12/1/14 News and Notes from Rockingham County

News and Notes from Rockingham County

By: Firefighter/EMT Taylor Roby

Regional TRT Team Deployment in Harrisonburg

At 1915 on September 28 Engine 23 (Harrisonburg Fire Dept. (HFD)) and Rescue 40 (Harrisonburg Rescue (HRS)) were dispatched to the area of 47 Waterman Drive, the Frazier Quarry, for a reported trauma injuries from a fall. When responding Harrisonburg Rockingham ECC advised units that a 17 year old female had fallen from a rock face and a rock had fallen on her. The 911 caller, the patient’s brother, was unfamiliar with the area and was unable to provide their exact location in the quarry. With the information given Battalion 4 (HFD) added on to the assignment and Tower 1 (HFD) was added to the assignment as well. Once apparatus and personnel from HFD and HRS arrived on scene they began searching the quarry for signs of the trapped victim and her brother. After approximately 30 minutes of searching for the victim Master Firefighter Andrew Bauserman (HFD) was able to locate the patient and radio out to the other responders giving a better location of the victim. It was determined that the patient was not trapped, but due to her injuries and the dangerous conditions of the quarry she was unable to be safely removed on foot. Once the victim was located, Chief 1 (Shifflett) made the determination that the resources and apparatus on location would not be sufficient and that activation of the Region 2 HTR team was necessary. This notification was made approximately 1 hour after the initial dispatch.

The Region 2 HTR team is made up of personnel from Rockingham County, Augusta County, and the cities of Harrisonburg, Staunton, and Waynesboro. Once mobilized personnel and units from all jurisdictions arrived and they began working with personnel already on scene to remove the victim. Region 2 team medic Wes Shifflett (RCFR) made his way down to provide ALS care to the patient while other operational personnel began creating a solution to safely extricate the patient. Due to the age of the quarry and the fact that it was no longer in use, the walls and floors were in bad shape and made working conditions extremely difficult for personnel on scene. To complete the rescue personnel had to find an anchor site on the topside of the quarry to build a lowering system to bring the patient to safety.

HTR team members safely removed the patient from the quarry at 2300. She had suffered significant trauma injuries from her fall. She was taken to Pegasus air medevac which was waiting at a near by location and at 2325 the patient was clear of the scene and being flown to the University of Virginia Medical Center. Approximately 60 personnel from the Region 2 HTR team were involved in the rescue from the 5 agencies that make up the team. According to Chief Shifflett most of the 60 personnel were in operation for the duration of the incident.

Master Firefighter Bauserman was given a Letter of Commendation by Chief Shifflett for his performance at the incident and for finding the victim and providing assistance to her. Chief Shifflett was happy to see the interoperability of the regional team come together to safely rescue the trapped and injured victim.

Regional Recruit School Graduates 13 new Firefighters

In 2012 Rockingham County, Augusta County, and the Cities of Harrisonburg, Staunton, and Waynesboro began putting on a regional recruit school for employees of each department. This year’s recruit school was held over 2 weeks in September and put the recruits through rigorous training to sharpen their skills and prepare them for a career in Fire and Rescue. During the academy the recruits completed Mayday! Firefighter Down drills, Engine Company Operations with different hose lines and nozzles and how to utilize them affectively, and completed Truck Company Operations focusing on forcible entry, search and rescue, and ventilation. Other topics were covered as well including Thermal Imaging Camera operations and live burn evolutions at the conclusion of the recruit school. Instructors from all 5 departments assisted in teaching the recruit school, and recruits were able to travel to different locations within the region to do their skills and learn the area. The 13 recruits have now graduated and are working in their respective jurisdictions utilizing the skills and knowledge that they learned in recruit school.