As a first responder, it’s your worst nightmare… pulling up to a scene of a building collapse with a woman trapped under a beam screaming out for her child who’s buried in the rubble. That’s what happened yesterday in a small town in Arkansas that’s located about 55 miles west of Little Rock. With an incident like this – or the recent tornados with destruction everywhere in sight – would you know how to make the best use of the tools on your apparatus while waiting for USAR back-up?

Most rescues from collapsed structures are done within the first few hours by local responders – usually before USAR teams can respond. How long do you wait for USAR back-up, and what would you do in the meantime? You already know the structure is unstable, where do you start? Do you know how to protect rescue crews from further collapse as they enter these areas? Could your team handle the job that these responders had to deal with?

It’s a reminder to all of us of how important it is to be prepared for the unexpected. As an emergency responder or team leader, make sure you know how to protect yourself and your team in situations like this. Knowing the proper safety precautions along with simple, practical techniques using tools readily available can make a big difference in the first few minutes of a building collapse emergency.

Reported by Washington Post National

MORRILTON, Ark. — As residents and rescue workers arrived at the scene of a building collapse in central Arkansas, one woman trapped under a beam screamed out for her baby, and rescuers pulled a toddler’s body from the rubble of a century-old building.

Firefighters used everything from backhoes to their bare hands to sift through the wreckage of the two-story brick building hours after 2-year-old Alissa Jones’ body was found in the rubble and authorities had accounted for everyone else inside. At least six other people were injured when the building suddenly collapsed Monday.

Brian Matthews was at his auto detailing shop nearby when he heard the building crumble. When he looked up, “there was nothing but smoke,” he said. He was among those who rushed over and heard a woman screaming, “My baby is still inside.” He and other men pulled bricks and wood off the woman, exposing her injured legs as she continued to cry out.

Matthews said the girl showed no signs of life when would-be rescuers found her in the rubble of a bridal boutique and cosmetic store. Coroner Richard Neal later said the child was dead. The relationship between the woman and the toddler was not immediately clear.

Investigators, including the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, were trying to determine whether ongoing construction at the bridal shop was to blame. “We don’t know how or why they collapsed,” said Brandon Baker, the director of emergency management in Conway County. “We just know it was fast.”

One wall inside the building that remains standing is still a cause for concern, Mayor Stewart Nelson said Tuesday morning. “I’m standing here looking at it,” Nelson said. “It’s been creaking and groaning all night … We’re just waiting for that wall to collapse, too.” He said Monday that people had noticed similar noises at the building in recent days.

Of the 10 people inside the building, Baker said one died and four others were injured. Neal said one of the dead girl’s relatives was among the injured. A local hospital said six people were treated. Christy Hockaday, chief executive of St. Vincent Morrilton, said five of the six were released and the remaining person was in good condition.

Morrilton police resumed looking for any possible victims Tuesday, although they believed everyone was accounted for. Workers inserted tiny cameras into crevices between crumbled bricks to make sure no one else was trapped.

The collapsed building, on a corner in the heart of downtown, forced officials to shut down a portion of the town’s business district. Broken bricks and twisted metal slumped over the street corner where the building once stood. A broken clothes rack showed off a few colorful dresses, mostly untouched by the barrage of debris.

Down the street, Kylie Cole, 32, thought a train from the nearby depot collided with a car when she heard the building collapse. By the time she made it near the stores, all she could see was dust. “We heard people screaming and crying,” she said.

The Orange (Texas) Fire Department recently completed Roco’s Fast-Track™ 120 course, which is arguably the ultimate rope rescue training experience. 

This 120-hour program works on techniques to produce a “well-rounded” rescuer who is capable of safely and effectively responding to a wide variety of confined space and rope rescue incidents.

Why is this type of training important for fire departments? OFD Deputy Chief, Jerald Ziller explains.

