By Jade Campos
LNP
LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — Lancaster County’s longtime hazardous materials response team will close its doors a year after county commissioners parted ways with the volunteer group.
HazMat 2 Environmental Fire Rescue announced Tuesday it would no longer offer hazmat rescue services because it cannot financially sustain the work. Kurt Windlebleck, HazMat 2’s executive director, said the team will turn into an educational foundation to teach people about hazardous materials and incidents, including lithium-ion battery fires and chemical spills.
| WEBINAR: Building better stations on a tighter budget
“All we really want to do is educate everybody in Lancaster County to prevent chemical and environmental hazards,” Windlebleck said.
A timeline for the transition is not set, but Windlebleck said leaders hope to have the foundation running before the end of the year.
HazMat 2, an East Hempfield Township -based nonprofit, partnered with Lancaster County for decades to provide hazardous materials emergency response. The relationship broke down last summer when nonprofit and county leaders said they were unable to come to an agreement amid contract renewal discussions.
The county’s agreement with HazMat 2 expired last July. Lebanon County’s professional hazmat team immediately began providing mutual aid services to Lancaster County before the two counties signed a one-year contract for services in October.
Lancaster County’s Local Emergency Planning Committee in June agreed to renew Lebanon County’s contract for another year.
Contract talks became tumultuous last summer after county officials accused HazMat 2 of misusing public funds through “questionable expenses” including a trip to Australia, personal medications and a personal mobile phone. The nonprofit denied the claims and, in turn, said the county applied for a grant on its behalf and it was “unclear” where the money went.
Windlebleck on Tuesday defended HazMat 2, saying county leaders had been notified of all of the questioned financial decisions at the time the purchases were made.
A county spokesperson did not respond to a question Tuesday seeking updates about an internal investigation into HazMat 2’s spending.
Moving forward
Windlebleck said HazMat 2 has relied on its savings to stay afloat over the past year.
When the nonprofit contracted its rescue services with the county, HazMat 2 was funded through fees collected by the county from local facilities that have hazardous materials on their properties. Per state law, the fees are restricted to use for hazardous materials response.
Without those fees, Windlebleck said HazMat 2 can’t pay for the $20,000 annual insurance payments necessary to run rescue calls.
The educational program, which will be called the HazMat 2 Environmental Fire Rescue Foundation, will be run by the team’s remaining 12 members to provide hazard education and environmental stewardship training to students, small businesses and interested private residents.
Details about upcoming workshops and trainings are not available yet. Windlebleck said HazMat 2 leaders are currently filing paperwork to the state to become a foundation.
As a foundation, Windlebleck said HazMat 2 will rely on grants, donations and workshop fees. The nonprofit transferred its four remaining emergency response vehicles to Lebanon County’s hazmat team.
A year in
Michael Fitzpatrick, spokesperson for the county commissioners, said the Lebanon County hazmat team has averaged a 38-minute response time to hazardous incidents in Lancaster County, an improvement from a full-team response under HazMat 2 that would have taken nearly an hour.
Fitzpatrick said Lebanon’s team has also offered training to Lancaster County’s volunteer firefighters.
“Many of our local firefighters are now equipped with the information, technical training and coordination training to respond with Lebanon County on HazMat-related incidents,” he said in an email. “As a result, we’ve seen a reduction in the overall volume of full team responses needed within the county.”
Meeting minutes for the Local Emergency Planning Committee show the Lebanon team has responded to a handful of calls for service since the year began.
The committee’s meeting minutes also show the county is pursuing a mutual aid agreement for hazmat services with Lancaster city’s fire department. Fitzpatrick did not answer questions about why the county is pursuing the mutual aid agreement, and Lancaster city did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
© 2026 LNP (Lancaster, Pa.).
Visit lancasteronline.com.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
