Cumberland BC: The Cumberlander Articles Section
Local · 8th October 2010
Brigitta Shore
The Cumberland Fire Fighters competed in the BC Regional Vehicle Extrication Challenge that took place this weekend in Port Alberni and came in first place. They will now move on to the Nationals.
The event was hosted by the Beaver Creek Volunteer Fire Department and the Firefighters of the Alberni Valley, and had nine teams participating from BC. There was non-stop action all day for two days, and by the end of it 30 cars had been cut up!
Each team had a different accident to extract a "patient" from. Props such as power poles, fire hydrants concrete barriers and bicycles were combined with damaged vehicles to create real-life environments for each challenge. An excavator and team of forklifts worked feverishly to crush up cars and arrange them into real-life accident scenarios for the teams to test their skills on. After the accident scene was set up the live “patient” then climbed into the wreckage and the appropriate team was summoned to the area to rescue the patient. The goal was to mitigate the hazards, stabilize the vehicle(s), stabilize the patient, and safely extricate the patient from the vehicle – all in 20 minutes. On Sunday there was a "rapid scenario" added to a challenge; the time was reduced to 10 minutes with the goal being to extract the patient at all costs as if they had life-threatening injuries not treatable inside the vehicle. The crowd that gathered throughout the day was larger than anticipated and really added to the atmosphere of the event. Depending on the classification the teams were able to use limited hand tools to extricate the patient or both hand tools and heavy hydraulic tools such as the Jaws of Life. Three judges marked various aspects of the team’s performance.
There was also a training session on Sunday afternoon that involved cutting up a 2010 Chevrolet Impala. This was a very difficult challenge because of new high safety standards for vehicle construction, new hi-tech materials and heavily reinforced frames that are challenging for even the most advanced hydraulic tools!
TASK TOOLS, a Delta tool company, supplied the latest Signature Reciprocating Saw Blades as they cut faster and last longer than any other competing products currently available. Events like this are essential tools for making sure that fire and rescue crews are up to date and experienced in all areas of auto extrication. Chris Waldner, Senior Product Manager for TΔSK said, “We are proud to sponsor such an important community initiative and also have an opportunity to showcase TΔSK® quality to the men and women who save lives every day.”
The event was hosted by the Beaver Creek Volunteer Fire Department and the Firefighters of the Alberni Valley, and had nine teams participating from BC. There was non-stop action all day for two days, and by the end of it 30 cars had been cut up!
Each team had a different accident to extract a "patient" from. Props such as power poles, fire hydrants concrete barriers and bicycles were combined with damaged vehicles to create real-life environments for each challenge. An excavator and team of forklifts worked feverishly to crush up cars and arrange them into real-life accident scenarios for the teams to test their skills on. After the accident scene was set up the live “patient” then climbed into the wreckage and the appropriate team was summoned to the area to rescue the patient. The goal was to mitigate the hazards, stabilize the vehicle(s), stabilize the patient, and safely extricate the patient from the vehicle – all in 20 minutes. On Sunday there was a "rapid scenario" added to a challenge; the time was reduced to 10 minutes with the goal being to extract the patient at all costs as if they had life-threatening injuries not treatable inside the vehicle. The crowd that gathered throughout the day was larger than anticipated and really added to the atmosphere of the event. Depending on the classification the teams were able to use limited hand tools to extricate the patient or both hand tools and heavy hydraulic tools such as the Jaws of Life. Three judges marked various aspects of the team’s performance.
There was also a training session on Sunday afternoon that involved cutting up a 2010 Chevrolet Impala. This was a very difficult challenge because of new high safety standards for vehicle construction, new hi-tech materials and heavily reinforced frames that are challenging for even the most advanced hydraulic tools!
TASK TOOLS, a Delta tool company, supplied the latest Signature Reciprocating Saw Blades as they cut faster and last longer than any other competing products currently available. Events like this are essential tools for making sure that fire and rescue crews are up to date and experienced in all areas of auto extrication. Chris Waldner, Senior Product Manager for TΔSK said, “We are proud to sponsor such an important community initiative and also have an opportunity to showcase TΔSK® quality to the men and women who save lives every day.”
