Grand Ole CBRNE
so do we, but we can be a good team together,” said Chief Clymer. The Nashville team responds to a
variety of fentanyl calls, from pill processing all the way through to the manufacture of the final product. They mentioned that on a recent call the criminals were utilising black lights, fans and alcohol to break down fentanyl anaesthetic patches. This meant that the whole crime scene was compromised, but thanks to criminal informants the team was well briefed on what to expect. Fentanyl remains a challenge for detection once it is cut, and the active, effective, compound is lost in all the rubbish mixed with the drug. Michael Armistead agreed it was a
challenge, and not just a technical, but safety as well. “On the largest fentanyl raid they had in Madison, at the time, the largest fentanyl processing lab east of the Mississippi, I talked to the people that went downrange and discovered that they were storing it in the trunk of a car. While it wasn’t a booby trap there was raw fentanyl powder there, so when you raised the trunk the vacuum would have caused a powder plume in the air. One of our guys was downrange with the DEA agents, he radioed back and said we are heavily contaminated with a white powdered substance. They had found the fentanyl in the pure form along with the pill press that went with it! We use infrared (IR) spectroscopy and Raman and they are getting better about it, we just had our IR library updated for any segment of a fentanyl base derivative.” It is just as well they are, as the
team has already tested one sample positive for the much more toxic carfentanyl. While most cities are expecting a continued increase in fentanyl use, there is little doubt of it in Nashville - as the population expands so do market forces. Chief Clymer explained: “The population booming is bringing in the drug gangs. We have been briefed by LA and the border states on the intel they have on the drug gangs that are trying to expand their base into Nashville, as thanks to the
1. Many of Nashville’s problems are associated with the drug trade ©NFD
population boom it is easier for them to slip in under the radar.” Yet it is not just narcotics keeping
the team busy. As you might expect in the home of country music, responders need to keep track of a lot of high visibility events. Chief Clymer and Michael Armistead (who is a musician himself and has appeared on stage at the Grand Ole Opry!) stated that the increase in population, drug use and high visibility events was driving the city’s investment in hazmat and CBRN defence. “As demand grows so supply has to meet it,” said Chief Clymer, “and they realise that our budget is only so big. Initially their police chief was reluctant to support us, but once he released that all the officers under him were trusting us, he bought into it. As long as we can keep the two directorate chiefs on board, and they see us working nicely together, it makes it more probable that they will agree with what we are doing. We have to keep our relation strong because it makes our life easier when we can reach out to police or public works.” Mike Armistead agreed: “Any large
event goes through the police incident commander, and he didn’t initially get the picture but once he started going through the national incident
management system it was like a light switch and that has been a great relationship and a lot of it has been through his side of the house.” It seems that it isn’t just musicians
on stage that make harmony, much of the conversation revolved around the strength of the ensemble. For example the FD currently teaches hazmat up to specialist level for the police, and with people’s careers depending on that continuing there would seem to be a lot of vested interest in ensuring that this doesn’t change. Both Chief Clymer and Mike Armistead can’t see an end to the integration and both are hoping that by the time CBRNe Convergence comes to Nashville in 2019 both teams will be under one roof. “If we can get everyone in the same building that would help strengthen that team ethic and keep the concept going,” said Michael Armistead. “CBRN ain’t one person, it is a whole bunch of people coming together. We have an advantage over other people in the state as we are the capital, so a lot of heads of agencies are here. We hope that as new people come in they see how we do things and how we can improve to make the concept stronger and allow an individual department to stand out. The key to moving forward is complementing each other.”
http://www.firehouse.com/article/10544921/the-waverly-propane-explosion-25th-anniversary-what-has-changed CBRNe Convergence, Orlando, USA, 6-8 November 2018
www.cbrneworld.com/convergence2018 34 CBRNe WORLD February 2018
www.cbrneworld.com
CBRNeWORLD
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