MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. -- More than 100 feet in the air a firefighter rappels down the side of a training tower simulating the descent into a collapsed building. As he slowly comes to a stop, he surveys the area for supplies to use during a rescue.
The rappel tower was part of a bimonthly, weeklong, class attended by more than 30 local and federal firefighting personnel at “Rescue Town,” located on East Miramar, Dec. 3 to Dec. 7.
Although a simulation, the training helped prepare the firefighters for the possibility of performing rescues after a large earthquake.
The training prepares firefighters for performing rescue operations with few to no supplies, according to Dennis Sheean, the school’s senior instructor.
“When the big one hits they’re going to get down to where they are scrounging for supplies,” said Sheean. “We teach them how to scrounge safely because when the big one hits, you’re either ready for it or you aren’t.”
Using only the tools found on a standard fire truck, the rescuers learned to move large objects, rappel down a building and safely rescue people trapped in a shaft.
“The smallest object they move weighs more than 4,000 pounds,” said Sheean. “They have fewer supplies than they have on their trucks and this exercise teaches them what to do when you run out of supplies.”
In order to move the cement blocks the firefighters took tubing such as fence posts and after lifting the blocks used the tubing to roll them across the exercise area.
“This gave me a basic understanding to start with in an emergency situation,” said Brad Haven, a firefighter based out of Red Mountain, Calif.
During the rappelling section of the class students learned how to secure ropes in order to safely rappel down a building, properly descend a building and perform the functions of a belay.
“We teach them about pickets, which are used to anchor a ladder system,” said Sheean. “The pickets allow the firefighters to safely lower someone into a confined space to perform a rescue mission.”
The participants of the training walked away confident in their new abilities, according to Haven.
“I’m confident that when the real deal happens I will be prepared to handle the situation,” said James Stark, a firefighter here. “It was great to be able to train here since it’s our own backyard.”