BELOIT TOWNSHIP-The subject matter is of life and death importance.
But there's no way to completely prepare for a test that's always changing.
Last week, the Town of Beloit Fire Department held an extrication training night to practice rescuing victims from bad car crashes.
The department dispatched rescue workers to two different "accidents" in the lawn behind fire department headquarters at Afton and Newark roads.
"They're working blind," said Capt. Wayne Endthoff. "They won't know how many victims they're going to be dealing with until they get here, and that happens a lot."
Kyle Geissler reports on extrication practice for Beloit Township EMTs
Working on level ground on a cool evening to "rescue" Endthoff and a Janesville Gazette reporter was significantly less intense than working a real emergency in any manner of conditions. But the department tries to make the practices as realistic as possible for its 10 full-time and 30 part-time employees.
Firefighter Angela Grahan, right, checks Ames during the drill. At left is Capt. Wayne Endthoff, who was playing the part of a second victim.
Kyle Stevens/Gazette Staff
"This is when they make their mistakes," Endthoff said. "This is the time to do it."
A rescue worker's first duty is to assess the scene on arrival, looking for fuel spills or fires and determining the safety of the scene before quickly moving on to assessing the patient, Endthoff said.
"Scenarios are really hard to do, because you can't read the patient," Endthoff said. "I can look at you and tell in a real accident how bad your injuries are by looking at your color or the shock in your face. But you and I are rosy right now, and that's what's very hard to read."
Wayne Endthoff
To get in the toughest practice, rescue workers were told the two victims had spinal injuries and that the doors of the cars were smashed shut.
Spinal injuries are common when crash victims don't wear seat belts, Endthoff said. Even when a victim's forehead leaves an imprint in the windshield, it's the spine, not the face or skull, that takes the hit.
If there's any doubt about the extent of a victim's spinal damage, workers practice C-spine, or complete spine, rescue techniques, meaning they must stabilize the entire spine.
But first they have to get into the car.
Town of Beloit Fire Department Capt. Wayne Endthoff prepares equipment before an extrication simulation.
Kyle Stevens/Gazette Staff
If the doors are twisted shut and no windows broke in the accident, rescue workers will smash a window and climb in.
Because they are dealing with spinal injuries, the first emergency medical technician in the car holds the patient's head still and starts asking medical questions.
In the meantime, other rescue workers begin removing the doors of the car. The first trick is to find an access point between sheets of metal. Then hinges and bolts are sliced with a 40-pound pair of metal shears, often known as the Jaws of Life. This gives rescue workers space to strap the victim onto a hard board and slide him or her out of the car.
Firefighters and EMTs need to practice more than rescue techniques, Endthoff said. It takes time to learn how to deal with frightened, injured people and those with fatal injuries.
"We have to learn to focus on the good," Endthoff said. "We have to keep helping those we can help."
