Overview
The Hanford Fire Department (HFD) is an industrial fire department which provides emergency response support to the 560-square-mile Hanford Site in south central Washington. This means that we must be qualified to meet the requirements of a municipal department as well as the unique specialities of a nuclear/industrial complex such as Hanford. A large risk on this site is posed by wildland fires and hazardous materials incidents. Thus, the fire officers and firefighters must be multi-disciplined and cross-trained to fill a variety of duties. Unique to the fire and medical emergency services are a number of federal, state, and nationally recognized competency and consensus standards, mandated by Department of Energy (DOE) Orders, which are used in designing and delivering training programs. Some of these are: DOE Orders and Implementing Directives (DOE Orders 420.1 and 440.1A; RLID 420.1) Code of Federal Regulations (29 CFR 1910 & 29 CFR 1926) State of Washington (WAC 296-305 & WAC 246-976) Mid-Columbia EMS Council (All EMS Training/ Certification) National Fire Protection Association (Codes and Standards) Site Specific Training (General employee and facility specific) The HFD is the authority having jurisdiction to implement actions deemed necessary to prevent loss of life, minimize damage, and terminate various site emergencies such as fires, hazardous waste events, and emergency medical incidents. Specific functions of the department include: incident command and control; fire suppression; emergency medical services and ambulance support; technical rescue; hazardous materials identification, containment, and stabilization; fire prevention and code compliance; ignitable and reactive waste site inspections; fire investigations and inspections; corrective and preventive maintenance of life safety fire protection systems; acceptance and operational assurance testing of life safety fire protection systems; and operability assurance of respiratory protection equipment. All emergency response personnel meet the requirements of NFPA 1001, Fire Fighter Professional Qualifications, as a minimum, and National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) Wildland Firefighter II, National Red Card qualifications. The HFD Hazardous Materials Response Team personnel meet the NFPA 471 and 472, Professional Qualifications for Responders to Hazardous Materials Incidents Standards at the Technical Level. Team personnel have also been trained to respond to military chemical and biological hazards incidents. Technical rescue personnel have been trained to perform confined space and low and high angle rope rescues. Emergency medical responders are trained to the EMT level and, with our nine paramedics (most of whom are nationally certified), are available to respond to the emergency medical needs of the site population on a 24-hour basis.
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For questions or comments, please send email to martha_j_rice@rl.gov Document Number: INTERNET-1053, Rev. 0
The Hanford Fire Department is operated by Fluor Hanford, Inc. for the U.S. Department of Energy, Richland Operations Office.