OPERATIONS
The department provides emergency medical first response on life threatening calls for service, as well as at the request of local emergency medical services (EMS) agencies. The primary EMS service is provided by Nash and Edgecombe County EMS. The fire department has approximately 90 North Carolina certified Emergency Medical Technician (EMTs). The remaining operations personnel are trained to the department of Transportation (DOT) First Responder level. The EMTs are strategically located on apparatus throughout the City. The response to medical incidents is the responsibility of each engine company with the squad companies providing back-up to the engine companies. These apparatus are stocked with all medical supplies necessary to provide Basic Life Support and defibrillation. Fire department personnel respond for the purpose of stabilizing patients at the scene prior to the arrival of county EMS units.
The Operations Division delivers emergency response for control and extinguishment of fires. Fire suppression emergency response includes fires or potential fire situations in homes, vehicles, industrial/ commercial properties, woods or brush, electrical, and any other situation that might present a potential for a fire. The department's staff has been trained and equipped handle practically every type of fire that is relative to the Rocky Mount area.
Operations crews conduct building and site hazard information gathering process that is known as the Community Hazard Analysis Program (CHAP). The process includes physically surveying specific buildings and locating hazards, developing drawings, analyzing information and developing plans for fire suppression activities.
In the field of hazardous materials, the Rocky Mount hazardous materials training program upholds Rocky Mount Fire Department's 100-year tradition of being the first responder for prevention, protection and preservation. Rocky Mount Fire Department's Hazardous Materials (Haz-Mat) program is composed of firefighters who have received specialized training in the prevention and mitigation of incidents involving hazardous materials. All fire department personnel are certified at OSHA "Operations Level". This certification is initially a 40 hr. course and all personnel must receive 8 hrs. of training annually for a total of 40 hours in five years to remain certified. Since the early 80's these firefighters have provided this service in addition to their usual firefighting duties, with no extra compensation.
In the course of their haz-mat duties, these individuals are responsible for the safe termination of such complex incidents as fires involving hazardous materials, airplane crashes, train derailments, wrecks involving trucks and semi-trailers carrying chemicals, and medical incidents involving chemical use (and misuse) in the work place as well as in homes. To safely accomplish this goal, fire department members are required to maintain a working knowledge of the following:
- recognition and identification of a hazardous materials incident.
- field use of complex scientific monitoring equipment
- safe methods of containing chemical spills
- various reference materials to determine hazards of chemicals
- physical and chemical characteristics of hazardous materials
- Incident command
- proper protective clothing
In addition, our firefighters consult with the Fire Prevention Division concerning hazardous materials. RMFD personnel conduct extensive "pre-incident" building surveys and inspections to better prepare the department's response in the event of a chemical emergency at designated "target hazard" locations throughout the city.
Several personnel of the RMFD fire department volunteer for the North Carolina Regional Haz Mat Teams - RRT-1 & RRT-4. These teams serve as a resource for the other fire departments concerning hazardous materials in their response area. The RRT team members provides training for the entire fire department in the area of hazardous materials. This training is mandated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency. The training includes hazards in the station work place, hazard awareness at incidents, incident analysis, mitigation methods, decontamination of personnel and equipment.
"Extrication, Confined Space, Water Rescue, etc."
The Rocky Mount Fire Department responds to rescue trapped or endangered persons from any cause including structural collapse, vehicle accidents, swift water, cave-ins, and trench rescue.
The department's dispatch philosophy for technical rescue revolves around an adequate and timely response of the closest units required to mitigate each rescue event. All companies are equipped with basic rescue equipment; however, two squads and two aerial ladders are considered primary rescue units and are designated to respond on technical rescue events. These units are equipped with a large array of specialized equipment to handle rescue events such as confined space, water rescue, and vehicle extrication.
The current incident management system allows for expansion to incorporate other agencies for large-scale emergencies.
