Bad Day Training

04/20/2026

Training for bad days not only starts with great instructors, but also includes the team that keeps things moving along.
For this Meet the Team Monday, please meet the ladies of Bad Day Training.

Amy, Holly, Layla, and Katarina- we handle the behind the scenes tasks such as class confirmations, certificates, printing, assembling student manuals, marketing and more!

Amy Knizner
Holly Zamiska

04/20/2026

What a weekend and what a day in Athens County!! Two full scale Hazmat LEPC exercises. We are grateful for our friends in Athens and Athens County for this opportunity! Richland Area Fire Dept. led the response side and crushed it! Thank you to all that took time to volunteer their Sunday to be part of this exercise. Athens County has some really great first responders!

More photos below 👇 in the comments

Thank you Athens County EMA and LEPC!

04/17/2026

Day Two of Grounding and Bonding, Product Transfer Training with our longtime friends at Summit County HAZMAT!!

04/16/2026

Our team had a great three days of lithium-ion battery and EV emergencies training with some dedicated responders! Thank you to the University Heights (OH) Fire Department for hosting the training! Thank you to all the local departments that attended and put their trust in our team! Stay safe!

04/15/2026

Thank you Mansfield Fire Department !! We appreciate all your support over the years. You’ve got a great department!

04/14/2026

Training for bad days starts with great instructors.
Monday Meet the Instructor: Jay Womack

Firehouse Facts:
📍 Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
🚒 Specialty: Hazmat, NIMS
🚨 Current Role: Fire Chief for the City of Euclid, Ohio, Deputy Director -Chagrin Southeast Hazmat Team, IAFC Hazmat Committee.
🧑‍🚒 Years of Fire/HazMat Experience: 27 years
🛠️ Favorite tool: AI and MacBook Pro 🤓

Rapid Fire Questions:
🍬 Favorite candy: vanilla ice cream
🐶 Pets: two barn cats: Goggles and Mr. Cuddles
🏂 Off-duty hobby: maple syrup producer and boating
🥯 Go-to post-shift meal: skillet at yours truly restaurant

03/30/2026

What a Weekend!! Thank you to all the dedicated first responders who spent the entire weekend attending our new Rural Hazmat class! This class focused on many of the hazards responders may face in a rural setting, including ammonia and propane emergencies, pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, fuel spills, milk spills, pipeline emergencies, lithium-ion batteries, and so much more!

This class included several hands-on sessions focusing on air monitoring, spill control, recon/rescue, Decon, and more. The class concluded with a tabletop exercise involving a gasoline tanker accident, with multiple local fire departments, Ohio EPA, Ohio EMA, and several evaluators participating. These responders crushed it!!

Thank you to Huron County EMA for putting your trust in our team to deliver this course. Special thanks to the Wakeman Fire District for hosting and Norfolk Southern for providing an extremely valuable training session on Rail Awareness.

This training was funded by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio Hazmat Training Grant! Thank you all for making this weekend’s training possible!!

03/23/2026

Training for bad days starts with great instructors.
Monday Meet the Instructor: Phil McLean

Firehouse Facts:
📍 Hometown: Richfield, Ohio
🚨 Current Role: Fire Instructor and with BDT. owner of Sensible Products
🧑‍🚒 Years of Fire/HazMat Experience: 45 years of service at Richfield Fire and served on the Ohio Fire Sub committee for 20 years

Rapid Fire Questions:
🏂 Off-duty hobbies: 3 antique fire trucks, 1922 model T, 1940 open Cab, 1972 John Bean Pumper and vintage VW BUGS and spending time with his new granddaughter, Ava Marie.

03/16/2026

Training for bad days starts with great instructors.
Monday Meet the Instructor: Joe Kratochvil

Firehouse Facts:
📍 Hometown: From East Meadow, NY, now Rixeyville, VA
🚒 Specialty: Hazardous Materials, and effectively breaking stuff
🚨 Current Role: Retired Lieutenant Fairfax Fire, presently Vice President of the Culpeper County Vol. Fire Department Culpeper, VA
🧑‍🚒 Years of Fire/HazMat Experience: 45 years
🛠️ Favorite tool: Halligan Bar

Rapid Fire Questions:
🍬 Favorite candy: Chocolate
🐶 Pets: Labrador Retriever
🏂 Off-duty hobby: Nature Photography
🥯 Go-to post-shift meal: Eggplant Parmesan

03/09/2026

Training for bad days starts with great instructors.
Monday Meet the Instructor: Mark Vedder

Firehouse Facts:
📍 Hometown: Chagrin Falls, OH
🚒 Specialty: Hazmat/WMD
🚨 Current Role: Assistant Fire Chief / Hazmat Team Leader
🧑‍🚒 Years of Fire/HazMat Experience: 51
🛠️ Favorite tool: Photo-Ionization Detector (nerdy, right?)

Rapid Fire Questions:
🍬 Favorite candy: Skittles
🐶 Pets: "Bruno" (German shepherd)
🏂 Off-duty hobby: Camping / travel
🥯 Go-to post-shift meal: Eggs and bacon

03/08/2026

What a turnout!!! Thank you Scioto Ema, Ohio Valley Firefighters Association and the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio for the opportunity to provide this training! We appreciate you all!!

What are 70 Scioto County first responders doing today? Learning how to manage incidents involving Lithium-Ion batteries. These batteries are very common and found in many household products and require special tactics when damaged or involved in a fire.