June 14, 2012
HAZMAT emergency response training at King Hall annex June 15
The Manhattan Fire Department is conducting HAZMAT response training on campus from 1-3:30 p.m. Friday. Don’t be surprised if you see several fire trucks as well as the HAZMAT truck around the King Hall annex.
Kansas State University has its own emergency response team that is called upon to clean up chemical spills on campus. We work closely with the Manhattan Fire Department and its HAZMAT unit when these problems occur on campus. We have been called to assist with off-campus spills in the past, too. A recent spill in a laboratory in Mosier Hall showed us the advantage of this relationship. The clean up took around three hours to remediate.
To assist the fire department in responding appropriately with on-campus emergencies, the department has asked us for training time in our buildings. The more the fire department is aware of what is on campus, the better it will be with its response. The fire department was looking for a different location to use for training than their usual facilities. This training will also provide the fire department with a more in-depth knowledge of the chemistry complex, should they need to respond to an incident.