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Stage 2 Hazmat Decontamination

"Hazmat" stands for hazardous materials. Decontamination is a means of removing hazardous substances from employees and their equipment to prevent adverse health effects from occurring after they have been exposed to them. The decontamination process has four stages.

  1. Stage 2

    • Stage 2 of decontamination is an assisted full outer-body wash and rinse that concentrates on the boots and gloves of the contaminated individual. Boots and gloves pick up a lot of contamination as people move through and touch hazardous material as they are cleaning it up. Chemical-protective clothing is washed and rinsed. Then the tape that covered and sealed the cuffs of sleeves and pants of the clothing as well as the outer gloves, boots, and outer bands are removed.

    Reasoning

    • It is difficult to clean someone after she has been exposed to hazardous chemicals or other materials. The best course of action is to clean an individual off repeatedly after the material has been disposed of.

    Other Stages

    • Stage 1 consists of cleaning off tools that were used during the hazmat operation and a full outer wash and rinse of the contaminated person. Stage 3 is another wash and rinse of outer protective clothing before it workers remove and clean it once more. Stage 4 consists of a full body wash of the contaminated individual. After drying and dressing he gets a physical exam where a medical team notes and closely monitors his condition.

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