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disaster response inspector?

I took a class the the CO Chapter offered a couple years ago, and was certified. It was actually using the curriculum from the CA program, and that is what my card says. When it is up for renewal, CO is supposed to have their own program in place, still based on CA's. Wonder if ICC's is based on the same, CA seemed to be the leader in the area.
 
I just passed the energy code res inspector plan reviewer yesterday.

I took the disaster response inspector 2 times and failed it both times.

A couple of what I thought were hard ICC tests that I have passed: Certified building official technical and Commercial IBC plan review. So I know how to study for and take ICC tests.

In my opinion the test was very flawed. The questions were too subjective. The questions did not give enough information to be able to pick just one answer. It is a two hour test. Both times I finished in an hour and spent 1/2 hour reviewing. I clocked out 1/2 hour early because if the answer was in the book I had found its location. There just wasn't enough info in the question to know what answer they were after. Anyway that is my take on it.

Has anybody else out there taken the test?
 
I took the test and finished in an hour and spent about 30 min. for review. I did not encounter the things you speak of. The material I used was the manuals from the Applied Technology Council(ATC). ATC-20 / ATC-20-1 / ATC-20-2 / ATC-45.

As we all know depending on when you sit for an exam you may encounter different questions for the same exam.

Good luck next time.
 
Yes I agree the Res Energy was not a hard test. It was nice to have to use only on book for a change.

for disaster test the books are:

IBC, IRC, IEBC, National Eletrical Code, and then 4 ATC manuals. ATC-20, ATC-20--1, ATC 20-2 and ATC-45.

I am going to start studying again and give it a 3rd shot.
 
California's didn't have anything to do with IBC, IRC, NEC, it's about evaluating buildings for occupancy safety, after a disaster. Mine is due for renewal this year.
 
David Henderson said:
California's didn't have anything to do with IBC, IRC, NEC, it's about evaluating buildings for occupancy safety, after a disaster. Mine is due for renewal this year.
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David -

Nice to meet a fellow card carrying Disaster Response Worker! :)

I renewed mine a couple years ago. I took the classes - SAP Evaluator & SAP Coordinator a number of years ago when there was no ICC. All are CA specific and tied into CA OES, now CalEMA.
 
I think mine is due this next year also, I haven't heard if CO has picked up the program yet.
 
The ICC certification has no legal standing unless adopted by the appropriate agency as a necessary qualification. The local jurisdiction can use whoever they want to perform post disaster inspections.

In California the ICC disaster certifications are a non-issue.

The California credential is part of a program where the state maintains a list of volunteers to be called up in the event of a disaster to evaluate buildings. Individuals who are called up are not paid for their time but are provided liability protection, workmans compensation, and are reimbursed for expenses. To get this protection individuals must be volunters and must follow a protocol when being activated.

Ultimately individual jurisdictions need to have ordinances in place that give weight to the resultant building tags and make provision for resolving the concerns identified by the inspections.
 
Washington through WABO now has a Emergency Responder Accreditation Program in place. The Washington Building Safety Mutual Aid System was authorized by the 62nd Legislature on April 29, 2011 under ESHB 1406. The Washington Association of Building Officials has accepted responsibility for establishing the Building Safety Mutual Aid System and for administering the credentialing of the State’s building safety responders wishing to participate in the system.

Under the system responders are assigned a “type” that indicates their qualifications and capabilities. Applicants for credentialing indicate the type for which they are applying and provide documentation of required training and education appropriate for that level. The WABO credentialing committee reviews and approves all applications for credentials. Upon approval, responders receive a photo identification badge indicating their responder type and other competencies that may be of use in the response to emergencies. In an effort to develop a catalog of responder capabilities applicants are asked to provide a list of any additional expertise which they are able to lend to an emergency response. That information will be maintained in a database by WABO that will be made available to jurisdictions seeking emergency assistance.

Check it out at Emergency Management

LG
 
At Mark K: I know that the jurisdiction has to approve or adopt qualifications for Disaster Response Inspectors. However are you saying that ICC Disaster Response Inspector Certification is not a widely recognized certification? ICC Disaster Response Inspector Certification should show a curtain level of knowledge of building and ATC manuals for disaster responders. If not is there a national certification program out there that is widely recognized? Or are most of them State Certification Programs?

At little_Guy: Does Washington put any weight on the ICC Certification? Can it be included as part of the required qualification for a disaster response person?

Anybody else out there have any comment on the recognition of ICC DR inspector?

At any rate I am glad I got the ICC DR inspector certification. I learned a lot in studying for it and am more knowledgeable for haven studied for it and received it.
 
What I have is an identification card from the California Emergency Management Agency. I am listed as a building inspector with the Safety Assessment Program. There are many more at my AHJ.

We had a few days of training and re-cert every four years or so. Several of our inspectors went to New Orleans after the hurricane. We get paid by our AHJ no matter where we are.
 
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I am saying that the ICC certification is irrelevant in California.

In California there is nothing preventing a local building department signing you up as a disaster service worker without any credential or certification. If you are a volunteer and properly signed up as a disaster service worker you will have the same legal protection as those with the Cal EMA SAP credentials. In practice most building departments will expect the inspectors to have the SAP training and credentials. In addition when there is a disaster those dealing with the response will be biased towards only dealing with Cal EMA.

There are no national governmental building certification programs. This is because the federal government does not have the authority to regulate building construction. The ICC certification program has the same legal standing as if you or I started issuing certifications.

If ICE is paid by his employer then he is not covered by federal and California laws granting immunity laws dealing with disaster workers. If you were hired by the local jurisdiction or your employer had an agreement with the local jurisdiction that addressed liability issues then you will likely have the liability protection that the local inspectors have.
 
Mark K, being paid by your employer does not mean you lose your liability, it transfer's work comp coverage from the Emergency Services Act to the AHJ, in some cases The Master Mutual Aid Agreement has reimbursed the providing jurisdiction their costs.
 
If you work for a building department and are paid by your employer your employer would be expected to provide liability protection and workers compensation.

One of the benefits that employees of government agencies have is a basic immunity that protects government employees doing there job. When you are performing inspections for another agency in another state you would not necessarily have this same immunity protection. In such cases you should make sure that the Mutual Aid Agreement provides you the same protection as if you were an employee of the jurisdiction where you will be working.
 
Yes Washington Does recognize the certifications from ICC and the California Emergency Worker certifications, depending on your qualifications and experience determines the level of inspections you can perform in an emergency.
 
Alias said:
David -Nice to meet a fellow card carrying Disaster Response Worker! :)

I renewed mine a couple years ago. I took the classes - SAP Evaluator & SAP Coordinator a number of years ago when there was no ICC. All are CA specific and tied into CA OES, now CalEMA.
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I received mine a few years ago also. It's not a difficult test if you have a background in construction.
 
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