Groups of 16 to 20 firefighters were in training in sessions held Monday through Wednesday at the former Ramstad school site in northwest Minot.

“We don’t have very many incidences where we have large hazardous material spills, but you always have to be prepared,” said acting battalion chief Paul Laskowski, who was on scene Wednesday. “If it does happen, you can have a very tragic, traumatic event happen. We want to be ready for it, just in case.”

Fire training Capt. Devin Walter with the department said hazardous materials exercises can be highly involved because of the many considerations surrounding the response. Initially, firefighters must consider the wind and whether evacuations or shelter-in-place orders are necessary.

“It seems to move relatively slowly when you’re watching it, but there’s so many things that go on,” Laskowski said. “In a big incident like this, you don’t really rush in, necessarily, unless there’s something that you can immediately change, that you can change quickly without putting your crew or yourself at undue risk.”

Jill Schramm/MDN A Minot firefighter is scrubbed as the first step in decontamination provided by fellow fighters at a haz-mat training at the former Ramstad school site in northwest Minot Wednesday.

In the recent exercise, a mannequin representing the driver of the vehicle with the tank of chlorine had to be extracted, treated and decontaminated before being transported to the hospital by ambulance. An entry team, with a backup on standby to follow up, then began plugging the leak. Firefighters exposed to the gas go through a decontamination process afterwards.

The air tanks worn by firefighters hold enough air to possibly last 45 minutes. However, suits are constricting and warm with lower visibility, and anxiety and strenuous activity can cause wearers to draw heavily on that air supply, reducing tank time to potentially as little as 15 minutes, Laskowski said. By practicing the scenarios, firefighters increase their abilities to stay calm and move in the suits so they have fewer concerns in an actual event.

The department also had its medical group on scene, drilling in monitoring the firefighters to ensure they remain healthy and safe.

Walter said the haz-mat regional response team conducts drills about once every quarter. Drills that engage all the firefighters happen only about twice a year because of the time and coordination involved, he said.

“This is one of the few times we are able to get together as an entire battalion to do a large-scale training event,” Laskowski said. “It’s good for everybody, especially considering our department. We’re getting a fair amount of experience, but you always have newer individuals, and it’s good for them to see everything come together.”