealing.

Please email omnidive@omnidivers.com if you are interested or want additional information.

ERDI Course Options

ERDI Diver Level Courses
ERD I
ERD II

ERDI Non-Diver Level Course
ERD Tender

ERDI (Operations) OPS Component Courses

ERD Drysuit OPS
ERD Full Face Mask OPS
ERD Ice Diving OPS
ERD Confined Space OPS
ERD Night OPS
ERD Small Boat OPS
ERD Surface Supplied OPS

ERDI Leadership Course

ERD Supervisor

ERDI Professional Courses

ERD Instructor
ERD OPS Components Instructor
ERD Instructor Trainer

PSI/PCI Visual Cylinder Inspection Course - July 29, 2006

July 9, 2006

Worldwide Training in High Pressure Cylinder Safety

Greetings,

Thank you for your interest in the upcoming PSI Visual Cylinder Inspector training.

The next course in your area will be held Saturday, July 29, 2006 at Washougal, WA and starts promptly at 8:30 am. Directions to the training site at
www.omnidivers.com/visualcylinderinspectionclasses.html.

This certification course teaches the basics of conducting the annual visual inspections of solid wall and composite SCUBA and SCBA cylinders. The 7 - 8 hour course is suited for those new to visual inspection well as those who have been inspecting without formal training through its wide range of inspection subjects including damage limits, neck cracking, and laws affecting inspectors. In addition, this course meets the OSHA and DOT requirements for employee HAZMAT training and attendants completing the course are qualified to conduct "in-house" HAZMAT training for cylinder handlers. Previously certified inspectors may attend this full course or the Refresher Course for re-qualification. The course is open to anyone 16 years or older and no previous cylinder inspection experience is required. Participates receive certification as Visual Cylinder Inspectors upon course completion.

The course tuition is $250.00 and includes the text book "Inspecting Cylinders" by Bill High, a course curriculum workbook; supplemental materials and certification are also included in the course tuition.

If you have any other questions before the class is scheduled feel free to contact me directly.

Thanks again for you interest in our training program.

Regards,

Phil Graf
PSI Instructor # 130
omnidive@omnidivers.com

For more information about Visual Cylinder Training, both SCBA and SCUBA, contact omnidive@omnidivers.com.

Link at
www.omnidivers.com/visualcylinderinspection.html.

Link at
www.omnidivers.com/visualcylinderinspectionclasses.html

PSI/PCI Visual Cylinder Inspection Course - July 8, 2006

July 4, 2006

Worldwide Training in High Pressure Cylinder Safety

Greetings,

Thank you for your interest in the upcoming PSI Visual Cylinder Inspector training.

The next course in your area will be held Saturday, July 8, 2006 at Washougal, WA and starts promptly at 8:30 am. Directions to the training site at
www.omnidivers.com/visualcylinderinspectionclasses.html.

This certification course teaches the basics of conducting the annual visual inspections of solid wall and composite SCUBA and SCBA cylinders. The 7 - 8 hour course is suited for those new to visual inspection well as those who have been inspecting without formal training through its wide range of inspection subjects including damage limits, neck cracking, and laws affecting inspectors. In addition, this course meets the OSHA and DOT requirements for employee HAZMAT training and attendants completing the course are qualified to conduct "in-house" HAZMAT training for cylinder handlers. Previously certified inspectors may attend this full course or the Refresher Course for re-qualification. The course is open to anyone 16 years or older and no previous cylinder inspection experience is required. Participates receive certification as Visual Cylinder Inspectors upon course completion.

The course tuition is $250.00 and includes the text book "Inspecting Cylinders" by Bill High, a course curriculum workbook; supplemental materials and certification are also included in the course tuition.

If you have any other questions before the class is scheduled feel free to contact me directly.

Thanks again for you interest in our training program.

Regards,

Phil Graf
PSI Instructor # 130
omnidive@omnidivers.com

For more information about Visual Cylinder Training, both SCBA and SCUBA, contact omnidive@omnidivers.com.

Link at
www.omnidivers.com/visualcylinderinspection.html.

Link at
www.omnidivers.com/visualcylinderinspectionclasses.html