“A highly skilled technical rescue team is a tradition and has been deemed essential for the City of Orange Fire Department.  Our technical rescue team is partially funded by local industry which utilizes our team as the primary responders or as a secondary resource.  This collaborative effort has been in existence since the early 1990’s.  The residual effect of this training is a highly effective technical rescue team available to non-industrial situations that occur more frequently.  Most of the members of our team were trained by ROCO but we changed to utilize locally available training vendors for the past several years.  We realized that changing the basic foundation of our training affected the final performance of our teams training evolutions and possibly actual response capability.  We decided to return to ROCO for our basic training utilizing a ROCO instructor at our training facility for private training.  We feel the cost of the training as compared to the other vendors we have utilized recently is a greatest overall value.  The training was partially funded by a grant from the Texas Forest Service which added to the best overall value.”


The skills learned in Fast-Track™ 120 are put to work in many situations encountered by fire department personnel. “Technical rescue capability has been utilized by the Orange Fire Department on many occasions both in the industrial setting and during responses to other areas within the city.  The most frequent industrial responses are at shipbuilding or ship repair facilities.  We have utilized these skills for victims in a building collapse, construction sites, and manholes…

A relatively new service we offer to our industrial partners is confined space rescue stand-by.  Our pre-planning skills and industrial environment familiarization have been greatly improved by this service.  It gives our team members the opportunity to earn overtime wages with a neutral cost to the city because the industrial partner reimburses the city for the overtime charges,”  said Deputy Chief Jerald Ziller.

With a large concentration of industrial facilities within its response area, the Orange Fire Department has a unique responsibility to the community as well as the surrounding industries who play such a vital role in the local economy. In delivering the highest level of service, it is important for OFD Firefighters to be trained in both Confined Space and Rope Rescue techniques.

“A well-trained and equipped rescue team is essential to meet the needs of the community as well as local industry. An efficient and effective response only serves to further enhance the trust and confidence of all its citizens,” Roco Chief Instructor, Russell Kellar elaborated.

Fast-Track™ 120 is the ultimate rope rescue experience, preparing rescuers for an effective response to a wide variety of incidents. Perfect for municipal fire departments who need a good range of skills in confined space and rope rescue. OFD Fire Chief, David Frenzel, couldn’t agree more.

These pictures are from the Enterprise Products (Port Allen, LA) class earlier this week at Roco Training Center. They scheduled a private “Refresher” course for the rescue team. It was a great class and an energetic group!

Here’s a comment from one of the students…“First time at Roco. Great facility & instructors. Learned new ways to perform activities. Just enough classroom time…most of the time needs to be spent in the field.”

Chief instructors for this class were Chris Hansen and Mike Adams. Thanks for hanging with Roco!

As anyone who has ever been summoned to an industrial site for a confined space rescue, or has taken the opportunity to practice rescue drills in these facilities knows, sometimes the working area for the rescue team can be a tad cozy.  By “cozy” we mean cramped.  If there is the need for a haul of the rescuers or victim after a lower, these cramped conditions can cause multiple problems.  Consider it a challenge to overcome, and use your rope rescue know-how to come up with an efficient solution that will not only reduce congestion at the working area, but will most likely provide for a much faster haul of the rescue package.

First of all, if the space lends itself to a vertically mounted block and tackle, the problem is greatly reduced.  However, if there is no overhead anchor available and the use of a portable overhead anchor such as a tripod is not feasible then a “lane” for the haul team may be necessary.  At times, even the use of a vertically mounted block and tackle may require a solution to a congested working area.

Sometimes we are confronted with a very short throw between the mechanical advantage anchor point and the edge of the portal.  This may cause multiple resets of the haul system, be it a piggyback system or a Z-Rig.  These short throws with multiple resets will really slow down the progress of hauling the rescue package and can become a significant hazard when the need for rapid retrieval is needed.

