IAFF Hazmat/Disaster Training (HDPT)

HDPT Program Summary Abstract Under the Hazardous Disaster Preparedness Training Program (HDPT), the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) addresses significant concerns related to a comprehensive response that encompasses planning, management, response, mitigation, and recovery during disaster related incidents to ensure emergency responder safety, protection of the community, and regulatory compliance. Providing the appropriate level of training, the IAFF’s HDPT program will help protect the health and safety of all emergency responders including firefighters, their families, and the communities they serve. Objective: The IAFF proposes to continue its worker health and safety training program under HDPT to improve first responder safety, address community resilience, and reduce the risk of worker injury or death during hazardous materials incidents and disaster response. Specific Aim 1: Enhance, revise, or develop educational materials and conduct training sessions to increase the effectiveness of hazardous materials and disaster response efforts. Specific Aim 2: Identify first responder organizations and communities at risk of encountering or being affected by hazardous materials and disaster incidents. Specific Aim 3: Implement cutting-edge evaluation methodologies to assess the efficacy of training programs and ensure compliance with the NIEHS Minimum Training Criteria Document. The IAFF targets firefighters, emergency medical workers, disaster relief workers, public health workers, and law enforcement under the HDPT program. Over the five-year grant period, the IAFF will deliver 200 classes and train 5,000 first responders. The training programs focus on Hazardous Materials Operations and Frontline Safety as well as other operational level response courses identify in the Research Strategy curricula description section. The benefits include a reduced risk of accidents and health issues associated with hazardous material exposure; Improved public health by minimizing hazardous material-related injuries and deaths; Highly trained emergency workers who can effectively respond to disaster related emergencies and protect communities.