Nelson Fire Rescue and the Justice Institute of BC hosted a hazmat technician last week, which culminated Friday with exams and hands-on testing at Selkirk College’s Rosemont campus.
The students, all experienced specialist members of fire departments and heavy industry from around the West Kootenay, took the course to learn how to not only identify hazardous materials involved in incidents and protect citizens from the effects of their release, but also to minimize those releases and stop them altogether.
From acids to bases, fuels to explosives, solids to liquids to gases, students learned to safely test for various dangerous materials and counteract their negative effects. Pictured, a decontamination team, in yellow, removes hazardous materials from the technicians, in blue, involved in containing a simulated gas leak.