LANL News: Los Alamos National Laboratory sponsors 18th annual Hazmat Challenge
Los Alamos National Laboratory sent this bulletin at 07/24/2014 12:00 PM MDT
News Release
Steve Sandoval, 505-665-9206, steves@lanl.gov
PHOTO ATTACHED
Los Alamos National Laboratory sponsors 18th annual Hazmat Challenge
Competition tests skills of hazardous materials response teams from four states
Editor’s Note: News media representatives interested in attending the Hazmat Challenge can contact the Laboratory’s Communications Office at 505-667-7000 to coordinate travel to the site.
LOS ALAMOS, N.M., July 24, 2014—Fourteen hazardous materials response teams from New Mexico, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma will test their skills at the 18th annual Hazmat Challenge July 29 through Aug. 1 at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
“The challenge provides hazardous materials responders the opportunity to test their skills, share best practices with other response agencies, and learn new techniques through realistic hazardous materials release scenarios in a safe, non-hazardous environment,” said Chris Rittner of the Laboratory’s Security and Emergency Operations Division.
Held at Los Alamos’ Technical Area 49, the event requires participants to respond to simulated hazardous materials emergencies involving a rail car, a clandestine laboratory, various modes of transportation, industrial piping scenarios, a simulated radiological release and a confined space event.
The finale of the Hazmat Challenge is a skills-based obstacle course; teams are graded and earn points based on their ability to perform response skills through a 10-station obstacle course while using fully encapsulating personal protective equipment.
The Laboratory began the Hazmat Challenge in 1996 as a way to hone the skills of its own hazmat team members. The event now offers a training opportunity in a competitive format that is open to all hazardous materials response teams in New Mexico and across the nation. The winning team receives a “traveling trophy” and top scoring teams in the technical and overall categories are awarded permanent trophies. Funding for New Mexico teams is provided through federal grants via the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (NMDHSEM).
A video about the 2008 and 2012 Hazmat challenges is on the Laboratory’s Web site and on the Lab’s YouTube channel.
For more information on this year’s challenge, contact Chris Rittner ( crittner@lanl.gov ) or Carmela Rodriguez ( carmela@lanl.gov ) by email.
Photo caption: A hazardous materials team from Edmond, Okla., team competing in the Hazmat Challenge at Los Alamos National Laboratory
About Los Alamos National Laboratory
Los Alamos National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security, is operated by Los Alamos National Security, LLC, a team composed of Bechtel National, the University of California, The Babcock & Wilcox Company, and URS Corporation for the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration.
Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health, and global security concerns.
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