Special Operations

The Harford County Special Operations Team responds to any technical rescue incident (such as swiftwater, confined space, trench or rope rescues) or any hazardous materials incident (chemical release, leak or spill) within Harford County and surrounding mutual aid jurisdictions. Created in 2018 when the Hazmat Team and Tactical Rescue Team became one unit, the Special Operations Division consists of 37 highly-trained, multi-disciplined part-time members, seven part-time crew chiefs, a full-time hazmat manager, battalion chief and manager, who is also the division chief. When responding within the county, the team provides support under the officer in charge from the local fire department.

The team maintains six specialty emergency response vehicles, four response trailers and six swiftwater boats. Each unit has specialized equipment to assist on specific types of calls. Over the past decade, the team has responded to an average of 248 calls per year.

Team members have completed an average of more than 3,000 training hours per year over the last three years. While it's virtually impossible to do real-life training, it's made to be as realistic as possible to work on specific skills.

The team also assists and conducts training classes, when requested, for volunteer fire companies as well as various other agencies within Harford County.

The team is an integral part of the Baltimore Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) on the Hazmat and USAR subcommittees of the Urban Area Working Group (UAWG) and has a strong relationship with the other six jurisdictions within the Baltimore metro region. Being part of the UAWG has allowed the team to benefit from training, additional equipment and grants. Special operations has received numerous detection instruments and grant money to buy the latest CBRN detection instruments available.

The Special Operations Division also administers and enforces Chapter 146 of the Harford County Code - the Hazardous Materials Law. During incidents and investigations, if the responsible party is found in violation of the hazmat law, the special operations manager issues a Notice of Violations under the authority of the director of emergency services. The Notice of Violations may have a county fine attached to it.