Did you know that 50% of firefighter line-of-duty deaths are caused by health and fitness-related issues? Employee health has been the subject of hundreds of research projects which intuitively conclude that by reducing health risks and actively preventing the onset of disease, employees are happier and [...]]]>

Safety is at the core of TVF&R's "Chief's Bullseye"

Did you know that 50% of firefighter line-of-duty deaths are caused by health and fitness-related issues? Employee health has been the subject of hundreds of research projects which intuitively conclude that by reducing health risks and actively preventing the onset of disease, employees are happier and more productive.  We owe it to the communities who depend on us to take care of ourselves.

At TVF&R, the emergency responders and the staff ensuring that our business runs smoothly can all benefit from increased physical activity and fitness, as well as the overall awareness of ways to make each other safer.  On June 22, 23 and 24, TVF&R will participate in Safety Health and Survival Week.  The annual event is part of a national effort sponsored by the IAFF and IAFC to focus entirely on safety and wellness-related training and education.

Themed “Fit for Duty,” this year’s Safety, Health and Survival Week will address a variety of wellness initiatives, including:

·         Firefighter fatigue management

·         Reducing the risk of health threats from contaminated EMS equipment

·         Evaluating fitness opportunities (whether at your desk or in the gym), and;

·         Tactical driving

The mother of a “dead” teenager sobbed and wailed as many of the 2,600 students from Westview High School  tried to hold back tears at Wildcat Stadium this morning.  She was crying because her son was sprawled out “dead” on the hood of a crashed car.  Firefighters had arrived at a simulated motor vehicle crash with [...]]]>

The mother of a “dead” teenager sobbed and wailed as many of the 2,600 students from Westview High School  tried to hold back tears at Wildcat Stadium this morning.  She was crying because her son was sprawled out “dead” on the hood of a crashed car.  Firefighters had arrived at a simulated motor vehicle crash with multiple injuries and they quickly realized that the woman’s son had passed away.  Meanwhile, six other “patients” needed treatment and LifeFlight was on the way to transport the most critical of them.

The SKID (which stands for Stop Kids Intoxicated Driving) demonstration at Westview High School is a powerful, emotional demonstration of what happens when people drink and drive.  Students who volunteer to act as “victims” receive realistic makeup that makes them appear to be seriously injured or bleeding.  The scenario is painfully true to life.

Firefighters work to stabilize the "patients" after cutting the roof off of one of the vehicles involved in the demonstration

Students gather in the bleachers before two cars which are draped in tarps.  They listen as a narrator sets the scene: A group of recently graduated seniors attends a party, gets drunk, and drives toward home.  On their way, the driver of the car crosses the center-line and collides head-on with another vehicle with three people inside.  The tarps are drawn away from the vehicles and the students in the audience see their friends in the cars dazed, bleeding and crying for help.  A boy has been tossed through the windshield of one car and lays on the hood, deceased. 

The scenario plays out as it would if it were real.  Someone calls 9-1-1.  Bystanders try to help.  Firefighters and sheriff’s deputies arrive and begin working to triage the scene.  Life Flight is called for the most critical patient as firefighters quickly determine that one person has died.  The deceased boy’s family arrives at  the scene of the accident and the mother becomes hysterical.  Emergency personnel work quickly and professionally as students in the audience watch in stunned silence. 

 Before long, the patients are gone, the medical examiner declares the boy deceased and a funeral home takes away his body.  The demonstration is over in less than 45 minutes, but you can tell that this is something both the students and participants will remember for a long time. 

In the 12 years that TVF&R and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office has been arranging for and presenting the SKID program, 86,500 students have witnessed the presentation.

“Mayday, mayday, mayday,” the radio crackles.  Two firefighters are trapped inside a concrete, tilt-up building.  It is a nightmare scenario, but it’s something for which TVF&R’s firefigthers regularly practice.  Outside the practice building, TVF&R’s Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) springs into action circling the building and hammering on exterior walls, hoping the [...]]]>

“Mayday, mayday, mayday,” the radio crackles.  Two firefighters are trapped inside a concrete, tilt-up building.  It is a nightmare scenario, but it’s something for which TVF&R’s firefigthers regularly practice.  Outside the practice building, TVF&R’s Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) springs into action circling the building and hammering on exterior walls, hoping the “trapped” firefighters will hammer back.  Within seconds, the RIT team has made contact with the firefighters on the other side and determined where it’s safe to begin cutting a hole in the wall.

