When used properly, chemicals are usually safe for the user and the environment. Some chemicals are hazardous because of the health hazard they pose. Other chemicals may be benign by themselves but reactive when combined with other chemicals to create a hazardous situation. Potentially hazardous situations exist at storage facilities and manufacturing plants, and in transportation networks where chemicals are routinely shipped by truck, rail and ship. Emergency workers must understand the hazards of chemicals and chemical reactions to protect themselves and others in the event an incident involves hazardous chemicals.
Federal laws require training in the handling of and emergency response to hazardous chemicals.
Filmed on location before a live audience at the 1999 Continuing Challenge Hazmat Conference in Sacramento, CA, the program is both instructive and entertaining, and provides an excellent basic understanding of chemistry that will be helpful for anyone who may need to consider the hazards of chemicals during the course of their job. The experiments are demonstrated by Dan Keenan and Maria Duazo, the 1999 Continuing Challenge Instructors of the Year. Dan and Maria cover all nine of the DOT hazard classes, demonstrating how chemicals within these classes, either by themselves or in reaction with other chemicals, can harm people or the environment. About the technical committee Emergency Film group programs are created with the assistance of leaders in emergency response training. About the filmmakers Gordon Massingham, writer and director.