TransCaer, a national outreach effort based in Washington, focuses on assisting communities to prepare for and respond to possible hazardous materials incidents. This year's emphasis is on anhydrous ammonia, used in many industrial refrigeration applications and other manufacturing uses, among others. Emergency responders require specific knowledge and skills to protect the public and safely mitigate a hazardous incident.
The 2011 Nationwide Anhydrous Ammonia Tour is a hands-on training event about anhydrous ammonia's properties, chemical-release response recommendations and chemical-transport equipment. The training is free.
The tour's safety training topics include:
- Transportation of ammonia (modes, routes
and volume identifiers).
- Types of transport equipment (nurse tanks, tank
trucks and rail tank cars).
- Hands-on training with transport equipment (valves,
gauges, fittings and response measures).
- First aid for ammonia releases and who to call for help.
Ammonia Properties
- The physical and chemical properties of
anhydrous ammonia.
- Uses of anhydrous ammonia.
- Basic health effects and initial first aid for treating exposures.
- Construction, configurations and safety
devices.
- Markings, labels, placards and shipping documents.
- Hands-on review and examination of on-site
transport containers.
- Emergency response considerations.
- Defensive and offensive approaches to
ammonia incidents.
- Types of ammonia releases that could be
encountered.
- Release characteristics affected by environmental
conditions.
- Emergency contacts.
