Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Crews Review Routines

By Rozanna M. Martinez
Journal Staff Writer
      Rio Rancho Fire Rescue crews jumped into action along the Rio Grande on Tuesday during a mock rescue operation that required them to pull some overturned kayakers to safety.
    It was all part of the department's annual swift-water rescue training to help crews respond to aquatic emergencies.
    Personnel from Rio Rancho Fire Rescue Station 1 and Station 3's B-shift participated in the training.
    About 85 to 90 members of the department are going through the training this week at riverside near the River's Edge II subdivision, according to Rio Rancho Fire Rescue battalion chief Paul Bearce. The training, which wraps up Friday, concentrates on search and rescue and patient extrication. It helps crews prepare for rescuing a victim from fast-moving waters of the Rio Grande or from arroyos that cross through every neighborhood of the city, according to a Rio Rancho Fire Rescue news release.
    On Tuesday, participants from Station 1 and Station 3's B shift had to simulate a rescue of kayakers, played by two Rio Rancho Fire Rescue members.
    "They get a simulated dispatch of two people who have been thrown into the river due to an overturned kayak and the crew has to do a primary search and rescue of both victims from the moving water," Bearce said of Tuesday's training. "They go into the scenario and they don't know what to expect. They don't know what they will be given as far as the training exercise."
    Crews dispersed throughout the bosque and searched the river bank for the kayakers. Once the kayakers were found, the crews tossed throw bags to the kayakers to grab onto and be dragged to shore, according to Bearce.
    "They found it a real eye-opening experience," Bearce said. "Once they got to the victim and pulled the victim out of the water, they had to get the victim back to the station area. It was extremely difficult due to the dense foliage and the trees."
    There's no way to get a gurney into the bosque, so a patient has to be placed on a backboard and secured, according to Bearce. Crews then have to carry the victim out about a mile away.
    "They definitely got a workout today," Bearce said.
    Participants also had to provide simulated medical care. On Tuesday, crews were told one of the "patients" suffered from a back injury and hypothermia.
    "The water is not that cold, but it can suck the heat out of the body and cause hypothermia rapidly," Bearce said.
    Rio Rancho Fire Rescue does not see these types of rescues often.
    "We do have to train for the worst case scenario," Bearce said. "While at the river today, we had two separate families that went to play in the water and cool off. In some places, you can do that safely, but there's always a chance they can be caught in a current and be pulled down the river. It moves very fast."
    The most likely scenario that Rio Rancho Fire Rescue responds to is people who try to cross running water in their cars and get stuck, according to Bearce. Those are rescues the department does regularly, he said.
    "We're training for the worst and hope for the best even if we never have to use it, Bearce said. "But, if we do, we want to be ready."
   

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