ASHLAND
-- A handful of large, connecting plastic tubes at the Cedar Street fire station
may look like a human hamster run, but they are actually part of a new training
facility for the town's technical rescue team.
Fire Lt.
Scott Boothby said the trenches, installed recently with the help of Highway
Department employees, will enable emergency workers to train for rescues in
confined spaces.
"Everyone
on the team has to be trained in all disciplines. We all have to be able to go
down that hole," said Boothby, coordinator for the Massachusetts Southern
District 14 Technical Rescue Team.
The maze of
36-inch black, corrugated plastic tubes stretches underground behind the fire
station and up a hill about 12 feet to two manholes. There, the team can
simulate situations where someone is injured or overcome by fumes while in a
trench, Boothby said.
"The
big danger is gas or fumes," said Boothby. "It's really important to
test the air quality and determine if you have to use supplied air (before going
in the hole)."
Beside
working in small spaces, technical rescue teams must also be able to perform
emergency medical treatments, including providing oxygen, IV's or backboards,
while in a confined space, Boothby said.
The 35
members of Southern District 14 Technical Rescue Team, who work with the
Ashland, Hopkinton, Southborough and Milford fire departments, are required to
train once a month on rescue techniques including confined spaces, trenches,
high angle structural collapse, Boothby said.
Often, like
yesterday, the team uses the Laborers' Training Camp in Hopkinton for training
sessions, Boothby said. "It's very tough to get places to do
training," he said.
The team
will likely start using the trenches soon, Boothby said. The fire department
also hopes to build an escape exit out of one tube and a sandbox like structure
for training involving digging.
The trenches
are part of Fire Chief William Kee's plan to prepare the team for emergencies at
the town's new water treatment plant, where many spaces are tight, Iarussi said.
Kee is currently deployed in Iraq
with the National Guard.
Highway Department equipment
operator Jeffrey James and Superintendent Doug Small donated a few hours here
and there over several weeks to get the trench project done, said Fire Lt. David
Iarussi.
"Obviously we don't have the
equipment we need to do this work," said Iarussi.
Yesterday, Iarussi and Boothby
presented plaques to James and Small to recognize their work.
"It's not much, but it's
something to say we appreciate what you did," said Iarussi.
Several local companies have
donated materials including wood, gravel and metal for the trenches and a
training tower, also behind the Cedar Street station, Iarussi said. Donations
saved the town at least $40,000 in lumber and "many thousands" in man
hours, he said.
"Without them we wouldn't be
able to do this because the money is not there in the budget," said Iarussi.
The technical rescue team plans to use the new tower to simulate smoke-filled rooms and blackout conditions for training sessions, Iarussi said. They can also practice repelling down the side of the building, among other uses, he said.
Ashland Fire Dept. Lt Scott Boothby tries out one of the manholes that Jeff James and Doug Small constructed at the Ashland fire station on Cedar Street. (Staff photo by Bill Thompson)