West Metro Fire Rescue
West Metro Fire Rescue posted several pictures from a vehicle accident that required several rescue discipline to free a trapped occupant. Around 11:30pm on a Saturday night, firefighters with Engine 2, Tower 2, Engine 6, Medic 3, District 2 Chief and SAM 1 responded to a rollover crash on east bound 6th Avenue. The driver, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was pinned, with one leg through the sunroof. The crews used high pressure airbags to lift the vehicle and stabilized it with struts to extricate the patient, who had serious injuries.
One benefit with struts that use anchor loops that move independently from the base plate is the ratchet strap anchor point will pull the base plate off the ground. This allows the base plate to remain flat on the surface especially when the strap anchor point on vehicle tightens up the angle on the tension buttress.
Heavy Stabilization & Lift Class
This weekend, Toranze Lee and Premier Extrication held their Heavy Stabilization and Lifting class taught. The class focused on advanced techniques using the Paratech equipment, eDraulic tools, grip hoists, vehicle stabilization methods, airbags for lifting, power tools, and the use of heavy wreckers for extrication.
Some of the departments that attended:
The North Carolina Extrication School at Sandhills Fire Training Center was hosted by the North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal. Firefighters had the opportunity to learn cutting-edge tactics in the world of vehicle extrication from some of the top instructors in the county.
Heavy Rescue
Large Animal Rescue
Working with their past experince, the Patterson Fire Department’s completed their 4th horse rescue in the past several years.
Horse Rescue
Per the post from the Patterson Fire Department’s Facebook page:
At 0732, 25th of August 2021, the Patterson fire department was dispatched for a public assist to a local farm. Patterson’s heavy rescue, 22-6-1, arrived on scene and found a 31-year-old male horse, named “Dozer”, in distress. He had apparently fallen and managed to get himself stuck between a rock and a fence line. At first, the crew attempted to assist the horse in getting up by shifting his position. It became apparent that additional equipment was going to be needed to help Dozer out since he had become too exhausted to get up on his own. After some discussion, it was established that the best plan of action was to use a Paratech bipod system. It would be used as an artificial high directional with TU-32 griphoist’s assistance to lift the horse up. With a lot of sweat and effort, the crew was able to lift the horse up onto his feet. After some much-needed fluids and rest, we were happy to see Dozer trot away, unassisted.
An interesting fact, this is Patterson Fire Department’s 4th horse rescue in the past several years, all with successful outcomes.
Photos below from Andrew Akin
