TARGET AUDIENCE:
All fire parties, damage control personnel, fire marshals, gas free engineers, gas free petty officers,
rescue and assistance details, and command duty officers
REQUIREMENT:
Initial and annual training, with drill, according to OPNAVINST 5100.19B.
INTRODUCTION:
There are significant hazards associated with handling hazardous materials under a controlled
situation, even more during a spill or emergency situation. A hazardous material spill can be a threat to
the safety of the ship, the environment, and personnel. Users can usually handle small spills, less than 5
gallons of low toxicity material. Material safety data sheets (MSDSs) provide spill cleanup information.
Larger spills of highly toxic, flammable, or explosive material can cause extensive damage to the ship and
personnel injuries. As with any threat to the ship, damage control teams are tasked with responding and
handling the emergency.
I. BACKGROUND
A. The Navy has established the Hazardous Material (HM) Program to provide the precautions
and procedures to safely handle these materials.
B. Steps must be taken to prevent hazardous material spills from occurring.
1. The HM coordinator, along with the DCA, pinpoint those places aboard ship that are
potential spill areas.
2. Potential spill areas include storerooms, stores-handling elevators and conveyers, crane-
handling areas, in-use storage areas, sumps and tanks, and certain evolutions, such as
UNREP/RAS, when spills may occur.
3. Periodic checking of these areas, especially after heavy weather, may alert you to a spill.
4. Environmental contamination of navigable waterways must be prevented!
C. Spillage, or accidental release of hazardous materials, must be handled with the proper
protective clothing and with the correct procedures to avoid personnel injuries and damage to
the ship.
1. Damage control personnel, CDOs, fire marshals, gas free personnel, and the DCA must be
trained in spill response.
2. An annual spill response drill must be conducted.
3. Each member of the damage control team must be aware of the potential hazards of
hazardous material spills. They must handle each spill as a special case. The DCA,
CDO, or fire marshal will evaluate the spill and instruct team members in cleanup pro-
cedures.
4. Spills of oil, OTTO fuel, PCBs, radioactive material, mercury, CHT, and hydraulic fluid
are handled by separate instructions. Specialized spill kits are available for each of these
items, and trained spill teams generally respond to these types of spills.
5. Damage control personnel may be called upon to respond to spills of paint, thinner, dry-
cleaning fluid, lube oil, acid, boiler water and feedwater chemicals, or laundry
products.
Figure 1-1.—Sample lesson plan—Continued.
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