Scheduled for 6-7 Dec., the train-the-trainer workshop is the fifth of its kind to ensure first responders nationwide have the opportunity to expand their knowledge of electric drive vehicle accident response procedures. The NAFTC, a program of West Virginia University, has produced the Electric Drive Vehicle First Responder Safety Training, a curriculum developed under the NAFTC’s Advanced Electric Drive Vehicle Education Program, funded by the US Department of Energy.

The Electric Drive Vehicle First Responder Safety Training features a suite of modern technology products including a mobile app that allows emergency personnel to have access to vehicle information.

As electric drive vehicles continue to gain popularity, the NAFTC is dedicated to helping first responders understand the differences between these and conventional, gasoline-powered vehicles. Electric drive vehicles are as safe as conventional vehicles; but they are different. The First Responder Safety Training provides first responders with important information to enhance their understanding of those differences.

—NAFTC Executive Director Al Ebron

The First Responder Safety Training consists of four modules titled Hybrid Electric Vehicles, Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles, Battery Electric Vehicles and Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles. The suite of products includes instructor manuals, participant booklets and the quick reference guide (QRG). Online courses will be available in 2012.

The two-day, train-the-trainer First Responder Safety Training workshop in December will teach NAFTC National Training Center instructors how to deliver the end-user course to emergency personnel. The other train-the-trainer sessions have occurred at past NAFTC events in Gallagher, W. Va.; Morgantown, W. Va.; South Portland, Maine; and Sanford, Fla.

Topics include key vehicle properties and characteristics; vehicle components; vehicle identification; and recommended first responder procedures. The First Responder Safety Training’s target audiences are firefighters, law enforcement officers, paramedics, emergency medical technicians and hazardous response officials.