Lion's office will be closed on Monday, September 1, in observance of Labor Day. For help with online training, please contact support@lion.com.
Search

Hazmat Movie Night: The Wages of Fear (1953)

Posted on 9/24/2018 by Roger Marks

shutterstock_604261466.jpgWe don’t get into pop culture too often here at Lion News, we’re mostly too busy studying the CFR, State regulations, and the Federal Register for updates that impact industry professionals. But this week, we saw a classic movie that we think hazardous materials professionals will relate to and enjoy.

The Wages of Fear (1953) centers around a team of drivers who sign on to transport nitroglycerine for a local oil and gas company.

Despite treacherous road conditions and dubious infrastructure, these brave but inexperienced drivers carefully load two trucks with 100 gallons of nitroglycerine each. The second half of the movie makes for a thrilling journey as we watch these men struggle to make the delivery safely and in time to avert a disaster.
 

 

Hazmat Training in The Wages of Fear

We’re not exactly sure what qualified as “hazmat training” in 1953. After all, the Hazardous Materials Transportation Control Act (and later the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act (HMTA)) wouldn’t become US law until the 70s, and the hazmat training standard we know today wasn’t in place until the 1990s.

The hazmat training shown in this film consists of a room full of potential drivers, none of whom are wearing any form of personal protective equipment, watching a “manager” pour a drop of nitroglycerine onto the floor, which causes a loud explosion. The “new hires” are told in no uncertain terms that the chemical is very dangerous and that even that a bump in the road could have fatal consequences. 

That’s better than nothing, we suppose.

A French and Italian film directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot and starring Yves Montand, The Wages of Fear won the Grand Prize at the 1953 Cannes Film Festival and was chosen as Best Film by the British Film Academy in 1954.

Criterion, a cataloger of classic cinema, has released a full original cut of the movie, and you can read more about the film’s plot and themes on Criterion’s website.

Here’s the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPuO14OgTEc
 

Tags: dangerous, goods, hazardous materials, hazmat, hazmat shipping, movies

Find a Post

Compliance Archives

Lion - Quotes

The instructor made the class enjoyable. He presented in a very knowledgeable, personable manner. Best class I've ever attended. Will take one again.

John Nekoloff

Environmental Compliance Manager

The instructor does a great job at presenting material in an approachable way. I have been able to save my company about $30,000 in the last year with what I have learned from Lion!

Curtis Ahonen

EHS&S Manager

Given the choice, I would do all coursework this way. In-person courses go very fast without the opportunity to pause or repeat anything.

Ellen Pelton

Chemical Laboratory Manager

This is a very informative training compared to others. It covers everything I expect to learn and even a lot of new things.

Quatama Jackson

Waste Management Professional

We have a very busy work schedule and using Lion enables us to take the course at our own time. It makes it easy for me to schedule my employees' training.

Timothy Mertes

Hazmat Shipping Professional

Much better than my previous class with another company. The Lion instructor made sense, kept me awake and made me laugh!

Marti Severs

Enterprise Safety Manager

Very witty instructor, made the long times sitting bearable. One of the few training courses I can say I actually enjoyed.

John Hutchinson

Senior EHS Engineer

The instructor was very patient and engaging - willing to answer and help explain subject matter.

Misty Filipp

Material Control Superintendent

Excellent. I learned more in two days with Lion than at a 5-day program I took with another provider.

Francisco Gallardo

HES Technician

Lion is easily and consistently the best option for compliance training. I've learned new information from every instructor I've had.

Rachel Mathis

EHS Specialist

Download Our Latest Whitepaper

Four key considerations to help you maximize the convenience and quality of your experience with online training.

Latest Whitepaper

By submitting your phone number, you agree to receive recurring marketing and training text messages. Consent to receive text messages is not required for any purchases. Text STOP at any time to cancel. Message and data rates may apply. View our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.