Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release

Hazard in Hazardous Materials

A technological hazard — chemical, biological or radiological material escaping from a facility or shipment, forcing shelter-in-place or evacuation.

Plans also call it: hazmat, hazardous materials release, hazmat incident, hazmat spill, chemical spill, chemical release, chemical accident, toxic release

Talk to us about Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) ReleaseAll 73 hazards →

What you’d hand your council

The first page of a Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release evidence brief: likelihood, impact and readiness on your own scale, every figure sourced.

Evidence brief for Cedar Ridge County (example)

September 14, 2026

Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release

Hazard in Hazardous Materials, on the established threats & hazards list

Impact
5432112345

Likelihood

Likelihood
3

Possible — Expected occasionally — roughly once in 10 to 50 years (2–10% chance in any year).

Impact
5

Catastrophic — Overwhelming effects — mass casualties possible, widespread destruction, essential services out for a month or more, long-term recovery requiring state and federal assistance.

Readiness
2

Low — Some elements of capability are in place, but important gaps remain that could significantly limit the organization's ability to perform effectively. Additional development is needed before the capability can be relied upon.

  • 2source documents
  • 58verified mentions
  • 2federal declarations
  • —NRI risk score
Worked example: Cedar Ridge County is fictional. The scores illustrate the format and are nobody's decision. Open a full sample brief →

The national record

FEMA’s National Risk Index doesn’t model Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release. Your team fills it with local evidence, and Hazzard shows the gap rather than a zero.

How it maps

The same hazard in the vocabularies your plan and FEMA already use.

FEMA National Risk Index
Not covered
FEMA declaration incident type
Chemical, Toxic Substances10 declarations on record
NOAA Storm Events type
Not covered
Hazzard category
Hazardous Materials, infrastructure and technology

The national record

What the federal data says about Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release

The same national sources a Hazzard brief starts from. For your jurisdiction we narrow each one to your county and its neighbors.

10 federal declarations since 1962

Declarations FEMA filed as “Chemical”, “Toxic Substances”, by year (2026 to date)

0121962: 2 declarations1978: 1 declaration1980: 1 declaration1981: 1 declaration1987: 1 declaration1992: 1 declaration2014: 1 declaration2016: 1 declaration2026 (to date): 1 declaration1962: 2197019801990200020102020
OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, as of 2026-09-27. Counts distinct disasters; major, emergency and fire-management declarations.

In your plan

What a Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release profile needs, and where each part comes from

A local hazard mitigation plan profiles each hazard the same way (44 CFR 201.6). Here is how Hazzard fills each part for Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release.

  1. Location

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    Your documents

    No national layer maps Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release. We draw the geographic extent from your plans, studies and annexes, cited to the page.

  2. Extent

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    Your documents

    The magnitude your plans use for Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release (a scale, a depth, an acreage, a duration), read from your documents and cited, so the profile states the strength you plan for.

  3. Previous occurrences

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    National data

    Every FEMA declaration filed as Chemical or Toxic Substances that included your county, back to 1953, alongside the events your own records and after-action reports describe.

  4. Probability of future events

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    Your team decides

    No national dataset gives a frequency for Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release. Your team scores likelihood on your scale from the evidence we organize.

  5. Vulnerability and impacts

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(ii)

    Your documents

    The Census population profile and HHS emPOWER counts for context; the consequences themselves come from your plans and exercises.

  6. The assessment itself

    Your team decides

    Likelihood, impact and readiness for Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release are drafted with every source attached, and a person on your team accepts each one. Hazzard never records a score on its own.

How we can help

How we’d help you prepare for Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release

  1. 1

    We pull your record

    Chemical and toxic-substance declarations, and the population profile that shapes who a release would reach.

  2. 2

    We read your plans and annexes

    Your EOP's hazmat annex and mitigation plan, so what they say about Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release is cited and what they skip is visible.

  3. 3

    You leave with a cited brief

    Likelihood, impact and readiness for Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release on your own scale, every figure tied to its source, ready for the planning team or the council.

Also in Hazardous Materials

Preparing for Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release

Know what moves through, and what's stored nearby, before Hazardous Material (Chemical, Biological, Radiological) Release happens.

Hazardous materials response starts the same way however it begins: knowing what is there. We connect your plans, your federal record and who would be exposed. A person replies within one business day.

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