Firehouse Blogs
The content of this blog is that of the contributor. It does not necessarily reflect the feelings or opinions of the Firehouse staff.Is it worth the Weight?
After returning from the Firehouse expo 09 I started talking about some of the HOT topics at the expo. By far, it was the vast about of Bail out System's being sold and displayed at the expo. They had everything from a simple belt and rope to a full on body harness integrated into turnout gear? So the great debate started. Do you use a harness with a bailout system? If so, which kind do you use and how often do you train with your system, if at all? Is a bailout system "Worth the Weight" that it adds to your PPE? I surveyed firefighters from my home county about this subject and was mortally shocked about some of the answers that I received. They are so heavy, I don't need that junk, if you do things right you don't need them, and it's a waste of time! These are all excuses and responses that people were saying. So, is it worth the weight? What is your opinion on this topic? Do you have a seat harness on your turnouts? Does your department purchase these tools for you? How often do you train with your bail out system and when you do train with it do you train under real fire conditions? Personally I wear an external harness and carry a 50' section of rope with a hook and figure 8. I am interested in any responses that the fire service has on this topic and if you think that it is "Worth the Weight?"
Tools
- Ryan33's blog
- Login or register to post comments
- Email this page
- PDF version
Comments
5 comments postedDon't be an idiot
There are so many variations out there for the Bailout Kit. With the different combinations of parts available, you are really limited by your imagination. A harness or belt, a hook or carabineer, an "8" or hands free descent device, you have so many options to choose from. A kit can be as basic as 20' of webbing to "just get you out", or extremely complex which gives you lots of options.
Is it worth the weight? Simply put, yes. Is an SCBA worth the weight? You can squirt water from the outside and never need to even put it on or breathe air. I have heard the lines, "That will never happen to me" or "If you put the fire out, you won't need that thing." Well I agree if you put the fire out, most of you problems will go away. That is based on the assumption that nothing goes wrong with your water supply, or SCBA, or ventilation, or you are cut-off doing a search, or any other number of things that can and do go wrong.
No one plans on getting trapped or cut-off by the fire. If you knew that going in you could do something about it. The Bailout Kit if for the unknown situation. There are dozens of videos on the internet that show guys bailing out on a ladder. Almost all of the videos I have seen smoke and heat or fire was nipping at their heels. What if you were in the rear of the house and no one had thrown a ladder yet? What do you do, jump? If you don't have a kit I guess that's your only option (unless you can pull the prison break sheets tied together trick really quickly). Sure in a lot of areas there might not be any buildings higher than 2 stories, but plenty of people die from falls lower than that. You should always have a plan, and a backup-plan, and if needed a back-up back-up plan.
At some point you have to take some personal responsibility for you and your crew. What does it say on the inside of your turnout coat? Fire fighting is an ULTRAHAZARDOUS, UNAVOIDABLY DANGEROUS activity or something to that effect. You should have a plan to get yourself out of a bad situation. Don't you carry wire cutters in your pocket incase you get entangled? If you don't carry a kit and you do become trapped, you have now placed yourself and everyone who is coming to rescue you in a bad situation. Why, because the 7 extra pounds weighs too much? Get over it. Get a kit, any kit and know how to use it. Drill with it as much as you practice putting your gear on or pulling hose lines.
Be responsible for you and your crew are the real foundations of brotherhood in the fire service. Once you figure out how to save your own ass, than you can use your kit to lower civilians or other firefighters. The bailout kit becomes an invaluable tool that you have at your side when you need it. Don't be limited by the words "bailout kit." It offers so many other options on the fire ground, unless of course it's hanging in your locker because it's "too heavy."
Is it worth the weight? ABSOLUTELY
Our company was fortunate enough to get an AFG which purchased our systems for all interior structural firefighters. We use an external harness (Gemtor) with a bag, rope, and decender device (Petzl EXO system). While there are times that it gets hung up on the rig door, or feel cumbersome on my side, I believe it is worth every ounce.
One of those FDNY firefighters that jumped from the 4th floor apartment in the Bronx belonged to a sister company as a volunteer. This is a guy most of us knew, if only casually, but still knew him. If he had a bail out rope of some sort, he would not be as limited as he is today and would not have had to endure the rehabilitation and medical treatments to get him this far.
Part of the initial purchase included training for the system. Since then, we practice payouts of the system on a regular basis and encourage our firefighter to do it on their own time as well. Some do, some don't. During these practice runs, they inspect the rope and system to make sure it is ready to work.
As an officer moving through the ranks of my volunteer department with 20+ years of experience, this is one tool I do not want our firefighters to be without. We will continue to supply the training and equipment, which we consider an integral part of PPE, to each and every firefighter within our organization.
While we may not have many buildings were a bail out from extended height could happen, even a second floor window of a residential home with a walk out basement could injur or kill one of our firefighters. Height shouldn't matter and neither should weight.
bail out systems
First, yes cardiovascular disease is the number one killer. Don't avoid this problem. Health and wellness is number one in keeping us all safe. Do you think I like working out at 0500 every morning? No but I relieve that I need to stay on top of my game. As for bailout systems here is my take. My department offers and purchases both gemtor fire harnesses and a bailout system manufactured by RPI. The system is about 3 pounds. As far as Im concerned if you cant carry three pounds more you don't belong fighting fire. The system is not bulky like some of the other systems since it was designed to sit flat and hug the contour of your hip. Yes it hooks to our gemtor. So yes we are carrying more weight. But the gemtor is not just for bailout. We utilize it for portions of our RIT operations. We must qualify and train with our gemtor and bailout system atleast twice a year. Our initial training includes classroom and handson with multiple bailouts in full gear and mask and with blacked out conditions as well. Im in the burns but my first response and mutual aid areas include many 3-4 story taxpayers and a few 5-8 story buildings. We recently had a bailout by a mutual aid department. The FF went out the window and could not slide the ladder or lost his grip he fell 2-stories on his head. The only thing stopping his descent was one of our guys about 6 feet from the ground. That department recently took their harnesses away before that fire in question. So my vote is to train under the circumstances that you will have to deploy it under, train often and yes suck it up and carry the extra weight if your response area warrants it. Please check out the RPI system I believe it is the lightest and most versatile system on the market.
Most dont really need harnesses
I guess the answer to that question depends on the area in which you are located. I dont believe most rural or suburban areas have the type of structures that would make such an escape system neccessary.
Lets honestly take a look at what is killing firefighters in this country. #1 is cardiovascular disease. We spend hundereds extra on PPE to reduce weight, improve mobility, and have good total heat loss numbers all to reduce stress on the body. We then add a harness system that weighs more than everything we reduced.
Do an honest assessment of your coverage area. If you need a harness, maintain it and train on it otherwise it is just added weight. If you dont really need it save your money and your heart.
Is it worth the weight?
I believe bail out systems are absolutely worth what little weight they add to onhes gear. Considering how much we generally carry with us, that little bit of extra weight is minimal. As far as folks not wanting to train with it...could be several reasons for that. They could be uncomfortable with heights, maybe not trust the equipment because it is foreign to them, they could have the attitude (as one of our retired folks did) that "Nobody has ever had to bail out of anything in the history of this department.", or they could be just plain lazy. You have to figure that one out on your own for your particular situation and take appropriate action.
On a side note..."Nobody has ever had to.......", may be true. However, at one point in time there was no such thing as a firefighter being killed in a fire. Just food for thought.