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Sunoco personnel keep local emergency response organizations informed about potential risks through periodic meetings, Local Emergency Planning Committee involvement, and other outreach programs. Additionally, each year Sunoco's refineries, chemical plants and various other locations initiate, coordinate and participate in both internal and external emergency response drills and activities.
Examples of the training and emergency response activities that took place during 2007 are:
- Training City of Tulsa Fire Department personnel on responding to fires invloving flammable/combustible liquids at the Tulsa Refinery
- Providing facility tours for local fire departments
- Attending fire training courses at Texas A&M University and the Delaware Fire School
- Belonging to mutual aid associations such as the Northwest Ohio Michigan Mutual Aid District near Toledo, Ohio, Northeast Refining industry mutual aid groups, and the Channel Industries Mutual Aid (CIMA) near Houston, Texas
The emergency response teams at the refineries and chemical plants are typically composed of emergency response personnel and other employees who undergo extensive training. For example, before becoming an ERT member at the Northeast Refining Complex an employee must:
- Pass “Basic Fire Training School”
- Earn the Hazardous Materials Certification
- Complete at least six hands-on training sessions (1 to 2 days – 12 hours per day)
Each year team members attend a number of training sessions held onsite, covering a variety of topics, including:
- Proper use of fire fighting equipment, spill clean-up equipment, etc.
- Use of personnel protective equipment – such as self-contained breathing apparatuses (SCBAs), protective clothing, etc.
- Command and control – the Incident Command System and Emergency Operations Center (EOC)
- Hands-on drills, such as spills
- Rescue training
- “What-if” emergency response drills with area operations personnel
Selected team members often attend offsite training programs and gain greater experience in specialty areas such as:
- High-level rescues
- Incident Command System (ICS)
- Confined Space rescue
- Hazardous Materials response
Additionally, a number of Sunoco employees also serve on local community fire departments.
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