From the vehicle extrication e-Newsletter, sponsored by
By David Young
When it comes to compliance with National Fire Protection Association 1670, Standard on Operations and Training for Technical Search and Rescue Incidents, auto extrication is the one discipline most of us in the fire service feel we do pretty well. We have big rigs dedicated to rescue, we have a wide variety of tools to choose from, and we all have a junkyard that will supply a few cars to cut up for training. Handling car crashes fits into the “bread and butter” category – if you believe in that kind of category. What else could there be to this standard? Let’s take a closer look at the standard; you may find a few surprises.
First, there is the title to Chapter 8, “Vehicle and Machinery Extrication.” Although there may be some crossover skills with these two, these two independent disciplines have been combined into the same chapter. The basic principles are different. The vehicle extrication principle uses displacement by spreading and cutting to access the patient. In machinery extrication, the principle is to deenergize, depressurize, and disassemble machinery to access the patient. If we apply auto extrication principles and tools to a punch press or an elevator, it may not work and could be dangerous.
Let’s look at the prerequisites. To qualify for the Awareness Level in vehicle/machinery extrication, you also need to be trained in the Awareness Level of NFPA 472, Standard on Professional Competence of Responders to Hazardous Materials/Weapons of Mass Destruction Incident. The surprise comes when you look at the 2008 edition of this standard: it combines hazmats and Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs). The same is true for Operations Level in vehicle/machinery extrication, for which you need the Operations Level of NFPA 472. To qualify for the Technician Level, you are not required to go above the Operations Level of NFPA 472.
Are we ready to talk about cutting and spreading metal yet? When we look at the hands-on skills, we must be talking about power tools? Right? No, not yet. The skills listed in NFPA 1670 have little to with hydraulic tools; most of these are about accessing, packaging, disentangling, and removing the patient. We may be doing extrication training, but how often does such training focus on removing a patent and not the removal of a door or a roof?
You may want to argue that “accessing” and “disentangling” means using power tools to cut the car apart to free the patient. I would tend to agree, but not all jurisdictions have access to a wide variety of power tools. What the standard does say about tools is that you must know how to operate all the tools you have in your inventory.
So is it a lost cause? Should we pull our rescue veterans off the rigs and send them back to school?
We will need to re-direct our training over the next year or so.
The next time you have a car to cut up, start the training with a backboard instead of the spreaders. Put a rescue manikin in the driver’s seat, strap it in, and practice patent removal with the car on all four wheels. Then, put the manikin back in, then roll the car onto the driver’s side door. Now you have a training opportunity that focuses on the removal of a patient. When you finish with that scenario, then you can take all the doors off with the hydraulics.
Another training opportunity may be at your city’s road garage. Put the rescue manikin in a Bobcat® or backhoe. Have your crew secure the vehicle, crib up the bucket, and package and remove the patent.
Dealing with the hazmat/WMD issue may not be as bad as it seems, since we should be participating in a hazmat refresher annually anyway. Next year, plan a few extra hours and add the WMD portion.
Machine extrication is a much more open and varied discipline than vehicle extrication. However, most of us probably do more machine extrications than we think; fingers in a bicycle chain, an arm in a vending machine, or people in a stalled elevator. But this discipline also includes farm equipment, conveyers, pinch rollers–the list goes on to include some very large and powerful equipment. How do we train for all these different situations? It may not be possible, but what we can do is train to be proficient with the tools we have, and look for the opportunity to expand the use of their use to new situations. Your imagination is your best extrication tool.
NFPA standards have always been open to interpretation and are meant to be a guide. There is no question that our job has become safer because of these standards. It is also no doubt that many chiefs have gone crazy trying to keep up and stay in compliance with the volumes of standards. If we take the time to review the standards from time to time, reminding ourselves what they really say, we can find the areas that need work. Then, with a few minor adjustments to the training currently being conducted in our own organization, we will find that our training can meet the standards set forth in NFPA 1670.
David Young is a lieutenant for Beavercreek (OH) Township Fire Department and a training captain for Wayne Township (OH) Fire Department in Ohio. Dave has 25 years in the fire service and is one of the original members of Ohio Task Force One and Region 3 Strike Team in West Central Ohio. He has been a fire and technical rescue instructor for Sinclair Community College, EMS Educational Partnership, and State Fire School at Bowling Green University.
