Area firefighters attend rescue training

Getting first-hand experience in emergency response and vehicle extrication was an important lesson for those who took part in a firefighter training course Sunday hosted by the Fruitland Fire Department.

Over the weekend, about 50 firefighters and students from all over the state participated in the vehicle rescue technician class conducted by University of Missouri Fire and Rescue Training Institute. The 16-hour class taught the tools, methods and techniques required to remove a victim trapped in a vehicle.

Fruitland Fire Department chief Dean Riley said gaining patient access is the ultimate goal at an accident scene. It is important to remove the patient while keeping them stabilized, and Riley said the newest procedure to do so is by cutting the roof off and pulling the patient straight up and out on a backboard. But the rescue techniques depend on where the damage to the vehicle is.

"Try before your pry," Riley said.

Vehicle extrications can range from relatively simple to difficult and time-consuming. Billy Castile has been a firefighter with the Fruitland District for almost four years, and in fire service for more than 10 years. He said he has done about 10 extrications at Fruitland and about 30 in his lifetime, and that extrication training is critical.

"It requires a lot of training, especially with all the new hybrid cars," Castile said

One of the first things respondents do at an accident is cut or remove the battery cable to disable the electricity and deactivate the airbags. Castile said killing the power is important, otherwise the risk of electric shock is significantly greater.

FRED LYNCH ~ flynch@semissourian.com Firefighter Scott Gibson with the Cairo, Ill. Fire Department gets oriented inside an overturned automobile during vehicle extrication training Sunday near Fruitland.

The course began Saturday with a book training session at Fruitland Station 1. Emphasis was placed on vehicle designs, low-risk use of power and manual rescue tools, passenger restraints, safety systems and air bags.

Students were given the opportunity to apply what they learned Sunday when they assumed the role of first responders in simulated vehicle accidents set up at Burrow's Auto body and Salvage Yard on U.S. 61. Cosmetic Car Doctor, Speedy's Towing and A&A Towing donated vehicles to be sliced and diced for training purposes.

The instructors divided the students into groups and set up potential accident scenes requiring patient rescue from the vehicle. One scenario was a rollover in a ditch. The students practiced performing a tunnel extrication to get inside the vehicle.

"We do that if we can't see the patient," Castile said.

By practicing these skills, the firefighters could see how the cars react to the forces exerted by the tools, and how the tools react to the car.

"You always extricate the vehicle away from the person, not the person away from the vehicle," Castile said.

The vehicle rescue technician course was hosted by the Cape Girardeau County Firefighters Association and endorsed by the United States Fire Administration's National Fire Academy.