The Androscoggin Mill workers place first in the state challenge competition.

JAY – International Paper’s Androscoggin Mill Hazard Materials (HazMat) team won first place in the state Emergency Response Commission’s annual Hazardous Materials Team Challenge in Bangor last week. The company’s Bucksport Mill HazMat team placed second and third in the statewide competition.

Seven teams from various state agencies, industrial facilities and paper companies across Maine participated in the event. Members of Androscoggin Mill team included Peter Emerson, maintenance; John Clark, maintenance; Bruce Cox, woodroom; Neil Silkman, maintenance; and Jim Benson, emergency response coordinator.

“We are extremely proud of our first-place HazMat team,” said Mill Manager Mike Craft. “They went up against the best HazMat teams in the state, including state and industrial teams, and they did an incredible job. The fact that International Paper took first, second and third place in the state says that we take HazMat seriously at both Andro and Bucksport. I am proud of each and every one of our HazMat team members.”

During the event, the teams had to successfully complete a number of challenges. First, they took a 30-question written exam. Then they suited up two team members in Level A HazMat suits (which are totally encapsulating with a self-contained breathing apparatus) to complete remediation techniques like plugging drum holes and pipe trees.

On the lighter side, the teams had to complete various agility tests such as picking up coins from the pavement and putting them through a hole in the lid of a coffee can, and tossing a bean bag all while dressed in their HazMat suits.

In view of current world events, this year’s competition included a new challenge. Teams were required to take a picture of a “suspected” biological weapon, no easy task while looking through a HazMat suit. Then they put the suspect material in a plastic bag and marked the bag with its contents all while wearing bulky gloves. The challenge was ranked on clarity of the picture and neatness of the bag label.

“While some of the challenges sound a little silly, they incorporate the skills the teams need in real situations,” said Jim Benson, emergency response coordinator at the mill. “Our mill’s team is prepared to respond to emergencies in the mill and in the community.”