If the opportunity presents itself, take advantage of a simple change of direction on the haul system.  At times, a single 90-degree change of direction can convert a short 3-4 foot throw into a throw many times longer.  We see this all the time on catwalks, yet it is often overlooked by our rescue teams when we throw scenario-based training evolutions at them.  Yes, it does require some extra equipment which typically amounts to a single sheave pulley, a carabiner, and a utility strap.  It also adds some frictional losses at that directional pulley, but the advantage gained by extending the throw from 3-4 feet to 20 or more feet, far outweighs the disadvantages of extra equipment, added friction, and time needed to make the change.

If a single change of direction doesn’t quite solve the short throw problem, consider two, or even more changes of direction in order to position the haul team in an area thatthey can “walk the haul” using their leg strength instead of being bunched up and using their arm strength only.  Of course, it gets to a point where too many changes of direction exhausts the equipment cache or creates so much friction that any advantage is lost.

As in any rescue situation, a good cohesive team is a great benefit.  If the situation causes the team to be bunched up on top of each other, remember to scan the area for an opportunity to open things up a bit.  Sometimes that change of direction does wonders for the ability of the team to take full advantage of their strength in numbers, and creates a situation where if needed, speed can be a lifesaver.

The author, Pat Furr, reporting for duty...

One of the most reliable ways to ensure that your rescue team is able to identify, and if needed, prove ownership of its equipment is by marking the gear with some type of visible identification. There are many ways to accomplish this ranging from color-coded paint or vinyl tape to affixing tags. Each has its shortcomings in terms of durability – and tags could potentially interfere with the function of the item. Here are some additional guidelines from our hardware manufacturer, SMC. For more than 40 years, it has been SMC’s goal to design and manufacture innovative gear that sets the standard for quality, reliability, and functionality.

The following information is intended to serve as a clear and simple guide concerning what is acceptable and conversely, what is not acceptable, when permanently marking by engraving into the surface of various types of hardware. Note: Always adhere to your equipment manufacturer’s instructions.

First of all, it’s very important to note that it is only acceptable to use a “hand-held” electric type engraver to place identifying marks on hardware. Do NOT strike with a hammer or stamps or ever use other similar methods. Once the marking process has been completed, ALWAYS inspect the product for proper fit and function PRIOR to returning it to service.

Carabiners:

For carabiners, it is recommended to mark along the spine of the frame. Do NOT mark on or near the lock or pivot tabs of the frame and stay away from rope bearing areas. Do NOT mark on the gate! For steel and stainless products, use a medium setting with medium to heavy pressure. For aluminum products, use a low setting with light to medium pressure. Depth of engraving equal to the thickness of a piece of paper should be enough to last the life of the product.

Pulleys:

For pulleys, it is recommended to mark on the flat outside surface around the axle. Do NOT mark ON OR NEAR the carabiner hole at the top of a pulley or anywhere on the becket of a double pulley. It is also important to stay away from all rope bearing areas.

Rappel Racks & Bars, Rigging Plates & Rope Protection:

When marking other hardware, always use caution and stay away from all carabiner holes, rope bearing surfaces and surrounding areas.

Coatings:

Most aluminum products are anodized. Some slight cosmetic oxidation may occur over time and this is a natural occurrence. Alloy steel parts are typically zinc plated. Engraving these products will remove the zinc plating in that particular area. One advantage of zinc plating is that it will move over and protect the exposed base material (self-sacrificing). However, this will eventually lead to the zinc in the area being consumed and may allow rust to begin to form. To help prevent corrosion, periodically wipe down plated products with LPS or a similar product.

As durable as modern rescue hardware is, it is important never to use any permanent identification method that would compromise the structural integrity of the item. With the clear guidelines provided by SMC, it allows the owner to have a reliable means of identifying their rescue hardware, while at the same time maintaining the original integrity of the item.

We remind you that it is important to review the user information and instructions for use for any rescue equipment item to ensure that the procedures outlined above are not conflicting with another manufacturer’s guidelines. Roco strives to provide practical and useful information to the rescue community, and this is one in a series of postings that we hope will help you become a better rescuer.

Additional Resources

Gear Inspection Checklist (download)

How often should I replace my rescue harness?

Rope Care & Cleaning Tips