# IAFF HazMat Worker Health & Safety Training

> **NIH NIH U45** · INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION FIRE FIGHTERS · 2024 · $922,786

## Abstract

The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) proposes to continue its worker health and
safety training program to train workers and community partners in order to prevent work-
related harm and improve worker-related health and safety. The built environment has become
more complex due to increased population growth, aging infrastructure, and increased use of
complex chemicals in commercial products and manufacturing processes (Williams, 2016).
Whether responding to a residential structure fire or a chemical industrial plant, responders
have the potential to encounter hazardous materials at almost every incident. Yet, in a recent
survey, less than half of the respondents stated they felt “adequately prepared” for HazMat
incidents and 70% stated that HazMat training was their greatest need (Pike, 2018). Responders
also face other emerging issues including occupational cancer risks, behavioral health issues,
and greater need for individual and community resilience. The IAFF is committed to addressing
these issues through training and education of all of those who may respond to, or be impacted
by, HazMat emergencies. In alignment with the NIEHS’s strategic plan, the IAFF seeks
opportunities to collaborate with organizations that share the common goal of protecting
workers and their communities. Through this grant funding, the IAFF will deliver specialty
courses including HazMat Technician, Confined Space Rescue, Frontline Safety, Peer Support
Training, Resiliency Training, Disaster Response Peer Support Training, Safety Planning
Intervention for Suicide Prevention Training and Community HazMat Education.
Through this continued cooperative agreement, the IAFF will:
 1. Utilize advanced GIS and collaborative contact databases to identify and coordinate
 outreach to target populations, giving consideration to increasing diversity and training
 of underserved populations.
 2. Integrate new technologies (such as electronic tablets, an IAFF online library of tools and
 resources, mobile hotpots, web-based applications, etc.) for course delivery, ensuring
 consistent, engaging deployment to all students while also improving access to
 technology across all populations.
 3. Employ multiple robust quality assurance protocols to provide defined benchmarks,
 measure training effectiveness, and implement program improvements as needed. The
 IAFF is dedicated to ensuring the training program meets and exceeds the NIEHS
 Minimum Training Criteria Document.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10850845
- **Project number:** 5U45ES006167-33
- **Recipient organization:** INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION FIRE FIGHTERS
- **Principal Investigator:** James Burgess
- **Activity code:** U45 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $922,786
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1992-09-16 → 2025-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10850845

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10850845, IAFF HazMat Worker Health & Safety Training (5U45ES006167-33). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10850845. Licensed CC0.

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