By Erich Roden
Assessing mental and physical readiness for technical responses
As we unwind from another amazing and successful Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) International, it’s time to take what we learned and experienced back home to our respective fire departments. What we bring back from FDIC International should last us for the next 51 weeks until the next one and should also inspire us to develop new initiatives, projects, and procedures.
One thing FDIC International specializes in, more than any other conference, is the subject-matter expertise and course delivery of all things technical rescue. And to celebrate the introduction of new tools, techniques, and case studies at FDIC International, we dedicate May’s issue of FireRescue to the myriad areas of technical rescue and response.
Case studies are usually the impetus for the development of new tools, equipment, and best practices in technical rescue, and we begin with a recent devastating motor vehicle accident on I-94 in Michigan. Inclement weather on this treacherous part of I-94 resulted in the pile up of numerous vehicles, including those transporting hazardous materials. The resulting response was as large as the incident’s scope, and we hear all about it this month from firefighter Rich Clark from the Galesburg/Charleston (MI) Fire Department, who responded and provided much-needed subject matter expertise at this escalating extrication and haz-mat incident.
Extrication is an extremely unforgiving discipline, as the techniques and tools required to successfully rescue entrapped occupants are ever-evolving. As such, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is keeping up with the necessary equipment standards to protect not only trapped occupants but also those whose hands the tools are in. Learn what to expect in the new NFPA 1936, Standard on Powered Rescue Tools, from NFPA 1936 Technical Committee Chairman Glenn Mate and how you can share your thoughts/comments.
Now that you have all of the tools, techniques, and procedures down for technical rescue response, it’s time to put everything together. Former Chief Greg Jakubowski, Lingohocken (PA) Fire Co., discusses what first-due companies should expect and do at technical rescue incidents. Setting up the incident to be successful in the first place can mean everything in the end; come see how your next response can be successful, too.
Success at incidents requires that everyone responding is on the same page and can work together on scene. One of the key components of this requirement is that everyone can communicate effectively both during and after a response. This is why communicating your tactics ensures that everyone is aware of the operational picture that the incident commander is working off of. Gary Bird and Brian S. Gettemeier discuss the vent-enter-isolate-search tactic that requires everyone on the fireground to be aware of as underway. Read how to develop your own VEIS assessment tool so that it complements a successful incident.
We also have many great columns this month. We start with a tremendous Thought Leader department focused on Underwriters Laboratories’ Steve Kerber. Many of you know who he is and what he’s accomplished as a fire scientist, but do you know about the rest of the man? You will now, as we discuss his humble beginnings and where he’s headed in the fire service. We also get S.M.A.R.T. with Captain Jordan Ponder from the Milwaukee (WI) Fire Department, as he shows us why there are flow paths to fitness, too.
Being capable of responding to technical rescue incidents, learning the latest in fire science research, and being fit to carry out our duties are what make us relevant. But there are other ways in which our relevance can wane. Matt Tobia, assistant chief for Loudoun County (VA) Fire Department, describes a scenario in which we can become irrelevant if we fail to see the landscape before us and then examines how we remain relevant so that we will always be the capable, dependable service our communities expect.
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