Confined Space Emergencies
The Rocky Mount Fire Department responds as notified to any confined space emergency with the corporate city limits of the City of Rocky Mount. The City of Rocky Mount Fire Department is designated as the confined space rescuers for the emergencies involving city departments or city personnel. On emergencies involving general industry, construction, and other private sector operations, the fire department will provide support role functions. There are many areas within the City of Rocky Mount that may be considered confined spaces. A confined space is a space that is large enough and so configured that an employee can bodily enter and perform assigned work, has limited or restricted means for entry or exit (for example, tanks, vessels, silos, storage bins, hoppers, vaults, and pits are spaces that may have limited means of entry), and is not designed for continuous employee occupancy. There are two types of confined spaces, permit required and non-permit required. Permit required is any space with the above characteristics and one or more of the following: contains or has the potential to contain a hazardous atmosphere, contains a material that has the potential for engulfing an entrant, has an internal configuration such that an entrant could be trapped or asphyxiated by inwardly converging walls or by a floor which slopes downward and tapers to a smaller cross-section, or contains any other recognized serious safety or health hazard. Non-permit required is a confined space that does not contain or, with respect to atmospheric hazards, have the potential to contain any hazard capable of causing death or serious physical harm. The level of response for confined space emergencies is as follows, but not limited to: 2 squads, 1 engine, 1 district chief, and 1 aerial unit. The Department also has an eighteen man team trained to the technician level in Confined Space and Rope Rescue that will respond to all confined space emergencies within the city. This team is also a regional resource available to deploy and assist other agencies in the area. The Confined Space / Rope Rescue Team has a twenty four foot enclosed trailer with all necessary equipment to handle any confined space or rope rescue. The trailer was purchased by Edgecombe County through the Homeland Security Grant Program. During all incidents the atmosphere within and out of the confined space is monitored to protect the rescuers. The atmosphere is monitored for oxygen level, flammable gasses, and toxic gases.
Due to the number of radio towers, water towers, silos, rivers, and man holes within the city, the City of Rocky Mount Fire Department has developed a plan and trained personnel for ropes rescue incidents. Rope rescue incidents can also include, but not limited to, water rescue and confined space. The Rocky Mount Fire Department responds to rope rescue incidents within the corporate limits of the City of Rocky Mount. Rope rescue is defined as providing aid to those in danger of injury or death in an environment where the use of ropes and other related equipment is necessary to perform the rescue safely and successfully. Rope rescue is sometimes called technical rescue and in certain incidents defined as high or low angle. This depends on the slope or degree at which access to the victim is achieved. Response to these incidents includes 2 squads, 1 engine, 1 District Chief, and 1 aerial unit along with the Confined Space / Rope Rescue Team.
Swift Water Rescue
The Rocky Mount Fire Department Swiftwater Emergency Response Team was placed in service in the spring of 2003. The team was established due to the flooding that occurs along the Tar River and its tributaries within the City of Rocky Mount along with the recreational activities provided by the City such as parks, greenways, and canoeing that attract large numbers of people to the waterways. The team consists of thirteen personnel trained to the SRT II level in Swiftwater Rescue through Rescue Three International and to the Aquatic Rescue Technician level through the State of North Carolina. The Department has two inflatable rescue boats (IRB) with four stroke outboard motors and each technician has their own personal protective equipment, which consist of a wet suit, dry suit, type V PFD, helmet, boots, gloves, flashlight, strobe light, and knife. The equipment is carried in a twenty four foot enclosed trailer, which was purchased by Nash County through the Homeland Security Grant Program.. The Department is currently purchasing the equipment necessary to become a State recognized type one team. The team was deployed to the North Carolina Mountains in September 2004 during hurricanes Frances, Ivan, and Jean where they performed over twenty rescues in Avery County. In May 2005 the Rocky Mount Fire Department Swiftwater Emergency Response Team along with other teams in North Carolina were the recipients of the Higgins & Langley Award for Excellence in Swiftwater Rescue for the hurricane response during the 2004 hurricane season. The awards were presented in Oakland California at the National Search and Rescue Conference.
The Rocky Mount fire department responds, as notified, to all vehicle/machinery extraction emergencies within the corporate limits of the City of Rocky Mount. Extrication is defined as the removal of any person that is trapped or entangled from a difficult situation. The department is trained for the removal of victims from all types of accidents including rollovers, head-on collisions, multiple car accidents, and machinery entanglements. The fire departments response to extrication incidents is one engine company and one squad, but is not limited to these apparatus. The squads have multiple pieces of extrication equipment including hydraulic tools, pry bars, and many other hand tools.
