Micro-hospitals and freestanding emergency rooms are popping up all around the country. Just like traditional hospitals, these facilities must meet CMS guidelines and have an Emergency Operations Plan in place to address hazard vulnerabilities. Consider a scenario where a contaminated patient enters the building and needs decontamination, is there a plan to address this situation? DQE’s Micro-Hospital Patient Decontamination System provides a simple, professional, and affordable approach to patient decontamination.

Hazardous Material Response Team participates in an exercise at an area near the DoD Fire Academy Training Pad. The team consists of members from the Fire Department, Emergency Management Flight, and Bio-Environmental Flight. It offers an excellent opportunity to maintain proficiency in dealing with hazardous materials.

Incirlik Air Base Fire Department and 39th Civil Engineer Squadron explosives ordnance disposal members perform decontamination procedures during a Major Accident Response Exercise.

A member of the Kosovo Security Force HAZMAT Company conducts decontamination procedures during a training scenario at the Joint Multinational Training Center in Hohenfels, Germany, on Nov. 2, 2020. The KSF is attending a JMRC rotation to build relationships and interoperability with the incoming international units deploying as part of Kosovo Force 28, a NATO organization dedicated to the safety and security of all people in Kosovo. The HAZMAT unit is trained to quickly set up remote decontamination and testing stations in response to reports of hazardous material.

Every community needs to plan and prepare for the risks of HazMat, CBRN, and mass casualty incidents. These emergency plans should include policies for quick and efficient decontamination of contaminated victims. DQE, the leader in portable decontamination systems, introduces the MasCas® II Decontamination Shower, a durable, lightweight, multi-victim decon shower with a fast-deploying design for technical decontamination.

A new virtual toolkit from NIOSH is intended to help protect first responders from exposure to illicit drugs. Illicit drugs include fentanyl, opioids, cocaine, cannabinoids, methamphetamines, heroin, cathinone, etc. This free resource features sharable training videos, infographics, and postcards.

The Shaken Fury Exercise focused on a simulated major earthquake in Memphis, Tennessee that will impact middle America including the state of Alabama. The exercise was designed to test communications, situational awareness systems and networks; simulate coordinated responses during structural damage and life-threatening mass casualty incidents; and coordinate responses to a HAZMAT incident caused by the earthquake.

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), citing evidence in a peer-reviewed study, has added a new step to its decontamination guidance for chemical incidents. It calls for exposed people to first wipe themselves off with dry, absorbent materials, such as towels or washcloths before they pass through a water spray. “Disrobing and dry… Read more »

Is the increased awareness about the risk of cancer moving firefighters to take action? An extensive amount of information has been developed by fire service organizations like the IAFC and IAFF as well as non-fire service organizations like the Fire Fighter Cancer Foundation and the Firefighter Cancer Support Network to educate us on the benefits of post-fire decontamination of your body and… Read more »

In the midst of the 2014 Ebola epidemic, the U.S. Agency for International Development commenced the Ebola Design Challenge to contribute to the global community’s response to the epidemic in West Africa. This brought about a product called Highlight, a powder that adds color to bleach to increase its effectiveness as a decontaminant and ensure… Read more »