Oklahoma! Where the wind comes sweepin’ down the plain! If you’ve driven through the state’s gentle plains and prairies, the Ouachita and Ozark Mountains, or the narrow, unpaved, or low-maintenance roads in the rural areas, you’ve likely met the proud people of Oklahoma. Just like the many casts of the musical, Oklahoma’s landscape is diverse, offering challenges and opportunities to drivers who add the Hazardous Materials (Hazmat) endorsement to their Commercial Driver’s License (CDL). This is an amazing way to expand your job opportunities and increase your earning potential! Transporting cargo in Oklahoma comes with challenges, but the rewards offered in this career and the additional opportunities available with the Hazmat endorsement make it worth the effort.
To transport materials the U.S. government has deemed hazardous, you’ll need a Hazmat endorsement. In the Sooner State, hazardous materials transported include petroleum products, crude oil and natural gas, agricultural chemicals, industrial chemicals, and explosives. Some prominent organizations in Oklahoma, such as Devon Energy and Chesapeake Energy in Oklahoma City (oil and natural gas), ONEOK in Tulsa (natural gas), Phillips 66 in Bartlesville (oil refining and energy), Cargill and Simplot (agriculture and food processing), and Linde in Tulsa (distributor of gases and industrial chemicals) rely on Hazmat drivers for transport.