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The HazMat Forum

NCEC's HazMat Forum is the ideal place for those who deal with chemical incidents to discuss and share their own experiences.  Join a range of HazMat professionals including NCEC's own Emergency Responders and discuss practical issues surrounding equipment or decontamination as well as share some unusual incidents.

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Who reads it?

A range of Fire Service HazMat professional, Level 3 Responders, NCEC's Emergency Responders as well as individuals from related agencies such as the Health Protection Agency.  The HazMat Forum is maintained by the Emergency Responders at NCEC. The Emergency Responders also provide chemical advice and answer any non-emergency questions that you may have.

OK, so what if no one posts anything?

NCEC updates the forum on a regular basis and posts information on anything that we feel is relevant to “seed” the discussion. A good example of the type of information we post is incidents for which we provided advice e.g. 

Explosion in Park
We received a call late on an evening from Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service. A group of teenagers had been mixing chemicals in plastic drinks bottles and there appeared to have been some kind of explosion. The Fire Service wanted advice on which chemicals may have been mixed.

We advised The Fire Service that a recent YouTube craze appeared to be taking over. Video clips have been posted on YouTube that explain quite clearly explain how to make drain cleaner bombs in plastic bottles. Drain cleaner (containing sodium hydroxide) is added to baking foil in drinks bottles. The subsequent reaction produces hydrogen gas, which eventually bursts the plastic drinks bottle thus creating an explosion.  Watch the video

I visit other web forums, so what makes this one any different?

While there are indeed a number of forums out there, such as ones aimed at Fire Services or international HazMat responders, none are dedicated for UK Fire Service HazMat personnel and crucially other forums are not owned or monitored by NCEC Emergency Responders.

Is it open only to HazMat officers in the Fire Service?

No. However, this is the target audience and the forum is designed FOR HazMat responders to talk about incidents from the perspective of the UK Fire Services. But if there are others who can provide some specific help or advice, then they will of course be welcomed.

So how do I sign up?

Register here