TVF&R Lt. Richard Stamps uses a cutting tool to cut through rebar in the wall

When firefighters aren’t busy responding to emergencies, they’re often doing training like this.  Today’s practice session takes place at a vacant movie theater near Washington Square Mall.  Firefighters frequently use these old buildings for drills like this.  Today, the firefighters are from Tigard’s Heavy Rescue 51, Truck 51 and Wilsonville’s Truck 56.  The Heavy Rescue team carries special tools, air-packs and other equipment designed to help firefighters rescue another firefighter who becomes trapped or injured during a structure fire or building collapse.  TVF&R’s RIT team responds to every working structure fire prepared for a worst-case scenario.  

A "trapped" firefighter crawls through the new hole in the wall

Today, the concrete wall is 8 inches thick and beefed up with rebar.  The RIT team knows that time is of the essence.  Their first priority is cutting a small hole in the wall through which they can feed a line for the trapped firefighters’ airpacks.  Within minutes, long before they run out of air, a hole is drilled in the wall and a new line is fed through so the trapped firefighters can breathe. 

Meanwhile, another team of firefighters takes turns with saws, drills and a sledgehammer as they work to bore a person-sized hole through the wall.  It takes time.  The firefighters work calmly and carefully, but they’re sweating as they swing a sledge-hammer for more than half an hour working to bash through the thick wall.  The concrete slowly gives way blow by blow and, before long, the “trapped” firefighters are able to crawl through a hole in the wall.

On May 7th, TVF&R added a new tool to its toolbox – a Car with one paramedic. The four Cars (Toyota FJ Cruisers) are expected to assist the District with responding in a cost-effective manner to non life-threatening situations that don’t require an engine with multiple Firefighter EMTs/Paramedics and a full [...]]]>

On May 7th, TVF&R added a new tool to its toolbox – a Car with one paramedic. The four Cars (Toyota FJ Cruisers) are expected to assist the District with responding in a cost-effective manner to non life-threatening situations that don’t require an engine with multiple Firefighter EMTs/Paramedics and a full cache of tools. The Cars are strategically based at fire stations in Aloha, Beaverton, Tigard, and Wilsonville and deployed Tuesday through Friday, from 7 am – 5 pm. The stations and schedule were chosen after analyzing years of incident data.

It’s been busy month for the Cars.  TVF&R responds to over 30,000 incidents each year. Over 80 percent of those incidents are medical calls.  Last week in their first four days in service, the Cars were deployed to 41 incidents that included 15 false fire alarms, nine non injury motor vehicle crashes, and several smoke investigations, lock-outs, falls, sick persons, and smoke detector problems. During that same time frame, TVF&R’s engines, trucks, and medic units responded to 256 calls including 56 cardiac and breathing problems, 22 strokes and seizures, 10 fires, 35 unconscious/unresponsive persons; and 10 motor vehicle crashes with injury.

As a full-service organization, TVF&R responds to all 9-1-1 calls. Assistant Chief Dustin Morrow states, “Depending on the severity of the situation, we now have the option of strategically responding with an engine, truck, medic unit, or car.” Morrow added, “We believe this strategic deployment makes good financial sense, both for the taxpayer as we utilize limited resources, and our ability to sustain our operation in the future.”

Each Car is outfitted with necessary equipment and supplies, a cardiac monitor, and a computer with response maps and current information on every 9-1-1 call. Although most situations responded to will be non-emergency, the Car can be upgraded to respond more quickly (Code 3) — or the paramedic can call for more units — if a situation worsens. Almost 100,000 incidents were analyzed to identify situations appropriate for a Car and single responder.

In addition to acting as a ‘relief valve’ for the growing number of non life-threatening incidents to which Firefighters are called to, the 4WD Cars provide the District with another tool to navigate congested streets and icy roadways, and access off-road emergencies.

The four FJ Cruisers are 2007 and 2008 models and were purchased from local dealerships via a public bid process. The purchase was made possible due to a capital improvement bond that was approved by almost 70% of voters in 2006.

Adds Morrow, “While the Car is expected to play an important role, we know that fires, serious medical incidents, crashes, rescues, and hazardous material situations are still going to occur and when they do, our public expects us to respond with enough tools and personnel to get the job done – and therein lies the strength of our engine and truck companies.”

The right resource, right staffing, right call.

TVF&R responds to over 30,000 incidents a year. Approximately 80% of those calls are medical emergencies and requests for public assistance. To respond to situations that are not life- or property-threatening, TVF&R  has a strategic tool – the CAR.

The CAR—with one paramedic—is a cost-effective option for responding to situations that [...]]]>

The right resource, right staffing, right call.

