Reprinted news story from StratfordStar.com
Story by Greg Reilly on December 18, 2014
NOTE: Training was provided by All Hands Fire Equipment & Training.
After receiving a federal grant of $75,000 last summer to acquire personal escape systems for firefighters who need to escape a fire through an upper-story window, Stratford Fire Department has the mechanisms in operation and is completing training for each firefighter.
The bailout devices would be used in an emergency if all other means of escape have been compromised. They consist of 40 feet of fire-resistive rope, a hook to grab onto the building as an anchor, a manual descent system, a harness, and a storage pouch so a system can be worn by each firefighter.
The cost is about $400 per set, and the grant allowed the department to get 96 sets for firefighters and 12 sets for training.
Wearing these devices is now the law in New York, according to Stratford fire Capt. Michael Camperlengo, and Stratford is one of the first departments or the very first department in Fairfield County to have them.
The increasing use of the emergency escape devices stems from a tragic day in New York City, known as Black Sunday, Camperlengo said, when four firefighters had to jump from a fourth-story window of a burning building. Three died from the fall, and the fourth is not able to return to service.
Searching for life above a fire is part of the job of firefighters, said Camperlengo, who is responsible for training and firefighter safety at the department. The new escape systems “allow another level of safety” for them. He said there have been about two incidents in the last few years in Stratford in which a firefighter became trapped above a fire in a building. They were rescued by ladder truck.
The two-week training for use of the systems concluded last week at the Army Engine Plant.
The $24,000 cost of the training was part of the grant.
A firefighter must complete nine jumps from a building using the anchor and rope descent system to become a certified user. Covering the various types of emergency scenarios leading to a window escape takes about 10 hours per person. All the training is conducted while the firefighters are on duty, Camperlengo said.
Inside the Engine Plant facility, the upper-level training rooms and the firefighters’ gear simulated conditions that are experienced during a fire, including blackout with zero visibility, high heat, and the need to find a window or other opening fast.
Read the original story here: http://www.stratfordstar.com/31341/firefighters-learn-how-to-use-new-escape-system/
For information on Firefighter Escape Systems Training or to schedule training, please contact [email protected]
