Helping Hands
IHs Can Contribute to Community Response Efforts

By Ellen Clas

You’re an industrial hygienist with years of experience in the field and loads of technical knowledge. A disaster strikes, natural or man-made: Isn’t there something you can do to help? We all like to think that we could help—that we would do it correctly and that we could be there saving lives. But how should we get involved?

Well, after several years of working in the field of emergency management as both a CIH and CSP, let me tell you—once the event has happened, it’s almost always too late to get involved.

When tragedy strikes, efforts are immediately set in motion and adhere to certain rules. Local emergency responders start off by trying to get the situation under control. They are responsible for the scene and responsible for the safety and health of everyone responding—and if they don’t know you, they don’t want you there.

If the situation is large and the local responders do not have the resources to handle the situation, they will turn to the county and then the state for assistance. If the state uses up its resources, it turns to the federal government—usually to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. For all presidentially declared disasters, the National Response Plan is put into place; within the NRP, the FEMA disaster safety officer becomes the safety coordinator for the disaster. This coordinator works with the various federal agencies to collect and distribute appropriate safety and health information and directives. If necessary, the safety coordinator can call for technical assistance through the Safety and Health Annex, bringing OSHA and/or other resources to the disaster.

What About Me?

That’s all well and good, but I’m an industrial hygienist and I know that I am a valuable resource—I want to get involved. There are avenues to do this, but what are they?

On the local level, get in touch with your town or city’s emergency management office. These are our first responders; these folks are the foundation to emergency management in the United States (each municipality is required to have someone in this position). Let them know of your skills, your knowledge and your certifications—bring them a résumé. For most local emergency managers this is not their full-time job; most either volunteer or get a small stipend. They may not have much experience in safety or industrial hygiene. For instance, in my town, our emergency manager is a CPA. If we have a railroad derailment, he calls the local hazardous materials team and me. He already knows my credentials; in fact, he relies on them.

A number of communities are now establishing Community Emergency Response Teams—your local emergency manager would be coordinating these activities. This is a good place to get involved.

Above the local emergency manager is a group known as the Local Emergency Planning Committee. The LEPC came out of the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act, and it helps prepare localized areas for emergency response to chemical spills and releases. On the EPA Web site (www.epa.gov), you can find your local LEPC, a phone number and usually a contact name. These folks have a pretty clear understanding of the risks in the local area and communicate regularly with both the local and state emergency managers. They are another cog within the system but one you should familiarize yourself with.

Next in line are the county and state emergency management offices. A worthwhile endeavor would be to work through your AIHA local section and establish a connection with both of these groups. Again, once a disaster happens, your efforts most likely are too late; these folks have a disaster on their hands and they don’t know you—why should they allow you to stomp all over the disaster area and have to be responsible for your safety? If your local section has already established a liaison, it’s much more likely they will see you as a valuable resource.

On the national level, AIHA is currently working with FEMA to develop a working relationship. AIHA has many groups now working on emergency response issues, from the Emergency Response Planning Committee, the ConsultSIG and the Emergency Preparedness and Response Task Force. Get involved with any of these groups or with your local section.

Know the Ropes

Help make us look like professionals out there. Know the rules. For emergency response, there are many. Read and understand the National Response Plan, which outlines how all levels of emergency management shall respond to an incident. Learn about the National Incident Management System. As with any large deployment of human and technical resources, there are protocols and rules that must be followed; if you don’t know them you can’t play the game. You will be perceived poorly, and you will come across as unprofessional.

Where do you get the knowledge you need? The first stop is www.FEMA.gov. Follow the links to education and training, then EMI Independent Study Courses. Start with independent study course 800 (IS-800), the National Response Plan. Study IS-292 Disaster Basics, and then work your way through IS-195 Basic Incident Command System and IS-700 National Incident Management System. If you want classroom training instead of independent study (computerized or workbook), call your state emergency management agency or check out its Web site. All states offer classroom training on most of the topics. I’ve taken a lot of the courses and they are worth it.

Thank you for your interest in emergency management. We do need you out there. Please do your homework and then start at the place where you are needed the most—the local level. Understand the emergency management process; if you understand and respect the men and women doing that job, they will respect you and our profession.

Don’t charge in and expect to save the day. There are protocols and procedures in place. Know them, understand them and respect them—that way you will be respected for the expertise you can provide and our profession will benefit as well.

Clas, a CIH and CSP, is director of Clas Consulting LLC, Norfolk, Mass. She can be reached at (508) 400-3557 or clasconsulting@comcast.net.