# ERG2024 User's Guide

- **operation:** document
- **citation:** ERG 2024, ERG2024 User's Guide
- **title:** ERG2024 User's Guide
- **source type:** guidance
- **agency:** U.S. DOT / Transport Canada / SICT
- **status:** guidance
- **official:** true
- **published on:** 2024-04-04
- **effective on:** Not available
- **summary:** Official ERG2024 erg2024 user's guide guidance, pages 346-351.
- **machine formats:** - **json:** https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-erg-2024-users-guide.json
- **markdown:** https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-erg-2024-users-guide.md
- **app url:** https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-erg-2024-users-guide
- **source url:** https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/2024-04/ERG2024-Eng-Web-a.pdf#page=346
**body:**

ERG2024 USER’S GUIDE
For the purposes of this guidebook, the terms hazardous materials/dangerous goods are
synonymous.
The 2024 Emergency Response Guidebook (ERG2024) was developed jointly by Transport
Canada (TC), the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), and the Secretariat of
Infrastructures, Communications and Transport of Mexico (SICT), with help from CIQUIME
(Centro de Información Química para Emergencias) of Argentina.
This guidebook is for firefighters, police and other emergency services personnel who may
be first to arrive at the scene of a transportation incident involving dangerous goods.
It is primarily a guide to help first responders to quickly:
•
identify the specific or generic hazards of material(s) involved in a transportation
incident
•
protect themselves and the general public during the initial response phase
of the incident
For the purposes of this guidebook, “initial response phase” is the period after first responders
arrive at the scene of an incident. During this phase, responders:
•
confirm the presence and/or identification of dangerous goods
•
start taking protective action and securing the area
•
request the help of qualified personnel
This guide is designed for use at a dangerous goods incident on a highway or railroad. It may
have limited value at fixed-facility locations, or onboard aircrafts or vessels.
This guide does not:
•
provide information on the physical or chemical properties of dangerous goods
•
replace emergency response training, knowledge, or sound judgment
•
address all possible circumstances that may be associated with a dangerous goods
incident
ERG2024 incorporates dangerous goods lists from the most recent United Nations
Recommendations, and from other international and national regulations.
Explosives are not listed individually (by either proper shipping name or ID number) but,
under the general heading “Explosives”, they do appear:
•
at the beginning of the ID Number index (yellow section)
•
alphabetically in the Name of Material index (blue section)
Chemical and biological warfare agents are now found in the “Criminal or Terrorist Use of
Chemical, Biological and Radiological Agents” section.
Page 344

The letter (P) following the guide number in the yellow and blue sections
identifies materials that present a polymerization hazard under certain conditions.
For example: UN1092 - Acrolein, stabilized GUIDE 131P.
First responders at the scene of a dangerous goods incident should not solely rely on this
guidebook. Always seek specific information about any material in question as soon as
possible. To do so:
•
•
•
Contact the appropriate emergency response agency listed on the inside back cover.
Call the emergency response telephone number on the shipping paper.
Consult information on or accompanying the shipping paper.
BEFORE AN EMERGENCY – BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THIS GUIDEBOOK! In the
U.S., according to the requirements of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety
and Health Administration (OSHA, 29 CFR 1910.120) and regulations issued by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA, 40 CFR Part 311), first responders must be trained
in how to use this guidebook.
GUIDEBOOK CONTENTS
1- Yellow section: Index list of dangerous goods in order of ID number. The list displays the
4-digit ID followed by its assigned emergency response guide and material name.
For example: ID No. GUIDE No. Name of Material
1090 127 Acetone
2- Blue section: Index list of dangerous goods in alphabetical order of material name. The list
displays the name followed by its assigned emergency response guide and 4-digit ID number.
For example: Name of Material GUIDE No. ID No.
Sulfuric acid 137 1830
3- Orange section: All safety recommendations are provided here. It is made up of 62
individual guides. Each guide recommends safety and emergency response procedures
to protect yourself and the public. Each guide applies to a group of materials with similar
chemical and toxicological characteristics. The guide title identifies the general hazards of
the dangerous goods.
For example: GUIDE 124 - Gases - Toxic and/or Corrosive - Oxidizing.
Page 345

•
•
•
•
•
•
Each guide is divided into 3 main sections:
POTENTIAL HAZARDS:
•
Displays the hazards in terms of FIRE OR EXPLOSION and HEALTH effects upon
exposure.
Primary potential hazard is listed first.
Consult this section first to help you make decisions about how to protect the
emergency response team and surrounding population.
PUBLIC SAFETY:
Provides general information on initial precautionary measures to be taken by those
first on scene.
Provides general guidance on PROTECTIVE CLOTHING requirements and respiratory
protection.
Lists suggested EVACUATION distances for immediate precautionary measures,
spills, and for fires (fragmentation hazard).
When the material is highlighted in green in the yellow and blue sections, it directs
the reader to consult Table 1, which lists Toxic Inhalation Hazard (TIH) (PIH in the
U.S.) materials and water-reactive materials (green section).
EMERGENCY RESPONSE:
Outlines special precautions for incidents that involve FIRE, SPILL OR LEAK or
chemical exposure.
Lists several recommendations under each part to further assist your decision-making
process.
Provides specific FIRST AID guidance to use for a product or a guide in addition to the
general first aid guidance for hazardous materials/dangerous goods incidents. General
first aid guidance is found in the “General First Aid” section situated immediately after
the “How to use the Orange Guides” section.
4- Green section: This section has 3 tables.
Table 1 - Initial Isolation and Protective Action Distances
Lists, by order of ID number:
•
TIH (PIH in the U.S.) materials
•
water-reactive materials which produce toxic gases upon contact with water
These materials are highlighted in green in the yellow and blue sections so you can easily
identify them.
•
•
•
Page 346

