Extrication Training for Chestermere Firefighters

CHESTERMERE – You may recall in a recent article in the Anchor about the Calgary Firefighter who donated the gloves he designed and created (Schmitz Mittz) to the Chestermere Firefighters in return for the above and beyond special care they gave to him and his son after a dog bite. Well along with the donation, Randy Schmitz also donated his time to train the local firefighters in some specialized training in the, what some would call, an “Art” in extrication of people from vehicles in crashes.
Schmitz currently serves as Firefighter/Extrication Instructor with the Calgary Fire Department and also takes on the duties of Chairman for the “Alberta Vehicle Extrication Association” and Educational Chairman for “Transport Emergency Rescue Committee” in Canada. When the opportunity came to get this kind of training from a specialist you can bet the local firefighters jumped at the chance.
The Chestermere Firefighters have all of the necessary extrication equipment which is commonly known as the “Jaws Of Life”, (which is a brand name) and have the training to use it. There is so much more one can learn from working and training with an expert.
Should you or someone you know ever be in an unfortunate situation where you need that kind of rescue from a vehicle, you will be glad that the Chestermere Firefighters were trained in extrication by an expert.
The training took place in a small area at the Town Public Works Yard where the Firefighter train and also where they have acquired a few old cars just for this exercise. The cars were destined for the scrapyard but not before Schmitz and his crew made some destructive alterations to the sturdy metal bodies. Todays vehicles have so many safety features such as seat belts and air bags but they are also made solid enough to protect the passengers within the vehicle. It takes an expert to identify some of the potential hazards within the vehicle and demonstrate how to eliminate them for the safety of the crash victims as well as the safety of the rescuers.
Obviously the intent is to get the passengers released from an entangled wreck without causing any more stress or harm to the occupants and this takes a lot of skill. Even the smallest detail needs to be reviewed with great care.
A small engine powers the heavy duty hydraulic tools which pack a powerful punch, ripping and tearing, making the metal wither like a flower in the desert. The metal is bent, pried and torqued beyond belief – twisted and cut at precise points in order to remove any barriers to free the occupant inside.
The car metal is both the obstacle and a tool; Schmitz knows how to use the metal to assist the extrication tools to perform as they were designed.
There is an arsenal of tools is at their disposal and the Chestermere Firefighters were given a chance to use almost every one of them. As strange as it may seem, at the end of the training they drove away with a whole days’ worth of invaluable knowledge with the hopes of never having to put into use.   
Randy instructs Extrication courses across Canada and the U.S.A and writes extrication related training articles for Canadian Firefighter, Firefighting in Canada, Fire Engineering and FSWorld (UK). . He also is a tester and evaluator for manufactured prototype products for extrication equipment.