Author Draft: 10 Minute-Training: A cargo truck is leaking sulfuric acid on a road in Oregon. You’re IC No. 2. What critical factors do you consider upon arrival?
10-Minute Training
A cargo truck is leaking sulfuric acid on a road in Oregon. You’re IC No. 2. What critical factors do you consider upon arrival?
By Ed Hartin
B Shifter Buckslip, Sept. 22, 2026
Every month, the B Shifter Buckslip features a 10-Minute Training scenario designed to provide a bit of synthetic experience while enhancing your ability to recognize patterns, identify relevant cues, expectancies and anomalies, set plausible goals, and develop a workable incident action plan.
Top: The driver says the tank holds 3,400 gallons of acid. Less than five gallons have spilled so far, but he warns that it is spreading under the trailer, through the dirt, onto the road and into a storm drain.
Bottom: Sulfuric acid entering nearby storm drains can pose serious environmental and infrastructure risks, requiring a coordinated response from other response agencies to mitigate hazards. Imagery © Google, Imagery © Airbus Maxar Technologies, Map Data © 2026.
Hazardous materials incidents present a different set of problems compared to structure fires. But like structure fires, hazmat incidents demand careful situation evaluation and thorough consideration of fixed and variable critical factors.
This month’s 10-Minute Training for IC No. 2 takes us to Portland, Ore., for a leaking cargo tank in an area adjacent to Interstate 5 and close to commercial and residential occupancies. The initial dispatch is for an engine and truck on a Delta-level hazmat investigation for a leaking tank truck. As the incident evolves, a hazardous materials team and chief officer are added to the response.
Additional learning opportunities in this 10-Minute Training focus on hazmat references for operational-level responders, critical thinking, the importance of attention to detail, and building relationships with your technical-level hazmat responders.
For other 10-Minute Trainings, visit https://commandcompetence.com/
Ed Hartin retired as fire chief with East County Fire and Rescue in Camas, Wash., after a 50-year fire service career. Ed maintains an active international training and consulting practice and is a Blue Card instructor. He holds the Chief Fire Officer designation from the Commission on Professional Credentialing and is a Fellow of the Institution of Fire Engineers. Ed has undergraduate degrees in fire protection technology and fire service administration and a master’s degree in education. Since 2017, Ed has developed more than 450 10-Minute Trainings to provide ICs with deliberate practice to build competence.