On January 26th and 27th, the Galveston County Office of Emergency management hosted the H200: Hazardous Materials First Responder Operations Training.  The class is offered by the Governor's Division of Emergency Management and funded through their Hazardous Materials Emergency Preparedness (HMEP) Training Grant.  The training is provided at no cost to the County or the enrolled students.  The only stipulation is that the students must be public employees.

During the 16 hour course, students learned about regulatory overview, basic hazardous material terms, basic hazard risk assessment, the use of protective equipment, how to perform control, containment and confined operations as well as basic decontamination procedures.  As part of the training, the students participated in a group exercise that included donning personal protective equipment, assessing a mock hazardous materials scene, containment procedures and mock decontamination station.  "Because the course provided both classroom and hands-on training, we were given the opportunity to put what we learned in the classroom to work out in the field," says Colin Rizzo, student and a member of the Emergency Management staff.

Continued training is a routine part of the job of Emergency Management and First Responder, but its importance cannot be overlooked.  "The Galveston County Office of Emergency Management is committed to providing staff with as much training as possible," says John Simsen, Emergency Management Coordinator, "Up to date training and information is critical to effective decision-making during an emergency."

During the month of February, the Office of Emergency Management will host a Pipeline Emergencies Operations course open to public employees.  To register for this class and others that may be offered in the State of Texas, students must go to the Preparing Texas website. 

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