N.Y. department set for chemical detection kit

By Catie O'Toole
The Post-Standard (Syracuse, New York)

OSWEGO, N.Y. — Oswego city firefighters soon will be getting a $30,935 piece of equipment that will help them figure out whether they're dealing with any hazardous chemicals.

"You can take this piece of equipment and put it up against a bottle of Excedrin, and in less than a minute, the screen will tell you it contains aspirin, acetaminophen and caffeine," said city fire Lt. Justin Norfleet. "That way, you can immediately rule out that it's a dangerous chemical."

Firefighters also will be able to take it into "hot zones" and identify the chemicals right there, instead of having to send a sample to a laboratory and wait for the results, Norfleet said.

"It's pretty cool," he said. "I've been trained on it and it's a phenomenal piece of equipment. It allows us, in hazardous materials or weapons of mass destruction environment, to determine the exact chemicals quickly."

The Department of Homeland Security awarded $71,072.74 in grants to improve the safety and efficiency of local fire and police departments in Oswego, Clinton, Oneida, St. Lawrence and Essex counties, Rep. John M. McHugh, R-Pierrepont Manor, announced last week.

Of that, the Oswego department was awarded the biggest chunk — $30,935.80 — for the chemical detection kit.

Norfleet said the kit will help firefighters do their jobs faster and safer.

"We can clear incidents more quickly and we can proceed more safely by knowing exactly what we're dealing with," he said.