Wash. Admin. Code § 296-305-05502

Current through Register Vol. 24-23, December 1, 2024

Section 296-305-05502 - Training and member development

(1) The employer must provide training, education and ongoing development for all members commensurate with those duties and functions that members are expected to perform.

(a) Training and education must be provided to members before they perform emergency activities.

(b) Fire service leaders and training instructors must be provided with training and education which is more comprehensive than that provided to the general membership of the fire department.

(c) The fire department must develop an ongoing proficiency cycle with the goal of preventing skill degradation.

(2) Training on specific positions/duties deemed by the fire department critical to the safety of responders and the effectiveness of emergency operations (such as driver operators or support personnel) must be provided at least annually.

(3) Firefighters must be trained in the function, care, use/operation, inspection, maintenance and limitations of the equipment assigned to them or available for their use.

(4) Members who are expected to perform interior structural fire-fighting must be provided with an education session or training at least quarterly.

(5) When firefighters are engaged in training above the 10-foot level, where use of lifelines or similar activities are to be undertaken, a safety net or other approved secondary means of fall protection recommended in chapter 296-880 WAC, Unified safety standards for fall protection, must be used.

(6) Continuing education live fire training.

(a) All members who engage in interior structural firefighting in IDLH conditions must be provided live fire training appropriate to their assigned duties and the functions they are expected to perform at least every three years. Firefighters who do not receive this training in a three-year period will not be eligible to return to an interior structural firefighting assignment until they do. Responding to a fire scene with a full alarm assignment, an ICS established and a post-incident analysis will meet this requirement, but for no more than two training evolutions.

(b) All live fire training must be conducted by fire department qualified fire service instructors. When conducting their own training, fire departments must meet the requirements set out in the 2007 edition of the NFPA 1403, Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions.

(c) An incident safety officer must be appointed for all live fire training evolutions. The incident safety officer function must be filled by a person who is trained and qualified in the IMS/Incident safety officer duties and who is not responsible for any other function at the training evolution other than the role of incident safety officer.

(7) When using structures for live fire suppression training, activities must be conducted according to the 2007 edition of NFPA 1403, Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions. When using structures for nonlive fire training, the following requirements must be met:

(a) All structures used for training must be surveyed for potential hazardous substances, such as asbestos, prior to the initiation of any training activities. The survey must comply with chapter 296-62 WAC Part I-1 and must be conducted by an AHERA accredited inspector and performed in accordance with 40 C.F.R. 763, Subpart E. If the hazardous substances or asbestos containing materials of [GREATER THAN] 1% asbestos are to be disturbed during any training activity they must be removed prior to beginning that activity. Removal of asbestos < or =1% is not required prior to live fire training.

In live fire training structures where < or = 1% asbestos has been disturbed, the fire department will provide written notice to the owner/agent that asbestos has been disrupted and remains on-site.

For structures built before 1978, you must assume that painted surfaces are likely to contain lead and inform workers of this presumption. Surveys for lead containing paints are not required. Lead containing paints are not required to be removed prior to training activities.

If the training activity will not disturb the hazardous substance, the material must be clearly marked and all participants must be shown the location of the substance and directed not to disturb the materials.

(b) Acquired or built structures used for fire service training that does not involve live fire must be surveyed for the following hazards and those hazards abated prior to the commencement of training activities:

(i) In preparation for training, an inspection of the training building must be made to determine that the floors, walls, stairs and other structure components are capable of withstanding the weight of contents, participants and accumulated water.

(ii) Hazardous materials and conditions within the structure must be removed or neutralized, except as exempted in (a) of this subsection.

(A) Closed containers and highly combustible materials must be removed.

(B) Oil tanks and similar closed vessels that cannot easily be removed must be vented sufficiently to eliminate an explosion or rupture.

(C) Any hazardous or combustible atmosphere within the tank or other vessel must be rendered inert.

(D) Floor openings, missing stair treads or railings, or other potential hazards must be repaired or made inaccessible.

