IAFC NEWS ALERT
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: IAFC Communications Department
703/273-0911
IAFC encourages attention to
recent deadly hazmat incidents
Fairfax, Va., January 11, 2005…The IAFC encourages fire chiefs to use the two recent hazardous material incidents in North and South Carolina to remind local officials of the important role the fire service plays in the protection of the nation’s critical infrastructure. Fire chiefs should review current processes and plans, and continue dialog with local and state law enforcement and public health officials to ensure smooth operations in large-scale incidents.
On January 6, two freight trains collided and derailed in Graniteville, S.C., causing a leak of deadly chlorine gas in the area and killing nine people. The accident sent 240 people to the hospital and forced the evacuation of thousands. Thursday’s crash caused the worst fatal chemical spill from a train wreck since the 1978 Waverly, Tennessee crash that left 15 dead including the fire chief and the police chief.
Fewer than four days later, a tractor-trailer hauling petroleum on Interstate 95 near Selma, North Carolina tumbled over and burst into flames fatally injuring the driver and closing the highway for most of the day.
“These incident reminds us that all fire departments—large and small, career and volunteer, metro and rural—must be prepared to respond to all hazards,” said IAFC President Chief Bob DiPoli. “The fire service protects the nation’s critical infrastructure—and we must do everything within our power to be fully equipped, staffed and trained to respond to these types of emergencies.”
The International Association of Fire Chiefs expresses our support to the local authorities who responded to these major events, and we offer our sincerest condolences to the families of the 10 individuals who died in these two tragedies.
For more information on the two incidents, refer to: http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/ and http://www.newsobserver.com
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Jennifer A. Ashley
Director of Communications
International Association of Fire Chiefs
703-273-0911 ext. 320
cell: 571-221-5268
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