Panhandle Northern Railway Hosts Comprehensive Railroad Emergency Response Training
BORGER, Texas , June 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — OmniTRAX, The Broe Group’s Transportation affiliate, partnered with the Short Line Safety Institute (SLSI) for a two-day hazardous materials railroad emergency test. The comprehensive exercise combined classroom training with a simulated railroad emergency to assess the operational preparedness of OmniTRAX and its local rail partners to effectively manage all facets of accidental and non-accidental releases
“Safety is our guiding principle and routine exercises like this help ensure that OmniTRAX is fully aligned with our emergency response partners and our community to effectively and decisively manage an emergency situation,” said OmniTRAX President and Chief Operating Officer Sergio Sabatini. “The training went exceptionally well, and we are deeply thankful to our partners that have invested their time and resources to the emergency preparedness at the core of rail safety.”
The two-day event combined a classroom-based emergency preparedness, reporting and response exercise (EPRRE) with a simulated first responder and railroader emergency drill featuring the SLSI Safety Train. Participants received preventative safety training that included: preparedness, response plans, first responder coordination, community engagement, reporting, agency notification, and emergency response command structures.
The classroom and field settings offered comprehensive emergency training spanning from tank car inspections and hazard identification to stakeholder communication, initial incident response, and command structures. The hands-on programming with the SLSI Safety Train enabled role play implementation of established emergency protocol necessary to assess proficiency and troubleshoot opportunities for improvement.
By rotating emergency rail training along its nationwide rail network, OmniTRAX safety exercises benefit from changing local geographies, operating environments, and simulated commodity emergencies that create a scenario-based curriculum and network-wide readiness. Preparedness and response drills play a key role OmniTRAX’s culture of safety that has produced its industry leading safety record.