On 25-26 September 2024, the 5th annual Hazmat Protect conference on protection against CBRN agents was held at the National Institute for NBC Protection (SUJCHBO) in Kamenná, Czech Republic. The international conference Hazmat Protect 2024 was held under the auspices of the Chairman of the State Office for Nuclear Safety Ing. Dana Drábová, Ph.D., Dr. H. c. mult. D. and the director of SUJCHBO Ing. Tomáš Dropa, MBA.
The central theme of this year’s event was The shift in the perception of CBRN risks in the contemporary world. The conference was opened by the director of the organizing SUJCHBO Ing. Tomáš Dropa, MBA and was followed by Col. Ing. Pavel Nepovím, MBA, from the General Directorate of the Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic, who summarized the current activities of the Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic with a focus on events associated with the presence of hazardous substances. With regard to the topical issues in the Czech Republic, part of the lecture included information about the deployment of the Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic in dealing with the devastating floods that swept away some regions less than two weeks ago. This was followed by a presentation given by prof. Ales Dudáček from VŠB TU Ostrava framing the central theme of the conference from the medieval use of biological weapons to actual chemical risks including the disposal of burning lithium batteries.
The main expected guest was Richard Mead – a former officer of Metropolitan Police in London and member of the Dedicated CBRN Units, who engagingly shared his experience of dealing with famous UK cases – the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, Sergei Skripal and others. The audience learned not only more details about the timeline of events, but also technical matters including the PPE and other techniques used, as well as experiences from other UK cases involving toxic substances, and recommendations for training and synergy exercises for the various forces that may be involved in dealing with CBRN events.
The conference continued with another 30 lectures, in which the audience could learn whether are there any CBRN findings reported in the Czech Republic, what problems may arise during the liquidation of an illegal methamphetamine lab, what are the newest devices and equipment for the detection and identification of dangerous substances, including the use of unmanned aerial vehicles or robotic dogs. Other presentations covered research on the detection of dangerous microorganisms or damage of organism by ionising radiation, problems with the use of perfluorinated substances in firefighting foams or decontamination using cold plasma, reactive sorbents, innovative techniques or filter materials. Another session covered developments in the field of protective equipment, focusing on protection against combustion products or addressing the risks associated with the thermal strain of the PPE user. In another section, the audience could learn about different variants of training of the Integrated Rescue System units with a focus on CBRN risks.
With its broad focus, the conference tried to arouse the participants’ interest in various areas related to hazardous CBRN agents and protection against them. Many experiences were shared during informal meetings and many potential collaborations were concluded. The conference highlighted the need for this type of expert meetings and the necessity of cooperation in commissioning and solving CBRN protection projects, both national and international.
For the successful conference, we should thank not only the main organizer SUJCHBO, but also the main partners Metrohm Czech Republic and Nonwovenn, UK and other partners, especially all speakers and poster authors for interesting contributions.
Sincere thanks to all participants for actively completing the two-day marathon, as well as to all the less visible ones who took care of the organization and facilities of the conference. The next edition of the conference is planned for autumn 2026.
Ing. Kamila Lunerová, Ph. D.
On behalf of the Organizing Committee
Partners of the Hazmat Protect 2024 conference:
Programme
Programme of the conference can be downloaded here.
Book of Abstracts and Proceedings
Book of Abstracts can be downloaded here.
Selected fulltexts are in Proceedings.
Posters
| Ing. Monika Hoskovcová a kol. |
Vliv iontů bivalentních kovů na vazbu OFOL-AChe Impact of ions of bivalent metals on organophosphorus CWA-ACHE |
| Ing. Monika Hoskovcová a kol. |
Identifikace nervově paralytických látek s využitím neuronových sítí Identification of nerve agents using neural networks |
| Ing. Lukáš Matějovský, Ph.D. a kol. |
Termo-oxidační stabilita 5-(2-aminoethyl)dithio-2-nitrobenzoátu pro kolorimetrickou detekci inhibitorů cholinesteráz Thermo-oxidative stability of 5-(2-aminoethyl)dithio-2-nitrobenzoate for colorimetric detection of cholinesterase inhibitors |
| RNDr. Michal Mašín, Ph.D. a kol. |
Vliv barvy a složení ochranného oděvu na prostup tepla Effect of colour and composition of protective clothing on heat transfer |
| Mgr. Jiří Žeravík Ph.D. a kol. |
Využití karboxylesterázy pro stanovení organofosforových látek Effect of colour and composition of protective clothing on heat transfer |
| Mgr. Jakub Vaněk, Ph.D. a kol. |
Ochranné vlastnosti konstrukčních materiálů hasičských zásahových oděvů proti průniku zplodin hoření Protective properties of construction materials of firefightes clothing against penetration of combustion products |
Photogallery
