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SERTC: Indiana Week

Responders in hazmat suits training on railroad car
Responders in hazmat suits training on railroad car

Indiana Week at SERTC

Sept. 29 - Oct. 3, 2025

Security Emergency Response Training Center
45825 E. Hwy 96, Building 583
Pueblo, CO 81006

Join IAHMR for free training opportunities during Indiana Week at the Security Emergency Response Training Center (SERTC) in Pubelo, Colorado, in fall 2025.

SERTC provides world-recognized surface transportation incident training courses. Participants will experience full-scale, immersive training to prepare them for real-world hazmat and surface transportation emergencies. Prior to this, SERTC has only provided industry-restricted training and has never received a state-only request.

Up to 80 people from Indiana may attend two courses, with the cost reimbursable by FEMA:

Full course information can be found below or on the SERTC website.

Prerequisites

  • You must be a certified hazmat technician and completed NIMS 100, 200 and 700 by the time of enrollment.
  • You must be an active member of a public sector or mutual aid Hazardous Materials Response Team (fire, EMA, military or industrial).
    • Note: If you are not affiliated with a Hazardous Materials Response Team, you may apply after May 1, 2025, if openings are available.
  • You must not have attended the selected course in the past three years.
  • There is a maximum of eight attendees (four in each course) from a single entity, unless prior authorization is obtained.

How To Register

  1. Go to the SERTC website to register. Create an account or log in if you already have one, then complete the application for your selected course.
  2. Send completed SERTC application for the specific course to Indiana's SAA, Rusty Goodpaster, at rgoodpaster@dhs.in.gov (317-756-1501). Make sure the application is signed by your department supervisor before being sent.
  3. After receiving confirmation, sign up in the Acadis Portal.

Detailed instructions

Note: FEMA reimbursements require a very specific process and documentation. Please follow details closely to ensure eligibility.

Help

Course Options

SERTC Indiana Week Flyer
SERTC Indiana Week Flyer
SERTC Indiana Week Flyer
SERTC Indiana Week Flyer

Tank Car Specialist (P-290)

Description

Source: FEMA

PDF version

The Tank Car Specialist course is specifically designed as an intensive hazardous materials emergency response training for the specialist level and will bring the hazardous materials technician to the highest recognized level of training identified by Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with a focus on freight rail incidents potentially involving flammable and combustible liquids and other hazardous materials transported by rail.

Participants will receive comprehensive training well beyond that of traditional hazardous materials technician training. The classroom information will be bolstered with hands-on scenarios that take place on the more than 50 rail tank cars present at SERTC's facility as well as 5 full-scale derailments. This ensures that participants not only know the necessary information but also how to apply it during a real-world incident.

The classroom portion includes information on railroad nomenclature, railcar designs, specialty features unique to the railroad, product transfer, containment methods, plugging and patching to including use of special containment devices and flaring operations. The course also covers rail vehicle threat and vulnerability assessments including actions and responses to any toxic or industrial hazardous materials release (e.g., flammable/combustible liquid rail transportation emergencies and WMD attacks on railcars).

The practical portion is split into 3 areas, each building towards the next. First is the SERTC highbay which contains protective housings, valves, interior cutaways of appurtenances and rail cars, emergency devices, and other props to give participants an understanding of the inner workings of rail cars and their components. Second is the transfer yard where participants learn how the various components on a railcar are actually used during transfers and flaring of liquids and gases under "normal" conditions. The final practical areas are the 5 full-scale derailments where participants will utilize all of the skills and knowledge gained to respond to a realistic emergency with full ICS staffing, appropriate PPE, and other emergency equipment.

After successful conclusion of this course, participants will be able to respond safely to railroad emergencies by prioritizing their actions, utilizing NIMS, working within the NRF, and bringing any intentional or accidental freight rail emergency to a successful conclusion.

