Practical training for responders
Course
catalog.
Real-world experience, practical instruction, and courses built around the decisions responders make in the field.
01 / COURSE OFFERINGSReal experience. Practical training. Better responders.
Hoosier HazMatters courses
Learn the work.
Build confidence.
Every organization has different priorities, capabilities, and training needs. We work with you to shape a course around your objectives, experience level, equipment, and operating environment. Course topics, format, delivery, and length can usually be adjusted to fit your needs.
01 · Air monitoring
Beyond the Beep:
Air Monitoring for Today’s Firefighter
Understand what your meter is telling you, where its limits are, and how air-monitoring information can support better fireground decisions.
Designed for Basic Firefighters and Firefighter I, this interactive course connects meter fundamentals to practical response. Participants work with live multi-gas monitors, demonstrations, and simulated scenarios. The course is built around the Firefighter I air-monitoring competency in NFPA 1010 (2024).
AudienceBasic firefighters and Firefighter I
FormatLecture, live-meter practice, demonstrations, and scenarios
Key topicsSensor function, preparation, sampling, response time, interpretation, interferences, and limitations
Participants practice: recognizing hazards, evaluating readings, and applying monitoring information within their role and department procedures.Firefighter training
02 · Initial incident management
The First 30 Minutes:
Setting Up a HazMat Incident for Success
The first decisions shape the incident that follows. Practice keeping a hazardous materials incident from getting worse while building the information, organization, and resources needed to solve it.
A scenario-driven course for firefighters, company officers, and incident commanders who may be first to arrive. Participants follow an evolving incident from dispatch through integration with specialized HazMat resources.
AudienceFirefighters, company officers, and incident commanders
FormatInteractive instruction and an evolving commercial-facility scenario
Key topicsRecognition, isolation, life safety, responder protection, information needs, resources, command, and team transition
Course boundary: focuses on initial incident management; it is not a HazMat Technician course and does not replace role-specific training.First-arriving responders
03 · Team leadership and sustainability
Doing More With Less:
Eight Foundations of an Effective and Sustainable HazMat Team
A practical framework for deciding what a HazMat team must do, what it can sustain, and where partnerships or outside support are needed.
Participants assess dependable operational capability—not just what appears on a roster or equipment inventory—and identify a realistic improvement they can begin within 90 days. The course is designed for teams and agencies working with limited personnel, funding, training time, or response frequency.
AudienceHazMat team leaders and members, fire officers, emergency managers, LEPCs, and agency administrators
FormatDiscussion, team assessment, practical exercises, and a 90-day commitment
FrameworkMission, governance, staffing, competency, resources, readiness, partnerships, and demonstrated value
Course focus: sustainable capability and measurable community value without lowering safety standards.Team development
04 · Chemical clues and response decisions
ID the Unknown:
From Chemical Clues to Response Decisions
A small-group, scenario-based lab where teams interpret screening information, build a working hazard picture, and make decisions about protective actions, decontamination, and response tactics.
Participants work through an instructor-guided challenge using numbered samples, supplied evidence, and staged decision injects. The course emphasizes the limits of screening results, product verification, and clear operational briefings.
AudienceHazMat responders and team members involved in chemical assessment
FormatHybrid lab with small-group sample selection, simulated scenarios, and team report-outs
Key topicsEvidence interpretation, hazard indicators, PPE choices, decontamination planning, tactics, and limitations
Course design: Product documentation and instructor safety review guide sample selection; simulated results or inert surrogates are used when hands-on materials are not appropriate.Applied lab
Custom course offering · Built around your needs
Custom Course
Offerings
Need training built around a specific capability gap, audience, equipment set, or operational challenge? We can design a course around your organization’s needs.
We work with you to define the audience, learning objectives, experience level, available equipment, and local procedures—then shape the right mix of instruction, discussion, demonstrations, hands-on practice, and scenarios.
ForFire departments, HazMat teams, emergency managers, and response partners
Designed aroundYour people, objectives, equipment, operating environment, and available training time
Possible topicsHazMat response, air monitoring, incident management, preparedness, and related response needs
Built with your team: Course content, format, and duration are planned with the host organization to fit its training goals and local context.Built for your team
