All-hazards emergency preparedness courses required in several occupational fields will begin Monday, thanks to a new public-private partnership.
Incident Command Systems training courses are part of an alliance between Safety Management Systems and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s NIMSAT Institute. The National Incident Management Systems and Advanced Technologies Institute focuses on the application of advanced information technologies to enhance the resiliency of the United States to a range of disasters.
Some public-sector officials are required to take ICS courses but executives in the oil and gas, fertilizer and other industries also attend.
“Many of the courses have the public and private sector training together, and they will get to know each other and build relationships,” says Clay Rives, Associate Director and Interim Executive Director of NIMSAT. “During a disaster, you don't want to meet someone across the table for the first time.
Louisiana and surrounding areas, especially the Gulf of Mexico, are prone to natural and man-made disasters, so having a high-quality training institute in a central area is beneficial. The deep water Gulf of Mexico is the fastest-growing offshore market in the world, according to Bloomberg. Some industry analysts predict that the number of operating rigs in the Gulf will double by the end of 2015.
“We are all very excited about the rapid expansion of the oil and gas industry, but that means that we have even more lives to protect. This program will make certain that all parties are ready and prepared for any type of disaster that threatens our industry or our communities,” said Scott Domingue, SMS president.
The ICS training gives attendees the opportunity to obtain college credit from UL Lafayette or continuing education units from the Board of Certified Safety Professionals.
The courses will be held in Lafayette, La., at SMS’ state-of-the-art, 96,000-square-foot training academy. For detailed course descriptions, go to www.safetyms.com/disastertraining .
SMS is a division of Acadian and one of the largest providers of safety, medical, security, training, and health and wellness services in the United States.
Acadian has provided emergency medical care and transportation since 1971. In the past decade, the company has expanded to include a diverse suite of services in health, safety, and transportation. Acadian’s six divisions are Acadian Ambulance Service, Acadian Monitoring Services, Air Med, Executive Aircraft Charter Service, National EMS Academy and Safety Management Systems.
For more information about Safety Management Systems, go to www.safetyms.com or call (800) 252-5522.