March 30 -
Shortly after 9 a.m., Rescue Squad 741 Bravo – at the time an old Montgomery County reserve rescue squad – was dispatched for a report of a house fire in the 5100 block of Wissioming Road in Glen Echo. While the squad was en route, E711 (Glen Echo Fire Department) advised communications that it was on the scene with fire showing from the front of a three story house (Side A).
RS741B was the third unit on scene. While E711 was advancing its 250' of cross-lay hose, the squad crew made entry into the house and completed a primary search of the first and basement floors, with no trapped occupants. They also turned off the gas meter – a precaution that firefighters take to eliminate the possibility of natural gas-fed fires.
The crew of three regrouped on the second floor and quickly performed a primary search of the bedrooms. Fire was still active on the second floor so they were met with heavy smoke, zero visibility. They broke out several windows to assist in venting the structure of smoke and heat.
The crew then made its way to the third floor where it again found heat and heavy smoke. With the help of two other companies, the squad crew took down drywall to locate the extension of the fire from the second floor. They took out more windows, which helped reduce the amount of smoke on the third floor.
In addition to the initial alarm, the incident commander requested a rapid intervention dispatch and two task forces. In all, units from Glen Echo, Bethesda, Cabin John Park, National Naval Medical Center, Naval Surface Warfare center, the National Institutes of Health, Kensington, Silver Spring, Rockville, and Fairfax County responded on this incident.
The homeowners were not home at the time of the fire and no firefighters were hurt. The Rescue Squad returned to service after about an hour.
Updated April 11, 2010
Check our "Squad in Action" page periodically for more incidents:
http://www.bccrs.org/Action.html
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Day Crew Faces Complicated Extrication on Neighborhood Street
March 8, 2010
A Subaru Forester rolled onto its side, pinning the driver’s foot underneath, and presenting Rescue Squad crews with an extremely complex extrication scenario.
Rescue Squad 741 Bravo (one of the Squad's two heavy rescue units) responded to a personal injury collision with a report of one trapped at the intersection of Wyngate Drive and Keystone Drive, two neighborhood residential streets. It arrived first on scene to find the vehicle on its side in the middle of the intersection.
Upon arrival, the Rescue Squad crew first stabilized the vehicle using Paratech struts and wedges on the underside and step chocks on the top side of the vehicle. They then cut the roof and removed the steering wheel using hydraulic cutters in order to gain access to the driver. However, they still were not able to remove him because his foot was pinned between the driver’s side door and the door frame next to the ground.
In order to free the driver’s foot, the crew used the CombiTool from the top side to create a small gap between the door frame and the ground. After placing a wooden wedge to conserve that space, they then did the same thing with spreaders from the vehicle’s underside. Working in concert, the two tools were able to create enough space to free the driver’s foot. If that strategy would not have worked, the Rescue Squad officer had called for a heavy-duty wrecker to life the entire vehicle as a backup.
Once freed, the patient was quickly removed to Medic 723 from Rockville, which assessed the patient, stabilized the foot, and transported to the Shock Trauma Center at Suburban Hospital. The patient did not appear to have any significant injuries other than to his foot.
In addition to Medic 723, other units responding included Engine 720, which provided scene safety, and Engine 706, which provided an additional medic.
According to dispatch records, the entire extrication, including stabilization, roof removal, cutting the steering wheel, and raising the vehicle to remove the patient, took only 36 minutes.
A Subaru Forester rolled onto its side, pinning the driver’s foot underneath, and presenting Rescue Squad crews with an extremely complex extrication scenario.
Rescue Squad 741 Bravo (one of the Squad's two heavy rescue units) responded to a personal injury collision with a report of one trapped at the intersection of Wyngate Drive and Keystone Drive, two neighborhood residential streets. It arrived first on scene to find the vehicle on its side in the middle of the intersection.
Upon arrival, the Rescue Squad crew first stabilized the vehicle using Paratech struts and wedges on the underside and step chocks on the top side of the vehicle. They then cut the roof and removed the steering wheel using hydraulic cutters in order to gain access to the driver. However, they still were not able to remove him because his foot was pinned between the driver’s side door and the door frame next to the ground.