(iii) If applicable, floors, railings and stairs must be made safe. Special attention must be given to potential chimney hazards.

(iv) Debris hindering the access or egress of firefighters must be removed before continuing further operations.

(v) Debris creating or contributing to unsafe conditions must be removed before continuing further operations.

(c) Asbestos training. Firefighters must be provided asbestos awareness training, including communication of the existence of asbestos-containing material (ACM) and presumed-asbestos-containing material (PACM). Training must be provided prior to initial assignment and annually thereafter, and must include:

(i) The physical characteristics of asbestos including types, fiber size, aerodynamic characteristics and physical appearance.

(ii) Examples of different types of asbestos and asbestos-containing materials to include flooring, wall systems, adhesives, joint compounds, exterior siding, fire-proofing, insulation, roofing, etc. Real asbestos must be used only for observation by trainees and must be enclosed in sealed unbreakable containers.

(iii) The health hazards of asbestos including the nature of asbestos related diseases, routes of exposure, dose-response relationships, synergism between cigarette smoking and asbestos exposure, latency period of diseases, hazards to immediate family, and the health basis for asbestos standards.

(iv) Instruction on how to recognize damaged, deteriorated, and delamination of asbestos-containing building materials.

(v) Decontamination and clean-up procedures.

(vi) Types of labels that are used within different industries to identify ACM or PACM that is present within structures. The labeling system the employer will use during training to identify asbestos and ACM/PACM during destructive drilling and training.

(vii) The location and types of ACM or PACM within any fire department owned or leased structures and the results of any "Good Faith Survey" done on fire department owned or leased structures.

(8) Asbestos exposure during destructive training activities. Fire department employees are exempt from the requirements of chapter 296-65 WAC and WAC 296-62-077, provided they comply with the following requirements:

(a) Fire departments must obtain a good faith asbestos inspection/survey from the property owner/agent prior to disturbing building materials. The good faith survey must comply with chapter 296-62 WAC Part I -1 and must be conducted by an AHERA accredited inspector and performed in accordance with 40 C.F.R. 763, Subpart E.

(b) Good faith surveys must be shared with all employers and employees prior to using any structure.

(c) Materials containing [GREATER THAN]1% asbestos must be marked by a system recognized by all members. ACM/PACM may not be disturbed prior to, or during training, or must be removed by a certified asbestos abatement contractor prior to training activities. The incident safety officer for the training must walk all participants through the structure and inform them of the location of all ACM/PACM and that this material is not to be disturbed. If the structure is used for a black-out drill, the incident safety officer must instruct members that ACM/PACM is present and take precautions to ensure these materials are not disturbed during the training. A walk through is not required for black-out drills.

(d) Destructive drilling must not occur in a structure until the fire department has received a good faith asbestos survey from the owner/agent and ensured that any ACM or PACM has been abated from substrates upon which destructive drill tasks are planned to be performed. All suspect asbestos materials designated for destructive drill tasks will be identified, evaluated and tested by an accredited AHERA lab.

(e) Materials containing < or = 1% asbestos must be labeled by a system recognized by all members. Prior to initiating any destructive drilling on materials containing < or = 1% asbestos, the incident safety officer for the training must walk all participants through the structure and inform them of the location of asbestos.

(f) Firefighters must wear SCBA and turnouts whenever exposed to asbestos.

(g) Firefighters must be provided gross decontamination at the drill site by rinsing/brushing the firefighters turnouts and SCBA with water.

(h) Hand tools and other asbestos contaminated equipment will be rinsed off prior to being returned to the apparatus or service. Tools and equipment that cannot be decontaminated on site must be placed in sealed containers until they can be decontaminated. Care must be taken to not spread the asbestos.

(i) PPE that may have been contaminated with asbestos must be cleaned in a manner recommended by the manufacturer and that prevents the exposure of the employee cleaning the PPE. PPE that cannot be cleaned on-site must be placed in sealed containers until they can be decontaminated.

