Hazmat Team Preps For Chemical Terror

Area first responders got hands on practice working a hazardous materials rescue operation earlier this month as part of an annual training exercise.

The October 7 exercise involved twenty members of the Fredeicksburg Regional Hazardous Materials Response Team. The scenario saw the team tasked with responding to the simulated detonation of a chemical I.E.D. set off by a terrorist at the Fredericksburg Expo and Conference Center.

Members of the hazmat team suited up in protective gear and practiced chemical detection, sampling and monitoring. The team also set up a fully functional chemical wash area to simulate how first responders would have to be decontaminated in the event of a hazmat disaster.

"Advanced chemical profiling was performed by the team's specialists, and supervisors were afforded the opportunity to manage a complex simulation with many moving parts," according to a statement in the City Manager Report for Oct. 25.

The Fredericksburg Regional Hazardous Materials Response Team serves 10 localities in the surrounding area under a contract with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management.