Витебское областное управление Госпромнадзора

Dangerous goods are substances, materials, and articles which, by their properties, the manifestation of which during transportation may cause an explosion and (or) fire, lead to the death, illness, injury, poisoning, radiation exposure, or burns of people and (or) animals, as well as cause damage to vehicles, communications, structures, technical devices, and other property and (or) harm the environment.

It is precisely to avoid possible harm that the transportation of dangerous goods is carried out according to rules and with the observance of necessary measures and conditions.

When vehicles transporting dangerous goods are in motion, the following requirements must be observed:

The speed of vehicles transporting dangerous goods must be selected by the driver taking into account the conditions for safe transportation of the specific dangerous cargo;

When vehicles transporting dangerous goods are in motion, the low beam headlights must be switched on;

When the vehicle is stopped or parked, the parking brake must be engaged, and on a slope, at least two wheel chocks must be installed;

It is forbidden to transport people not involved in the process of transporting dangerous goods;

Refueling of vehicles transporting dangerous goods of classes 1 and 7 at public gas stations is prohibited.

When transporting dangerous goods in a convoy of vehicles, the following requirements must be observed:

When moving on a level road, the distance between vehicles must be at least 50 m;

In hilly terrain – on ascents and descents – at least 300 m;

Transportation of dangerous goods is not permitted when visibility is less than 300 m due to fog, rain, snowfall, or icy conditions;

The escort of dangerous goods must be in the cabin of the first vehicle, and in the last vehicle with the cargo, one of the representatives (unit) of the security, if it is provided for by the safety conditions of the specific dangerous cargo transportation, must be present.

To fulfill the above, enterprises must have persons responsible for loading and unloading operations with dangerous goods:

As, in accordance with clause 61 of the Rules, the loading, unloading and placement of cargo are carried out under the control and guidance of the person responsible for the safe conduct of loading and unloading operations, appointed by order (directive) of the head of the organization from among specialists who have undergone training in the manner established by the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Republic of Belarus.

The person responsible for the safe conduct of loading and unloading operations ensures:

- control over the presence of required documents and equipment for ensuring safety on vehicles carrying dangerous goods and compliance of these documents and equipment with mandatory technical regulatory legal acts;

- taking measures to inform employees about the types of hazards associated with the loading of dangerous goods;

- control over the condition of containers, vehicles, loading and unloading sites, the availability of trained personnel, with an entry in the logbook for checking the condition of containers, vehicles, loading and unloading sites, and the availability of trained personnel (hereinafter referred to as the logbook) before starting loading operations;

- compliance with the requirements regarding the identification of loaded dangerous goods.

The person responsible for the safe conduct of loading and unloading operations must:

- prior to commencing loading and unloading operations, conduct a check of the condition of containers, vehicles, loading/unloading sites, and the availability of trained personnel, with a record made in the logbook;

- continuously check the tightness of pipeline connections, the hermetic sealing of tank hatches and lids, the proper functioning of breathing valves, the absence of cracks in welded seams, as well as the integrity and operability of grounding devices;

- ensure the presence and proper working order of appropriate sets of primary firefighting equipment, including boards with fire-fighting inventory and sandboxes, fire extinguishers, and other tools.