After a long two weeks spent in the warm and humid climate of Georgia, I can finally say mission complete! Pictured here, are a few technicians in whats called a "Level A" suit for a Hazardous Material emergency incident. The job of a HazMat Technician is to (offensively) mitigate the chemical exposure to prevent further leak/exposure. Never an easy task. Unlike most firefighting operations when you go in full speed, balls to the wall get the job done quick and go home, these kind of emergencies are played out like a chess game. Between researching the product, finding compatable Chemical Protective Clothing (CPC), containters to store "methyl-ethyl bad stuff" in and then contacting every Tom, Dick, and Harry that has anything to do with this chemical can take hours, even days. Believe it or not, I'm not trying to get into the specifics, but with HazMat situations, there are so many unknowns. Anyhow, I just spent 2 weeks learning what all the MANY tasks this job involves and it wasn't easy. After multiple days of lecture, 2 days of in-suit/hands on, and two 50 point tests later, I am now certified in accordance with NFPA 472. What does this all mean?? More money to be possibly made, and hopefully more job offers! It's all about that dollar, right! Long story short, the class was great and I learned a ton of stuff I hopefully will never have to use.
