Safety, Health, and Hazardous Materials Considerations
This domain is about keeping the crew alive - PPE, vehicle operations on a live airfield, health exposures, and hazardous materials - and it is where careless answers cost marks.
PPE and SCBA
Structural firefighting gear (NFPA 1971) for interior work; proximity gear (NFPA 1976) for radiant heat at a fuel fire; SCBA (NFPA 1981) with a PASS device in any IDLH atmosphere. Proximity gear is heat protection, not chemical protection. Hearing protection at the pump panel and around engines, eye protection, and task-appropriate gloves.
Vehicle and airfield safety
Seatbelts and helmets whenever the vehicle is moving. Obtain tower clearance before entering a runway; announce position, and say "clear of runway" when off. Use a spotter for backing. Approach from the upwind side and never drive across a fuel pool. At night and in low visibility, slow down and navigate by lights and markings rather than memory.
Health
Heat stress and rehabilitation, cardiovascular events (a leading cause of firefighter death), diesel exhaust, PFAS in foams, contaminated turnout gear, and bloodborne pathogens. Report exposures.
Hazardous materials
Shipping papers, UN numbers, placards, and the ERG are the first tools. Establish hot, warm, and cold zones with a decontamination corridor, and select PPE level A, B, C, or D from the substance and concentration, not from habit. Lithium-ion battery fires need copious water and re-ignition watch; reactive metals need Class D agent; radioactive and biological materials need specialist support.
Worked example. A pallet of unlabelled drums burns near a cargo door. Reasoning: withdraw to the cold zone, identify from the manifest and placards, look up the ERG guide, and let a hazmat team with the right PPE level make entry - a proximity suit gives no chemical protection.
Traps. Using thermal PPE as chemical PPE; committing without identification; skipping decontamination; ignoring PFAS contamination on gear and clothing.