First Incident Response Readiness Symposium focuses on safety first

At ADOT, safety is always top of mind. Our crews respond to all sorts of incidents on the highway — from wildfires to crashes and more — and it’s important for them to be prepared and refresh their skills so they can help clear the highway and get traffic moving again as quickly and safely as possible.  

In June, ADOT’s Incident Response Unit, sponsored by GEICO, and members of ADOT’s Signals and Lights and Sign Shop work groups gathered at the Arizona State Fairgrounds to run through practical training focused on operational readiness and risk reduction in its first Incident Response Readiness Symposium. 

Attendees were able to practice:

• Safely attaching hooks and chains to overturned vehicles to flip them upright. This process, known as “push, pull, drag,” helps workers remove crashed vehicles and large debris out of travel lanes on the highway. 
• Completing a truck backing course with the goal of knocking over the fewest cones possible. This helps workers get used to size of the trucks and reduce the chances of crashes occurring when backing up a vehicle
• Deploying proper traffic control procedures when a highway closes. 

“ADOT is committed to investing in the safety, readiness and professional development of our employees,” IRU Program Manager Abraham Asermely said. “This event will help our crews strengthen their technical abilities and team coordination, ultimately better preparing them to respond to incidents on the highway and keep the traveling public safe.”  

While IRU regularly does each of these trainings throughout the year, this was the first time all of these trainings were offered at the same event. 

Click through the photo album to take a look at the attendees practicing each of the training courses at the event.