15 October, 2014
Members of many local Fire Departments participated in the Massachusetts Southern Fire District 14 Technical Rescue Team training program at the New England Laborers Training Center in Hopkinton.
HCAM News spoke with Instructor George Drees: "They spend 2 days at laborers camp and the emphasis is on trench rescue, supplemental shoring and digging operations for possible trench rescues." One of the drills performed during training was to rescue a worker trapped underneath a 1,500 pound fire hydrant while treating the patient and shoring the area to make safe entry. Drees explained the technical rescue team performs rescues such as "trench rescues, building collapses, high angle rope rescues, confined space rescues and at times water rescues."
The Fire District 14 Technical Rescue Team is a regional team that was developed in 1999. The team originally featured members of the Ashland, Hopkinton, Milford and Southborough fire departments. The team over time expanded into Framingham, Hudson, Natick, Marlborough and continues to grow. Drees explained that each member has to go through a background check and the number one requirement to be a member of the technical rescue team is to work well as a good team player.
To see the team in action, check out the video.
