Firefighters Support Foundation Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication About FSF The Firefighters Support Foundation is a 501c3 non-profit organization whose primary mission is to develop, produce and distribute training programs to firefighters and first responders. All of our programs are distributed free of charge. Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Permission Permission is granted to reproduce or distribute this material so long as the Firefighters Support Foundation is credited as the source Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Accompanying Video This PowerPoint presentation accompanies the video presentation of the same title. Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Presenter Lt. Drew Livesey 10 years as a Professional Firefighter in the Portland-Metro area 17 years of experience in the fire service Active team member in USAR as well as Vehicle and Heavy Machinery Instructor Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Overview Extrication Philosophy Scene Approach and Control Passive and Active Safety Systems Safety System Mitigation Extrication Considerations Basic Vehicle Extrication

Extrication Philosophy Safety First (Turnouts, Gloves, Eye Pro, Charged Hose Line) Patient Protection and Care (Triage, # of patients, types of injuries) Remove the car from the Patient! Be aware of your surroundings, 360 degree view of the scenario Access pt early, Don’t commit to pt until triage is done. After triage, hands on pt asap and address life threatening injuries as needed Move the pt as little as possible. Me are attempting to remove the vehicle from around the pt and not just the pt from the vehicle. Protect the pt with a blanket and communicate extrication activity to pt. Basic Vehicle Extrication

Extrication Philosophy Less is More Approach - Time vs. Benefit The average extrication takes 30 min. What does a trauma entry patient need?.... surgery… Remove the vehicle from the patient and not the patient from the vehicle (when appropriate….. it takes time) Perform rapid extrication when appropriate (immediate danger to life) Basic Vehicle Extrication

Scene Approach and Control Call for resources early Approach to scene Stabilize Scene Vehicle Patient Resources: Any extrication activities require more units. More than 1 c-spine pt requires more units. Approach: What direction are you coming from, what direction others are coming from? Where you need to place apparatus to keep everyone safe. Stabilize: Vehicle placement Chock or pop tires Remove Keys, put in gear or park, set brake Disable battery Control fluids Basic Vehicle Extrication

Scene Approach and Control Plan ABC…. Assign one person as extrication Team Leader Team Leader determine Plan A; communicate it to team; begin execution Establish Plan B and C and ensure adequate resources are available to execute Monitor progress of plan, and switch to new plan if progress is stalled Basic Vehicle Extrication

Passive Safety Systems Vehicle construction Body configurations Reinforcement Exotic materials Other Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Body Configurations Full frame “frame rail running front to back on each side” Reliant upon no one component Unibody “pass area floor pan with sub frame connectors” Reliant upon all parts for integrity Space frame “birdcage framework” Reliant upon cage for integrity Full frame cars are the old cars that we are used to. The frame is heavy steel, onto which the car body is attached. The strength of the vehicle comes from 2 main frame rails running underneath the body. Unibody construction began to be the standard method of construction for passenger cars in the 1960’s. Heavy trucks and commercial vehicles still favor the full frame construction. Unibody construction utilizes a floor pan with sub frame reinforcement as the strength of the vehicle. Space frame is a construction method that derives strength from the whole vehicle safety cage. The floor pan, sub frame, and cage all work together as a system to provide the design strength. Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Reinforcement Soft points and hard points Hinge points Door beams Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Soft and Hard Points “Soft” outer skin “Hard” points attached to soft skin and reinforcements “Hard” points need to be forced in order to gain door access “Soft” materials tend to fail when stressed by a crash or by rescue tools Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Hinge / Latch Points Can be a very hard and reinforced point Different hinge types Cast Stamped Forged Hardened Steel Two Parts Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Hinge / Latch Points Latch points ‘Nader’ Pin - Safety Bolt Wedge Design Other ? Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Door Beams High strength steels Micro-alloy Boron steel Welded to lighter weight connectors Bar is VERY difficult to cut ! Deadbolting door a possibility Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Door Beams Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Active Safety Systems Airbags Pretensioners Rollover Protection Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Airbags Airbag functioning Vehicle crash sensor senses an impact Sensor information is received and interpreted by the ECU Signal sent to the appropriate airbags to set off the igniter Sodium azide burns at a rapid rate expelling nitrogen gas to inflate the airbag, or in the case of many side impact or curtain airbags a compressed gas cylinder is activated to fill the airbag Safety points Nitrogen gas used to inflate the airbags is an inert gas that presents no significant health hazard The airbags are packaged with a powder similar to baby powder to keep it from sticking to itself during inflation. The powder often is mistaken for a puff of smoke, and it is non toxic. Airbag ingnitors can be hot enough to occasionally start a fire. Always check them carefully before leaving the scene Identify Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Airbag Identifier ID Plates Shapes/ sizes Can be “hidden” Many locations/ placement ID’ing should be done quickly as possible ID plates are not necessarily in the location of the system ID plates are for advertising and marketing, more than for location identification No regulation is yet in place as to where these ID tags have to be, or if they have to be there at all Airbag, Whips, SRS, IC (Inflatable Curtain) Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Pretensioners Part of the air bag system Removes slack in the seat belt prior to occupant impact Works in conjunction with air bag system to put occupant into the proper position before impact Usually a pyrotechnic propellant Peel and Peak. Always look inside the vehicle and pull the plastics away from the body to determine if there are airbags or pretensioners Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Pretensioners Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Rollover Protection Identified as ROPS – Rollover Protection System Spring or Pyrotechnic operated Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Rollover Protection Currently there are a couple of designs on the market. These systems are primarily designed for use in convertible vehicles that do not have the structural roll protection of a hard top. Roll over sensors sense an impending roll over and activate the system Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Rollover Protection Roll over bars in the back work in conjunction with the boron steel reinforced “a” pillars to create a survivable space for the occupants in the event of a roll over accident Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Peel and Peak Prior to cutting post in any vehicle you need to peel and peak Pull all interior plastics and safety system cylinders used to activate side and overhead airbag systems Pull plastics covering seat belt pretensioners After the plastics have been peeled mark the exterior of the car so cutting crews can easily identify where cuts need to be made. Cuts should be made in front of, or behind, the cylinders. NEVER on the cylinders. Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Peel and Peak Basic Vehicle Extrication

Safety System Mitigation Identify and Recognize Hazards Kill the power – Cut or remove battery cables Cut seatbelts when needed Peel and Peak behind interior Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Wrap-up Scene safety Vehicle type and safety systems Have a plan A, B, and C New vehicles are changing High strength/exotic materials Safety systems Alternative fuel/hybrid vehicles Size-up the scene, call for resources early. Identify make, model and badges (Hybrid or Electric). Note hazards caused by any accident or potential hazards to you and your crew. Have an extrication team leader and create a plan A,B, and C. Don’t get tunnel vision on one plan. Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Wrap-up Newer cars create new challenges to extrication adding to scene time More hazards to identify with new vehicle Do not mindlessly cut and spread a vehicle newer, smarter cars require newer, smarter approaches Basic Vehicle Extrication

Basic Vehicle Extrication Acknowledgements Fire Rescue Equipment NW, LLC Newberg, OR Holmatro rescue equipment Thanks to Chris Mills BLACKHAWK! Small Pry tool Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue Basic Vehicle Extrication