TVF&R responds to over 30,000 incidents a year. Approximately 80% of those calls are medical emergencies and requests for public assistance. To respond to situations that are not life- or property-threatening, TVF&R  has a strategic tool – the CAR.

The CAR—with one paramedic—is a cost-effective option for responding to situations that don’t require a traditional fire engine and four-person crew. In addition, these 4-wheel drive units are better able to navigate congested streets and icy roadways, and access off-road emergencies. The CAR is outfitted with basic equipment and supplies, and a data terminal with computerized response maps and instantaneous information on every 9-1-1 call. The CARs will be strategically based at specific fire stations, and deployed to work 4/10-hr shifts, after analyzing years of incident data to pinpoint exactly where and when these types of calls typically occur. 

Approximately 100,000 incidents were analyzed to identify situations appropriate for a Car and single responder.  The Car responds to non life-threatening medical and public service calls such as abdominal pain, ground level falls, headaches, odor investigations, sick persons, fire alarms, and smoke detector problems.  Although the majority of situations responded to by the Car will be non emergency, the Car can be upgraded to respond more quickly – or the paramedic can call for more units – if a situation worsens.

While the vehicle we arrive in may look different, what hasn’t changed is the committed and professional TVF&R paramedic inside! We are proud to serve you with the right resource and right staffing when you call.

See our new Cars in action in the video below:

To learn more about our Cars, click here.

Although firefighters are frequently exposed to live [...]]]>

An engine company prepares to make entry into the training structure

Although firefighters are frequently exposed to live fire during both emergencies and training, this opportunity is unique.  Firefighters are taking part in compartment fire behavior training (CFBT), which allows them to study how fire, heat and smoke move through a structure as a fire develops and then practice safely cooling the air and extinguishing the flames.

During CFBT exercises, firefighters encounter situations which resemble  the stage of fire development they’re frequently faced with when they arrive at a burning building: grey/black smoke is drifting from a building and inside heavy smoke fills the air, leaving a cooler, safer layer of air near the floor.  Firefighters practice proper door entry and gas cooling techniques as they locate and extinguish the fire.

Smoke pours from the open door of the training structure. Note the layer of "good" air near the floor.

Firefighter instructors have prepared the homes so that they can burn each structure one room at a time, allowing them to set and put out multiple fires and cycle dozens of firefighters through each home.

When firefighters are done with their CFBT drills in each home, TVF&R prepares it to be burned to the ground in a controlled and safe manner. Before the homes are burned, firefighters ensure that the flames will not spread to any surrounding structures.

These final “burn-downs” are used as training for both veteran and probationary firefighters and provide a valuable opportunity to observe fire behavior and smoke conditions in a burning structure.

One of the girls aboard a helicopter with TVF&R firefighter volunteers as she is evacuated to the United States.

Two critically injured ten year old girls from Haiti are awaiting surgery at a hospital in San Antonio, Texas thanks, in part, to the volunteer work performed by two Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue [...]]]>

One of the girls aboard a helicopter with TVF&R firefighter volunteers as she is evacuated to the United States.

Two critically injured ten year old girls from Haiti are awaiting surgery at a hospital in San Antonio, Texas thanks, in part, to the volunteer work performed by two Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue paramedics.  Dan Livengood and Chad Ledson both work full time as firefighter/paramedics for TVF&R.  They also volunteer their free time for Tigard-based Medical Teams International.

Livengood and Ledson traveled to Haiti in early March to volunteer with a Medical Teams International (MTI) mission at the Lumiere Hospital wound care unit  near Les Cayes, Haiti.   During their time at the hospital, they met the two girls.  One of the girls was pulled from the rubble of her school where 12 of her 21 classmates died in Port au Prince.  The other was injured when she was trapped under cinder blocks at her home and her right leg sustained traumatic injuries.  According to Medical Teams International, it soon became apparent the girls could lose their legs if they did not get more help in the U.S.

Livengood and Ledson, who are both parents of young children, volunteered to fly with the girls to the US aboard a United Nations helicopter.  Host families have agreed to temporarily adopt the two young girls and provide extensive care for them over the next six months while they are at the University of Texas Medical Center in San Antonio.

Ledson and Livengood prepare the two girls to be evacuated by helicopter.

More than a dozen TVF&R firefighters have been volunteering their free time with Medical Teams International for several years.  They have traveled recently to Asia and Africa.  Firefighters work with the Medical Teams International to pay for the cost of the trips.  Some TVF&R firefighters who aren’t able to make such a commitment donate their vacation time to fellow firefighters so they can afford to volunteer. 

Several more groups of TVF&R firefighters will be traveling to Haiti with MTI over the next five months.