Bedford Fire Dept. members practice firefighter down skills
By Captain Jerome Newman
February 22, 2012
On Thursday, January 5, 2012, Firefighters and Officers of the Bedford Fire Deptment worked on sharpening their skills on "firefighter-down" situations. In any fire related emergency, there exists the potential for a firefighter to be trapped, injured, or otherwise incapacitated. This problem requires proper training, and quick coordinated action on the part of members to safely extricate the downed firefighter to the exterior of a structure. This is known in the fire service as F.A.S.T. operations (Firefighter Assist and Search Team). The pictures below demonstrate a common technique for removal of a firefighter from a second story window using a fire service extension ladder and a simple rope and pulley system.
Units:
Engine 110, 2041, 2042, 2043, 2044, 2045
a simple mechanical advantage system is created using rope a carabiners
a firefighter prepares the rescue system in the rear of the Bedford Fire House
firefighters look on as a mannaquin is rapidly extricated from the building
firefighters work to bring a downed firefighter up a flight of stairs.
