All drivers should know something about hazardous materials. You must be able to recognize hazardous cargo, and you must know whether or not you can haul it without having a Hazardous Materials endorsement to your CDL license.
What Are Hazardous Materials
Hazardous Materials are products that pose a risk to health, safety, and property during transportation. Figure 2-15 is the hazardous material table found in the federal rules. This table list the 9 different hazard classes.
Why Are There Rules?
You must follow the many rules about transporting them. The intent of the rules is to:
• Contain the product
• Communicate the risk
• Ensure safe drivers and equipment
To contain the product: Many hazardous products can injure or kill on contact. To protect drivers and others from contact, the rules tell shippers how to package safely. Similar rules tell drivers how to load, transport, and unload bulk tanks. These are containment rules.
To communicate the risk: The shipper and transporter use a shipping paper and package labels to warn dockworkers, the public and drivers of the risk. Shipping orders, bills of lading, and manifests are all examples of shipping papers.
The shipping paper describes the hazardous materials being transported. Shipping orders, bills of lading, and manifest are all shipping papers. Shippers put diamond shaped hazard warning labels on most hazardous materials packages. These labels inform others of the hazard. If the diamond label won’t fit on the container, shippers put the label on a tag. For example, compressed gas cylinders that will not hold a label will have tags or decals. Labels look like the examples shown in Figure 2-16.
Hazardous Materials Hazard Class/Divisions Table
After accident or hazardous material spill or leak, you may be injured and unable to communicate the hazards of the materials you are transporting. Firefighters and police can prevent or reduce the amount of damage or injury at the scene if they know what hazardous materials are being carried. Your life, and the lives of others, may depend on quickly locating the hazardous materials shipping papers. You must also keep shipping papers:
• In a pouch on the driver’s door, or
• In clear view within reach while driving, or
• On the driver’s seat when out of the vehicle
Placards
Placards are used to warn others of hazardous materials. Placards are signs put on the outside of a vehicle which identify the hard class of the cargo. A placarded vehicle must have at least 4 identical placards. They are put on the front, rear, and both sides (see Figure 9-3). Placards must be readable from all four directions. They are 10 ¾ inches square, turned upright on an a point, in a diamond shape. Cargo tanks and other bulk packaging display the I.D. number of their contents on placards or orange panels.
Not all vehicles carrying hazardous materials need to have placards. The rules about placards are given in Section 9 in Volume 2. You can drive a vehicle that carries hazardous materials if it does not require placards. If it requires placards, you must not drive it unless your driver’s license has the hazardous materials endorsement.
To ensure safe drivers and equipment: The rules require all drivers of placarded vehicles to learn how to safely load and transport hazardous products. They must have a commercial driver’s license with the hazardous materials endorsement.
To get the required endorsement you must pass a written test on material found in Section9 in Volume 2. You also will need as tank endorsement if you transport hazardous products in a cargo tank on a truck large than 26,000 pounds, gross vehicle weight rating.
Drivers who need the hazardous materials endorsement must learn the placard rules. If you do not know if your vehicle needs placards, ask your employer. Never drive a vehicle needing placards unless you have the hazardous materials endorsement. To do as is a crime. When stopped, you will be cited and you will not be allowed to drive your truck further. It will cost you time and money. A failure to placard when needed will risk your life and others if you have an accident. Emergency help will not know of your hazardous cargo.
Hazardous materials drivers must also know which products they can load together, and which they can not. These rules are also in Section 9 in Volume 2. Before loading a truck with more than one type of product, you must know if it is safe to load them together. If you do not know, ask your employer.
Safety First!
Jayson Zamora
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