State grant enables Owens to offer hazmat training

Nearly 20 area fire departments are partnering with Owens Community College's center for emergency preparedness to receive training on managing hazardous materials transportation and spills.

The center was selected by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio to receive a $34,576 grant for training of public safety and emergency services personnel in northwest Ohio. The grant is part of a collaborative effort with several organizations in Wood, Lucas, Fulton, Henry, and Ottawa counties.

Fire departments partnering with Owens are Perrysburg Township, Perrysburg city, Springfield Township, Northwood, Oregon, Washington Township, Bowling Green, Troy, North Baltimore, Grand Rapids, Pemberville, Lake Township, Napoleon, Wauseon, Fostoria, and the Central Joint department in Wood County near Portage.

Owens also will partner with community organizations and businesses including CSX Corp., Davis-Besse nuclear power plant, the Toledo Division of Environmental Services, the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, and the Coast Guard.

Michael Cornell, director of the Owens center, said the grant comes at a time when many local governments cannot afford the cost of training.

Of the training, Mr. Cornell said, "It's an important thing for them to have, obviously, when you're dealing with hazardous materials. Now we have an ability to do that at no cost to them."

Training began recently for 195 students and is to continue into the new year. The 16-hour course provides training on basic hazard and risk assessment techniques as well as on basic control, containment, and confinement.

Owens' hazardous materials technician course, which requires 40 hours, provides hazmat responders with hands-on training.

Oregon fire department personnel have been taking part in the training

"Anything we can do with training, especially with grant money, helps the department," said Paul Mullen Oregon assistant fire chief.

Springfield Township Fire Chief Barry Cousino said his department has not yet been involved in any of the training.

City of Perrysburg Fire Chief Jeff Klein said his department typically incorporates such training when firefighters go out to the Center for Emergency Preparedness three times a year.

Hazmat training is becoming increasingly important in today's society where there are an increasing number of hazardous materials and chemicals that can intermix to create myriad problems, Chief Klein said.

Hazmat training provided through the grant is welcomed because "smaller departments just do not have that kind of money" to conduct such sessions on their own, the chief said.

The PUCO awards hazardous materials planning and training grants to local government subdivisions, educational institutions, and state agencies.

Grants are funded through fines paid by hazardous material carriers and shippers.

Owens has been at the forefront in providing educational training to public safety forces for more than 30 years.

In 2009, the college made a substantial investment in the future of emergency preparedness training within the region when it opened the $3.2 million training and operations facility at the Center for Emergency Preparedness.

The facility provides first responders with expanded opportunities for training in real-world scenarios that is highlighted by what the college said is the nation's only indoor emergency services virtual training system.