(j) In structures scheduled for demolition, or that will be turned over to another employer, where < or = 1% asbestos has been disturbed, the fire department will provide written notice to the owner/agent that asbestos has been disrupted and remains on-site. The fire department will inform the owner/agent, in writing, that access to the property must be limited to the demolition or asbestos contractor.

(k) The fire department will secure the structure after all drills and at the conclusion of the use of the structure. Securing the structure may include but not be limited to, locking or boarding up windows, doors, and wall and roof openings. The site of the structure may also require fencing. When asbestos material of < or = 1% has been disturbed by the fire department's drill activities, the site will be posted with warning signs. These signs will notify entrants onto the site that asbestos debris of < or = 1% has been left on the site. For fire department members who plan to enter the structure or the building footprint, the signs will state the necessity of full turn-outs and SCBA with decontamination procedures. The signs will also state that entry into the building or the building footprint is prohibited by any persons other than the fire department and the demolition/ abatement contractor.

(9) Additional training. Training must be provided on topics according to the job duties and potential hazards as outlined in Table 2, Subject Specific Training.

Table 2 Subject Specific Training
Topic	Training requirements found in:
HEALTH AND SAFETY
Noise and hearing loss prevention	* Chapter 296-817 WAC, Hearing loss prevention (noise) * WAC 296-305-02004
Respiratory equipment	* Chapter 296-842 WAC, Respirators * WAC 296-305-04001
Employee right-to-know procedures	* WAC 296-901-14016 Employee information and training
Identification and handling of asbestos-containing materials likely to be encountered during a fire response	* WAC 296-62-07722(5) as appropriate to asbestos encountered during a fire response, or EPA awareness level asbestos two hour training course
FIRE SUPPRESSION
Overhaul procedures and operations	* WAC 296-305-05000 and 296-305-05002
Live fire training in structures	* NFPA 1403, Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions, 2007 Edition
Wildland fires	* WAC 296-305-07010 through 296-305-07018 * The National Wildfire Coordination Group (NWCG) firefighter II * All training for assigned wildland incident command positions must be completed prior to assignment by the IC
INCIDENT MANAGEMENT
Incident management training	* National Incident Management System * NFPA 1561, Standard on Emergency Services Incident Management System, 2008 edition (available on-line)
EMERGENCY MEDICAL
Emergency medical training	* WAC 296-305-02501
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
Hazardous materials training	* Chapter 296-824 WAC, Emergency response * Nonconflicting portions of NFPA 472, Standard for Competence of Responders to Hazardous Materials/Weapons of Mass Destruction Incidents, 2008 edition
TECHNICAL RESCUE
Confined space entry and/or rescue	* Chapter 296-809 WAC, Confined spaces * WAC 296-305-05004 * Nonconflicting portions of NFPA 1670, Standard on Operations and Training for Technical Rescue Incidents, 2004 edition * Nonconflicting portions of NFPA 1006, Professional Qualifications for Technical Rescue, 2008 edition
Other technical rescue situations, such as rope, structural collapse, transportation/ machinery, trench, water, and wilderness rescue	* NFPA 1670, Standard on Operations and Training for Technical Rescue Incidents, 2004 edition * Nonconflicting portions of NFPA 1006, Professional Qualifications for Technical Rescue, 2008 edition
POSITION SPECIFIC DEVELOPMENT
Aircraft	* NFPA 402, Guide for Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting Operations, 2008 edition
Driver training	* WAC 296-305-04505(8)

Wash. Admin. Code § 296-305-05502

Amended by WSR 17-02-066, Filed 1/3/2017, effective 2/3/2017

Amended by WSR 18-22-116, Filed 11/6/2018, effective 12/7/2018

Amended by WSR 22-15-089, Filed 7/19/2022, effective 8/19/2022

Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.010, 49.17.040, 49.17.050, 49.17.060 and 29 C.F.R. 1910.156, Fire brigades. 13-05-070, § 296-305-05502, filed 2/19/13, effective 1/1/14.