Called into Question       

Dangerous rescue operations can cause even seasoned firefighters to doubt their abilities

Throughout my 23-plus years with the New York City Fire Department (FDNY), 20 of which were spent in Special Operations, there was only one time that I truly believed we wouldn’t be able to rescue a victim who needed our assistance.

Bad Thoughts
Try to visualize this scenario: You are a seasoned, extremely competent officer with a multitude of rescue experience, and negative thoughts start to fill your head while on scene one day. This type of mentality is usually reserved for rookies and personnel who have no confidence in their ability or their members’ abilities. But these thoughts started to fill my head; I was starting to doubt my training and experience right in the middle of a very difficult rescue and extrication. The conditions of both the weather and the trench were extreme, and the location of the victim was awkward and therefore very challenging to the rescuers. Was I capable of handling a situation like this?

The Call
I was working a multiple-alarm fire in Manhattan on a cold, rainy, wind-driven day when, at 1500 hrs, the dispatcher contacted me to respond to a trench incident in Queens. The preliminary report I received from the first-alarm units indicated one male worker had been installing a new sewer water main adjacent to a major expressway. The significant rainfall combined with a disregard for safety regulations governing trench and excavation jobs led the victim to become buried horizontally up to his chest.

When I arrived at the scene, I immediately assumed the position of operations chief and conducted my size-up. I started gathering intelligence from the two officers from the special units on scene (Rescue 4 and Squad 270); both officers were already well into the operation. I then observed one male victim entombed in a 10'-deep trench buried up to his neck and pinned under a sewer water main pipe that was 24 inches in diameter. Unlike most trench-collapse victims who are buried in a vertical position, this victim was in an almost supine position. The little information that I could gather from him was that he had been digging underneath and alongside the pipe when the trench collapsed.

The Rescue Operation
After shoring the trench and getting a paramedic to assess the victim’s injuries and mental status, I learned the victim had a compound fracture of his right leg and was having difficulty breathing; hypothermia was also starting to set in. The medic proceeded to administer an IV to address the issue of crush syndrome. We stopped the operation, which lasted close to 5 hours, every 15 minutes to reassess the victim’s medical issues and to rotate rescue personnel conducting the extraction.

To perform the operation, I had to address a few major issues, which created a potentially dangerous work area for the rescuers as well as the victim. These issues included the horrendous weather conditions; the water escaping from the sewer pipe and flooding the trench floor; and a 27-kV electric line located in a concrete junction box 6 inches below the sewer main pipe. I requested a dewatering unit to remove the water collecting in the base of the trench. I also contacted the local utility company, which removed the 27-kV power line and provided a vacuum truck to help remove soil from the trench. Throughout the operation, I constantly reassessed the risks vs. benefits to ensure everyone’s safety.

As the operation continued, day turned to night. I anticipated a prolonged operation, so I requested additional lighting, which we set up around the area. Remember: Always be proactive when evaluating the need for additional resources, especially when you think the operation will be lengthy.

Further Complications
About 30 minutes into the operation, conditions worsened. The weather wasn’t letting up, the power line shutdown was delayed because of the line’s location underground, and the victim was in a tremendous amount of pain—hypothermia had set in and he was understandably getting very edgy. Just when we started to get close to removing the victim, soil would seep back in or the rainfall would increase. To combat the rain water, the utility company eventually provided a canopy to deflect the water away from the trench area.

The victim was freed at approximately 2000 hrs, the medic stabilized his leg and he was placed into a stokes basket and removed to the hospital. In all, it took two special units and 12 personnel to help free the victim. Many firefighters, police and EMS units responded to the scene, all of which worked together to make the rescue operation a success.

Conclusion
This was a long, drawn-out operation performed under arduous conditions. The bad thoughts I had in the middle of the operation concerned me at first, but I realized that if I didn’t dismiss them quickly, they would inhibit my ability to control and supervise the scene. So I gathered myself, as anyone should do if they find themselves doubting their abilities on the fire or rescue ground, and recalled my training. Remembering the fact that I had a substantial amount of training and experience under my belt gave me the confidence to continue.

Throughout the operation, I kept hoping my negative thoughts would stay out of my head, so I kept reminding myself to remain confident in my abilities. I continuously hoped the operation would come to a successful conclusion—and it did. I haven’t had any of those doubting thoughts roam through my head since that day, and I’ve continued to operate successfully at technical rescue incidents on a daily basis.     

Chief Fred LaFemina is a 23-year veteran of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY), presently serving as a battalion commander for Rescue Operations Battalion No. 1. He has been with Special Operations for more than 19 years and is the task force leader for New York’s Task Force 1 Urban Search and Rescue team. He is also the operations chief on the USAR IST White Team. LaFemina has written many articles on fire operations and technical rescue and lectures throughout the country. He is a technical editor of FireRescue.