Highway Emergency Response Specialist (P-291)

Description

Source: FEMA

PDF version

This is an intensive highway transportation emergency response course intended to bring hazardous materials technicians to the specialist level as defined by OSHA, NFPA, and the EPA. Participants will be provided with detailed technical information on the design, construction, and function of the most common types of cargo tanks, intermodal and portable containers, and freight vans, as well as non-bulk packaging and compressed gas cylinders. This information will be used as a baseline to educate participants on the proper methods for the containment and mitigation of releases, proper transfer procedures, grounding and bonding, and proper safety procedures required during a highway emergency.

The classroom instruction will be reinforced by practical instruction on actual highway, intermodal, and non-bulk containers. Instructor-led demonstrations will build toward participant-led scenarios, and the entire class will cooperate in a final, large-scale response that closely replicates an incident that would be encountered by a responder. The final incident will require use of all of the skills and knowledge gained during the course in order to bring it to a successful conclusion. Proper scene assessment, damage assessment, confinement, containment, product removal, and transfers will all be evaluated during the incident to ensure that participants are capable of responding to these types of incidents upon completion of the course.

In addition to the response skills that are at the core of the course, participants will learn to assist in identifying vulnerabilities in their own local highway transportation systems so that organizations can pre-plan for incidents and minimize threats. Flammable/combustible liquid transportation incidents, hazardous materials, their possible impact on a jurisdiction, and the necessary components of NIMS and the NRF to prioritize organizational immediate actions and response operations are all covered throughout the course.

General Information

  • Please check emails (junk mail) frequently to ensure your application process is on track.
  • If multiple responders are attending from the same agency, you are encouraged to coordinate and only get 1 rental car per 2-3 people attending.
  • When you receive the email with reporting instructions, follow directions completely for submitting travel requests, including airlines, rental cars and hotel reservations.
  • Travel dates are Sunday, Sept. 28, 2025, and Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025.
  • You will need to bring leather work gloves, prescription safety glasses with side shields (if needed) and steel-toed shoes.
  • After receiving SERTC registration confirmation from register@aar.com, go to your personal Acadis Portal account and register for your selected course. This step will assist the assigned IDHS hazmat course liaisons with coordinating and assisting the students while at SERTC.

Registration Instructions

Sign up on SERTC Website

  1. Choose the course you want to attend:
  2. Create an account, or log in if you have an existing account.
  3. Complete the application by filling in all blanks.
    • The SAA is Rusty Goodpaster. The SAA email is rgoodpaster@dhs.in.gov. The SAA phone number is 317-756-1501.
    • The 1st Date Preference is 2025-09-29 TCS (APP)-RESTRICTED for the Tank Care Specialist course or 2025-09-29 HERS (APP) RESTRICTED for the Highway Emergency Response Specialist course.
  4. Submit the request. Look for an email from registar@aar.com within a few hours. Be sure to check your junk mail.
  5. Sign the application, have your supervisor sign the application, and email it to SAA Rusty Goodpaster (rgoodpaster@dhs.in.gov) for approval.

Sign Up on Acadis Portal

  1. After you receive registration confirmation from registar@aar.com, go to the Acadis Portal to register for your selected course. This will help the assigned IDHS hazmat course liaisons with coordinating and assisting students while at SERTC.
  2. Log in using your username and password on the left side of the screen.
  3. Using the buttons on the top of the page, select “Training and Events.”
  4. Select “Browse Or Sign Up for Training.”
  5. Select “Filters” on the right side of the page.
  6. Enter the course date using the format of Year, Month, Day (Example: 20250929), or type in the course name. Then select “Apply.”
  7. Select “Register” next to the course you are applying for, and complete the application.

If a course has a prerequisite, you will need to upload the prerequisite (using the attach document feature) or mark the checkbox beside the prerequisite if it is already in the system. You will then need to scroll down and select “This prerequisite has been met or exceeded," and then save. You will repeat this step for each prerequisite. You must provide proof of completion of the prerequisite to be approved for the course.

If you have issues or questions with Acadis, contact Justin Stump at jstump@dhs.in.gov (317-617-4235).