Mayday training saves a life
I recently read the article “Mayday Training” by Michael Nasta (Training Notebook, August 2003). I found that article to be very interesting and well related to my job.
In September 2003, my department responded to a house fire. On-scene, we determined we had a rapidly advancing cellar fire. After venting the windows, we tried to enter by the inner stairs in the front entrance. We could reach it but couldn’t advance because of piles of furniture in the house. We then went in the rear to attack.
As I stepped inside, the floor disappeared under my feet, and I fell into the main fire room. Unable to get out, I thought about my options as my helmet was darkening from the smoke and flames. I then remembered Nasta’s article, in which he advised: “Stay calm, activate your PASS device, transmit your Mayday, orient yourself, and MOVE! Sitting there waiting for rescue is like waiting to die.” So I moved. It was stressful because of zero visibility and not knowing if I was headed for a worse situation.
It appeared to be a good call on my part—two minutes after I left, all the kitchen appliances came down exactly where I was. I’d have been killed!
I continued to advance in the incredibly difficult fire environment. I radioed the location to which I thought I was heading. The incident commander told me to be attentive, that a crew was trying to force entry to reach me. The crew had to tear out burglar bars in the cellar window to reach me.
I saw a little light and said to myself, “That’s the exit.” So I went toward it with no air remaining in my SCBA. I had enough strength to take off my SCBA and pass it in front of me but not enough strength to pull myself out. My friend did the pulling for me.
Today, I can tell this story for four reasons:
1. The pals who worked their hardest to get me out of there.
2. My one-hour air cylinder.
3. My 10 years of experience and continued training.
4. The simple rules in the article (you can be sure that I will teach those rules!).
I would like to thank Mike Nasta for his life-saving article. It played a major part in my successful rescue and is a reason my two little girls still have a father today.
Patrice Boudreault
Lieutenant
Terrebonne City Fire Department
Quebec, Canada
“O Brother …”
This letter is in response to “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” by Eddie Buchanan (August 2003). The article focused on upholding traditions of the brotherhood and honor in the fire service and the importance of instilling these ideals in the minds of new recruits.
I graduated from a 13-week academy this year in Grand Junction, Colorado. The academy was the largest (16 recruits) and longest in department history. During the fairly regimented academy, we were taught more than hose evolutions and search and rescue techniques; we were also taught the values held by the fire service and the importance of tradition. Throughout the academy, our instructors stressed the importance of teamwork and the strong brotherhood of the fire service. At times, teamwork was the only thing that got us through the rigors of our training.
During the academy we were “recruits” until we proved our dedication and commitment; only after graduation were we dubbed “firefighters.” During training, we were to address our superiors as “Sir” or by rank and last name. Hats were to be off while indoors. We also stood at attention unless given the “At ease” order by our instructors. Our recruit class even had an academy flag that went everywhere with us, even during physical training. These were only a few of the many rules during our training. As recruits, it taught us discipline and respect and even a sense of accomplishment.
When we successfully completed the academy, the city held a large graduation ceremony for us. This reinforced the sense of accomplishment and instilled in us a feeling of pride as well as adopted us into the brotherhood of the fire service.
I have been in the fire service for seven years, three of which have been career. Although I felt the closeness and friendship in my past departments, it pales in comparison with my current feelings toward my fellow firefighters—mostly because of the teamwork and the values and traditions passed on to us by our instructors and other department members during the academy.
I thought that the Fire Engineering readers would be glad to hear that there are still firefighters in the field who believe in passing on the ideals and values to the “newbies” out there.
Josh Evans
Firefighter
Grand Junction (CO) Fire Department
More lessons learned at vehicle extrication
I have never been a big fan of the people who Monday morning quarterback by complaining about mistakes being made in photos featured in Fire Engineering. I know the magazine is trying to present the best information available to benefit the readers. However, in “It Really Is All About Training!” (Volunteers Corner, September 2003), although John M. Buckman lists many lessons learned from a bad auto accident to which he responded, I feel he missed a few very important ones that will make it a complete learning experience.
First and foremost, do not call off help that is coming before you arrive on the scene. The life flight helicopter that was being called by someone already on-scene was stood down; then the ambulance dispatched to the scene was delayed. Had the ambulance arrived in a normal time frame, personnel could have called off the helicopter and transported the patient in a timely fashion: The helicopter could have landed, assisted with patient care earlier, and possibly transported the patient to a more appropriate hospital for initial treatment. Don’t assume that the civilian reporting from the scene is overreacting or incorrect until you can get on-scene and judge for yourself.
Second, always keep your personal protective equipment on at auto accidents. I know that our helmets can be very awkward in the back seat of a torn-up car, but you must always keep your bunker coat and pants on when working around the torn-up sheet metal of an auto accident. A slight slip of the arm, and you can cut a muscle in your arm, and you are no longer a rescuer but another victim. Also, no matter how emotional you get at a scene with a child, protection from bloodborne pathogens is as simple as slipping on a pair of latex or nitrile gloves that fit in any pocket or in a pouch attached to your bunker gear. Any one, at any age, can still have hepatitis B or HIV.
On a very positive note, kudos to Buckman and his department for keeping the child in the car seat during the extrication. This is a technique that still has not caught on across the country but is a simple way to help maintain spine support (though not always immobilization) until you can get more help and equipment.
Thanks to Buckman and all of the other contributors to Fire Engineering for sharing their knowledge and experience. Aside from formal training programs, the age-old telling of war stories is still the best teaching tool we have.
Scott Arthur
Snowmass-Wildcat Fire
Protection District
Snowmass Village, Colorado