In order to free the driver’s foot, the crew used the CombiTool from the top side to create a small gap between the door frame and the ground. After placing a wooden wedge to conserve that space, they then did the same thing with spreaders from the vehicle’s underside. Working in concert, the two tools were able to create enough space to free the driver’s foot. If that strategy would not have worked, the Rescue Squad officer had called for a heavy-duty wrecker to life the entire vehicle as a backup.
Once freed, the patient was quickly removed to Medic 723 from Rockville, which assessed the patient, stabilized the foot, and transported to the Shock Trauma Center at Suburban Hospital. The patient did not appear to have any significant injuries other than to his foot.
In addition to Medic 723, other units responding included Engine 720, which provided scene safety, and Engine 706, which provided an additional medic.
According to dispatch records, the entire extrication, including stabilization, roof removal, cutting the steering wheel, and raising the vehicle to remove the patient, took only 36 minutes.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Squad Crew Handles Tough Basement Fire
March 9, 2010
As Rescue Squad 741B cleared an automatic fire alarm on Pooks Hill Road in North Bethesda, a few minutes after 10:00 a.m., it was dispatched on Box 6-07 for a house fire in the 5100 block of Wessling Lane, near downtown Bethesda. Five minutes later, they arrived first on the scene and reported smoke showing from Side A (the front side) with a confirmed working basement fire. They immediately requested the rapid intervention dispatch.
The crew of three forced entry to the front door to allow access for the first arriving engine company (Engine 706 from Bethesda) and shut off the gas meter, which was next to the door. As Engine 706 established a water supply, the rescue squad crew vented the basement windows from the outside and noted that fire was showing from side Bravo.
Read the full article at:
http://www.bccrs.org/IncidentSquadHandlesToughBasementFire20100309.html
To sign up for the Rescue Squad's email newsletter, visit:
http://www.bccrs.org/about/newsletterinformation.html
As Rescue Squad 741B cleared an automatic fire alarm on Pooks Hill Road in North Bethesda, a few minutes after 10:00 a.m., it was dispatched on Box 6-07 for a house fire in the 5100 block of Wessling Lane, near downtown Bethesda. Five minutes later, they arrived first on the scene and reported smoke showing from Side A (the front side) with a confirmed working basement fire. They immediately requested the rapid intervention dispatch.
The crew of three forced entry to the front door to allow access for the first arriving engine company (Engine 706 from Bethesda) and shut off the gas meter, which was next to the door. As Engine 706 established a water supply, the rescue squad crew vented the basement windows from the outside and noted that fire was showing from side Bravo.
Read the full article at:
http://www.bccrs.org/IncidentSquadHandlesToughBasementFire20100309.html
To sign up for the Rescue Squad's email newsletter, visit:
http://www.bccrs.org/about/newsletterinformation.html
Cardiac Arrest Patient Saved by Ambulance, Medic, and Truck Crews
March 5, 2010
A woman awoke in the early hours to find her husband collapsed and unresponsive at their Bethesda home. She thought he was unconscious and called 911. Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rescue Squad Ambulance 726 and Medic 741, as well as Cabin John Park Truck 710, were dispatched to render aid.
While the units were en route, the 911 dispatcher alerted the crews that the patient “was a possible code”—meaning he was suspected to be in cardiac arrest. Ambulance 726 arrived on scene first and found the patient unresponsive without a pulse and not breathing. Crew members immediately began performing life-saving efforts including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and defibrillation (administering an electric shock) with an automated external defibrillator.
Read the full article at:
http://www.bccrs.org/IncidentCardiacArrestPatientSaved20100305.html
A woman awoke in the early hours to find her husband collapsed and unresponsive at their Bethesda home. She thought he was unconscious and called 911. Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rescue Squad Ambulance 726 and Medic 741, as well as Cabin John Park Truck 710, were dispatched to render aid.
While the units were en route, the 911 dispatcher alerted the crews that the patient “was a possible code”—meaning he was suspected to be in cardiac arrest. Ambulance 726 arrived on scene first and found the patient unresponsive without a pulse and not breathing. Crew members immediately began performing life-saving efforts including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and defibrillation (administering an electric shock) with an automated external defibrillator.
Read the full article at:
http://www.bccrs.org/IncidentCardiacArrestPatientSaved20100305.html
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