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Hazardous waste, hazardous material, and hazardous chemicals are synonymous terms that refer to agents that can cause injury or death to those exposed. This includes chemical, biological, and nuclear materials. Although the media often highlights hazmat (hazardous material) events as "bioterrorism," hazmat exposures are more commonly due to accidental or natural chemical spills. Luckily, these events are relatively rare and on a small scale. In all cases, preparation is critical. Appropriate disaster management must take into account direct injury due to the release of the agent, as well as the chaos and confusion associated with exposures. Preparation must also be made for secondary injuries such as trauma and burns. During the incident, victims often flee the scene and seek out the nearest hospital for medical care with no regard for that institution’s capabilities. To optimally handle these events, preparedness requires planning, procedure development, policy creation, hazard analysis, and the availability of appropriate protective equipment. Safety should remain the priority when an emergency occurs, including the safety of the first responders, the exposed, and the public, including downstream personnel such as hospital providers.[1][2][3][4][5]