Record heat is spreading across the United States. Explore the heatwave forecast for your county and track weekly cases of heat-related illness across the country with the CDC Heat & Health Tracker.

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.

Stacked disasters – like a winter storm that damages a water system during a pandemic – can provide lessons for the next time around. AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis By Tiffany A. Radcliff, Texas A&M University and Angela Clendenin, Texas A&M University While the world is still reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic, public health and emergency… Read more »

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.

During an interview with ABC News medical correspondent Jennifer Ashton, Fauci was asked whether the U.S. would one day recommend eye protection, such as face shields, due to the pandemic. Dr. Anthony Fauci responds, “If you have goggles or an eye shield, you should use it. It’s not universally recommended, but if you really want to be complete, you should probably use it if you can.”

This mapping tool by the Harvard Global Health Institute shows how severe the pandemic is where you live. The COVID Risk Level map shows the current risk level by county according to a seven day average of daily cases per 100k people.

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.

The following COVID-19 resources provide guidance on the processes for cleaning and disinfecting protective garments and PAPRs in the event that they may have been exposed to COVID-19 and to ensure proper hygiene practices between uses.

These are excellent resources for videos on safely removing disposable gowns, face masks and gloves amid the COVID-19 pandemic. These videos are consistent with CDC recommendations as of March 24, 2020.