Overview

To succeed in preparing for and responding to future homemade explosive events in the United States, emergency response agencies must complete extensive preparatory actions—developing plans and procedures, acquiring equipment, and conducting training and exercises that focus on likely scenarios. This program supports these imperatives by providing current training to first responders with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to effectively prevent, interdict, and respond to an imminent threat caused by homemade explosives laboratories and producers.

The United States Congress has recognized the need for federal programs to assist state and local jurisdictions with preparations against the threat of homemade explosives. Recent events within the U.S. and abroad have demonstrated the urgency for assistance activities. As threats have increased and evolved, the U.S. Government has expanded its support for initiatives to prepare federal, state, and local emergency services personnel to respond appropriately and safely to incidents involving homemade explosives.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), National Preparedness Directorate (NPD), National Training and Education Division (NTED), is supporting several major initiatives to improve the capability of emergency services agencies to respond to bombing incidents. The Homemade Explosives: Awareness, Recognition, and Response (HMEARR) course, developed by the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (New Mexico Tech), is one of those major initiatives. HMEARR was developed with support and cooperation from the National Bomb Squad Commanders Advisory Board (NBSCAB).

Scope Statement

This is a performance level mobile course. It addresses some of the major considerations a jurisdiction is required to answer when creating plans, procedures, and tactics to prevent and respond to homemade explosives incidents.

Upon completion of this course, participants will understand the processes of acquiring supplies and manufacturing homemade explosives, the roles of first responders and the public in developing and demonstrating situational awareness, and personal protection issues.

Target Audience

This course is designed for firefighters, law enforcement officers, emergency medical technicians, their immediate supervisors, and administrators.

Prerequisites

The following prerequisites apply to personnel attending this course:

• United States citizenship.