Mahaska county hazmat response team

The Mahaska County Hazmat Response Team is a countywide partnership which includes the following departments:

• Mahaska County Emergency Management
• Oskaloosa Fire Department
• New Sharon Fire Department
• Cedar Township Fire Department

Each department has members who are trained at the Hazmat Technician level which allows them to respond to hazmat concerns that exceed other departments' training level.  The teams' primary responsibility is to save lives and limit the impact of the spill on our community and environment.  Each member has hundreds of hours of training with ongoing training to make sure they are ready when an emergency strikes.  

Hazmat equipment for the team is provided by Mahaska County Emergency Management.  This specialized equipment is staged at the departments, so it is spread across the county ready to respond when called upon.  Per the Iowa Code, the cost of the spill is the responsibility of the entity that caused the spill, so any equipment that is damaged or disposed of is billed to the entity of an incident.  

Mahaska County Emergency Management has four volunteer Hazmat Control Officers.  These officers oversee the team when they are called out.  They are also on-call to speak with other departments that might have questions about a spill or a hazardous chemical.  Have a question or want more information? Click here.