Table 1 provides two types of recommended safety distances: “initial isolation distances”
and “protective action distances” for:
•
small spills: 208 liters (55 US gallons) or less
•
large spills: more than 208 liters (55 US gallons)
Within the “initial isolation distance”, protective clothing and respiratory protection is
required. You should consider evacuating all people in all directions from the spill or leak
source. This distance defines the radius of the “initial isolation zone” surrounding the spill in
which people may be exposed to:
•
dangerous concentrations upwind of the source
•
life-threatening concentrations downwind of the source
The “protective action distances” are downwind distances from the spill or leak source,
within which responders could carry out protective actions to:
•
•
preserve the health and safety of emergency responders and the public
evacuate and/or shelter-in-place people in this area (For more information, consult
the “Protective Actions” section)
The “protective action distance” is divided into daytime and nighttime incidents because
varying atmospheric conditions affect a hazardous area’s size. In fact, the quantity or
concentration of the material’s vapor poses problems, not its mere presence. During the night,
the air is generally calmer. This causes the vapor to disperse less and therefore creates a
greater toxic zone. In daytime, the atmosphere is more active, so the vapor disperses more.
As a result, there is a lower concentration of vapor in the surrounding air and the area that
reaches toxic levels is smaller. Daytime is after sunrise and before sunset. Nighttime is
between sunset and sunrise.
For example, in the case of a small spill of UN1955 - compressed gas, toxic, n.o.s., the
“initial isolation distance” is 150 meters (500 feet); therefore its “initial isolation zone” is
300 meters (1000 feet) in diameter. Its “protective action distance” is 1.0 kilometer (0.6
miles) for daytime and 3.9 kilometers (2.4 miles) for nighttime.
Note 1: Some water-reactive materials have 2 entries in Table 1. They are identified by
(when spilled on land) since they are TIH products and (when spilled in water) because
they produce additional toxic gases when spilled in water.
For example: UN1746 - Bromine trifluoride and UN1836 - Thionyl chloride.
Note 2: If a water-reactive material only has one entry in Table 1 for (when spilled in water)
and the product is NOT spilled in water, Table 1 and Table 2 do not apply. You will find safe
distances in the appropriate orange guide.
For example: UN1183 - Ethyldichlorosilane and UN1898 – Acetyl iodide.
Page 347

Table 2 - Water-Reactive Materials Which Produce Toxic Gases
Lists:
•
•
by order of ID number, materials which produce large amounts of Toxic Inhalation
Hazard (TIH) gases when spilled in water; and
TIH gases produced by these materials.
You can easily identify water-reactive materials in Table 1, as their names are immediately
followed by (when spilled in water).
NOTE: The TIH gases indicated in Table 2 are for information purposes only. These TIH
gases have already been taken into consideration in the distances of Table 1.
For example, Table 2 indicates that UN1689 sodium cyanide, solid, when spilled in water,
will generate hydrogen cyanide gas (HCN). In Table 1, you must refer to the distances for
sodium cyanide, solid and not the distances for hydrogen cyanide gas.
Table 3 - Initial Isolation and Protective Action Distances for Large Spills for Different
Quantities of Six Common TIH Gases
Lists the following 6 most common TIH materials:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
UN1005 - Ammonia, anhydrous
UN1017 - Chlorine
UN1040 - Ethylene oxide and UN1040 - Ethylene oxide with nitrogen
UN1050 - Hydrogen chloride, anhydrous and UN2186 - Hydrogen chloride, refrigerated
liquid
UN1052 - Hydrogen fluoride, anhydrous
UN1079 - Sulfur dioxide/Sulphur dioxide
Table 3 shows:
initial isolation and protective action distances for large spills (more than 208 liters
or 55 US gallons)
different container types (therefore different volume capacities) for daytime and
nighttime, and for three different wind speeds (low, moderate and high)
Page 348

HOW TO CHOOSE THE APPROPRIATE ISOLATION AND PROTECTIVE ACTION
DISTANCES
ERG2024 lists isolation or evacuation distances in 2 places:
•
the individual guides (orange section)
•
Table 1 – Initial Isolation and Protective Action Distances (green section)
If you are dealing with a non-TIH material (not highlighted in green in the yellow or blue
section),
•
•
Go to the assigned guide for the material (orange section).
Under EVACUATION, you will find:
− initial isolation distance as an immediate precautionary measure
−
− specific distances for spill or fire situations (fragmentation hazard)
−
− Please note that certain guides may also refer to Table 1. This is just a reminder
−
for green highlighted materials only.
If you are dealing with a TIH or water-reactive material (green highlighted entries in the
yellow or blue section):
If there is no fire:
•
Go directly to Table 1 – Initial Isolation and Protective Action Distances (green section).
•
Also, consult the assigned guide for the material (orange section).
If a fire is involved:
•
Go directly to the assigned guide (orange section) and apply the distances found
under EVACUATION - Fire.
•
Also, consult Table 1 distances for residual material release.
Page 349
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