Contaminated Protective Clothing

I. Scope:

This standard establishes guidelines to be followed when Personal Protective Clothing (PPC) or items of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) are contaminated by a hazardous material.

II. Procedure:

A.   Personnel who enter the warm zone or the hot zone, at a Hazardous Materials Incident, run the risk of becoming contaminated by a hazardous material.

B.    Members must pass through the decontamination sector prior to being allowed to enter the cold zone.

                   1.  At the entrance to the clean sector, the member should discard any hand tools or equipment at the edge of the corridor so they can be decontaminated.

                   2.  After the member has rinsed off and decontaminated as much as possible, they shall proceed to the final area where a decontamination washer will assist them in removing their protective clothing.

                   3.  All articles of contaminated protective clothing shall be placed in a bag, then sealed and tagged.  The tag should list the contaminant, the contents of the bag, the members name and the time and date.

                   4.  If a member’s personal clothing has been contaminated, the member should proceed to a shower station.  After showering, they should dry off and change into clean clothes.  Ensure the member is offered all due privacy.

                   5.  Contaminated clothing should be placed in a bag then sealed and tagged.  All contaminated towels should also be placed in a bag for decontamination or disposal.

C.   The Fire Chief shall make a determination if contaminated items are salvageable.  Items that cannot be properly decontaminated should be disposed of according to Provincial Law.