Education and Hazmat fires

[5uper_Mania 6]

What a neat device. Upgrading education leads to higher tech industries, and dangerous hazmat fires. Just when you think the sky is the limit with higher education in your town, the reduction in normal fires due to smarter Sims means nothing compared to Hazmat fires that demand larger Fire Stations with Hazmat trucks possible only with a School of engineering...

 

...this device possibly pigeon holes you to follow the school of engineering route as soon as you've gotten a University up. Talk about expensive early- mid game challenges.

[szieker 9]

I've had a hazmat fire in my low education / dirty industry coal mining town. 

 

so it's not just high tech indusrty producing high tech fires.

[Bibor_Kiraly 21]

There was one hazmat fire before I had University. I had a College, though. 

[CaribbeanSail 33]

While I dont have solid proof of this, I think HazMat fires are more likely if your population has a lower education score (like with the nuclear meltdowns).  I do think the game makes industry jump up in level too fast when you place a college and/or university, which makes this annoying.

 

But, lets also keep in mind, region play is what is intended.  Not a lone city.  One city out of many doing an engineering school (and no research project needed) isnt a big deal.  You cant build one city and have it all. 

 

When I am starting a new region, and my first city in the region, the HazMat fires become an annoyance, to be sure.  But I bulldoze the dead building, which quickly rebuilds into another and continue on, it doesnt break the game.  As I build the region I eventually get around to the school of engineering and solve that issue.    Since the developers intended a multiplayer game, I can only assume they expected people to get access to HazMat sooner, but most of us I think play private regions (which I think most of us expected to be doing, no matter what Maxis had hopes for), so the way the game was design and how we play doesnt always mesh.  In a long list of annoyances though, HazMat isnt anywhere near the top, its very easy to work around.  Keep some reserve cash on hand (or a couple open bond slots), so if a high density high tech building gets a HazMat fire, you can survive its destrction and through its rebuild time, it happens quick enough that your sims can handle it without moving out, so it shouldnt be devestating to your city so long as you have the cash to get you through if the building destruction takes you into the red.

[galacticwarrior 9]

Hazmat fires do occur at high density low-tech industry just to let you know.

[szieker 9]

While I dont have solid proof of this, I think HazMat fires are more likely if your population has a lower education score (like with the nuclear meltdowns).  I do think the game makes industry jump up in level too fast when you place a college and/or university, which makes this annoying.

 

But, lets also keep in mind, region play is what is intended.  Not a lone city.  One city out of many doing an engineering school (and no research project needed) isnt a big deal.  You cant build one city and have it all. 

True, assuming that the region play works properly.  Also, you need not only a fire station w/ hazmat trucks in your region, but they have to be in a city that's connected to your city by roads.  you can't just have 1 in your region, since (for 16 city regions), they are broken up into 4 different "sub regions".  Which is kinda stupid and hypocritical in my humble opinion.

[CaribbeanSail 33]

While I dont have solid proof of this, I think HazMat fires are more likely if your population has a lower education score (like with the nuclear meltdowns).  I do think the game makes industry jump up in level too fast when you place a college and/or university, which makes this annoying.

 

But, lets also keep in mind, region play is what is intended.  Not a lone city.  One city out of many doing an engineering school (and no research project needed) isnt a big deal.  You cant build one city and have it all. 

True, assuming that the region play works properly.  Also, you need not only a fire station w/ hazmat trucks in your region, but they have to be in a city that's connected to your city by roads.  you can't just have 1 in your region, since (for 16 city regions), they are broken up into 4 different "sub regions".  Which is kinda stupid and hypocritical in my humble opinion.

But in such regions, it only takes one city with a university and engineer school, for you to have the ability to build the HazMat station.  That was the point I meant.  You do not need to be connected by road or any other method for that option to be opened.  The large station and the HazMat station are still both very expensive to build, but the OP was making a point that a city itsself needs to build a university and engineering school, which in region play is less of an issue.

[Bobington 4]

Hazmat fires only occur in high density industrial, leave all your factories at medium density until you get a hazmat team.