Since witnessing the long-term health effects experienced by 9/11 first responders, there has been public interest in the air quality following disasters. But the health and safety of those working on the front line is not just an isolated issue, it is a larger public health threat particularly given that in spite of the known dangers to first responders and affected communities, most agencies, and communities do not have an efficient method to test air quality in the aftermath of a disaster. Using case studies of the Dillard University Environmental Field Team, who has experience monitoring oil spills in California and, most recently, the catastrophic flooding in Louisiana in 2016, this session will examine methods to create a relatively low-cost air quality monitoring team to measure toxins after a disaster.