Bpg: Rope Rescue Tier Model V1.4

New Zealand Urban Search & Rescue www.usar.govt.nz

Best Practice Guideline Rope Rescue Tier Model November 2003 National USAR Training & Standards Working Group Version 1.4

New Zealand Urban Search & Rescue Best Practice Guideline: Rope Rescue Tier Model

Contents CONTENTS ..................................................................................................................................................... 2 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................... 3 SCOPE ............................................................................................................................................................ 3 PURPOSE ........................................................................................................................................................ 3 TIERED MODEL RATIONALE................................................................................................................... 4 Awareness.................................................................................................................................................. 4 Responder .................................................................................................................................................. 4 Technician ................................................................................................................................................. 4 Specialist ................................................................................................................................................... 4 TIERED RESPONSE OUTCOMES ...................................................................................................................... 5 UNIT STANDARDS........................................................................................................................................ 5 INSTRUCTORS & ASSESSORS .................................................................................................................. 5 ASSESSMENT TOOLS.................................................................................................................................. 6 QUALIFICATIONS........................................................................................................................................ 6 TIERED COMPETENCY MODEL – ROPE RESCUE.............................................................................. 7

© 2003 National USAR Training & Standards Working Group C/- Ministry of Civil Defence & Emergency Management PO Box 5010 Wellington New Zealand

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New Zealand Urban Search & Rescue Best Practice Guideline: Rope Rescue Tier Model

Introduction Scope This guideline is recommended for use by any organisation responding to rope rescue operations (includes non-USAR environments).

Purpose This guideline has been developed to establish national competency standards for rope rescue practitioners regardless of their agency or response environment and has been sponsored under the National Certificate in Urban Search & Rescue (Rope Operations Strand) project. The guideline does not define actual techniques, as this is the responsibility of the organisation, although the new unit standards do recommend a number of primary references. The only requirement for the respective unit standards is for double line rescue (concurrent use of working line and safety line). Practitioners need to demonstrate an ability to be capable of rigging double line during their assessment, however operationally organisational guidelines, legislation and judgement determines whether single or double line technique is used. Although the selection and use of resources at rope rescue incidents is at the discretion of the Incident Controller, the preference to use practitioners qualified to this guideline is strongly recommended.

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New Zealand Urban Search & Rescue Best Practice Guideline: Rope Rescue Tier Model

Tiered Model Rationale Technology and technique have been the traditional perceived problems in the New Zealand rope rescue industry. The whole concept of a multi-agency rope rescue response system needs to be looked at. NFPA1 provides an excellent basis for a tiered response system. Operating at three levels of capability: awareness, operations and technician. The NFPA code ensures a cost effective and efficient response solution. It is not resource efficient to have every emergency officer trained as a rope rescue specialist. The tiered response model is based on the rope rescue phases: • • • •

Locate Access Stablise Transport

Find/confirm the patient location Get to the patient Secure the patient and provide medical care Recover the patient to safety/advanced medical care

Customising the NFPA levels to meet the local emergency response environment has seen the development2 of the following tier system:

Awareness Provides initial response, ensures emergency service representation at incident quickly, secures the scene and prepares it for responder level arrival.

Responder Arrives shortly afterwards and enters secure scene, applies basic rappel skills to access and stabilise patient – and prepares patient for retrieval by Technician level response.

Technician By the time the patient is nearly stabilised the technician level team arrives, who can apply simple descender based rescue in order to retrieve the patient to a safe location.

Specialist The specialist provides the highest level of capability able to construct hauling systems, lowering systems, highline systems and stretcher operations. This level is responded where the incident is beyond the capability of a Technician level unit. It should be noted that when an awareness level unit is activated to a high angle incident that both the responder and technician (or specialist) levels are immediately activated at the same time. Each of these tiered levels is normally geographically allocated. For example in a region, each suburb/community could have awareness level units. For each sub-region, there could be several responder units and in each region could be one or two technician or specialist level units. Typically this would work out to be 20 awareness units, 5 responder units and 1 technician unit per region.

1

National Fire Protection Agency 1670 Standard on Operations & Training for Technical Rescue Incidents Outcome from Rope Rescue Instructors Forum (inaugural meeting on 3rd October 2001 held at Royal NZ Police College). Attended by emergency services, support agencies, both volunteer and career sectors. 2

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New Zealand Urban Search & Rescue Best Practice Guideline: Rope Rescue Tier Model

On average for equipment alone it would cost $15,000 to kit out a specialist level unit. If every unit were trained to this level our “typical” area would spend over $390,000 just for gear! The advantage of this system also allows for inter agency cooperation. As each service on a regional basis could agree on what level of capability they can contribute to. For example, emergency service 1 agrees to provide all awareness level response, emergency service 2 agrees to provide all responder level response and emergency service 3 provides the technician/specialist level response. In some areas, an emergency service could provide one or more levels of response or contract out the technician level to specialist volunteer units.

Tiered Response Outcomes • • • • •

Rapid incident response. Increased positive interaction between services. Cost effective. Pooled resources and skills between services. Agreed levels of capability and responsibility.

Unit Standards Respective unit standards have been developed for each tier (Unit Standards 20536-20359). These unit standards are available from www.nzqa.govt.nz and can be found on the National Qualifications Framework under the Specialist Rescue Sub-field. The Fire & Rescue Services Industry Training Organisation (FRSITO) is the standard setting body for these units. Website www.frsito.org.nz

Instructors & Assessors Instructors and assessors for rope rescue shall hold the tier (unit) above the level they wish to train and assess at. Assessors shall also meet normal registration requirements set by the provider or industry training organisation and other criteria as set in the Accreditation Moderation Action Plan (AMAP). Tier

Minimum Criteria

Awareness

Hold NZQA US 20537

Responder

Hold NZQA US 20538

Technician

Hold NZQA US 20539

Specialist

Hold NZQA US 20539 & National Industry Body Recommendation.

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New Zealand Urban Search & Rescue Best Practice Guideline: Rope Rescue Tier Model

Assessment Tools A series of Assessment Evidence Workbooks for all four tiers (unit standards) have been developed for all industries to promote the use of common assessment tools. There are available for download from the USAR website. Marking guides are available only to registered assessors from FRSITO.

Qualifications National and Industry Qualifications are currently being developed for rope rescue. These include: • • •

FRSITO Certificate in Rope Response National Certificate in Specialist Rescue (Rope Technician) Level 3 National Certificate in Specialist Rescue (Rope Instructor) Level 4

Rope practitioners are encouraged to exceed the minimum competency at each tier by achieving the above qualifications applicable tot the tier they operate at.

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Tiered Competency Model – Rope Rescue Tier 1 AWARENESS NZQA US 20536

Tier 2 RESPONDER NZQA US 20537

Tier 3 TECHNICIAN NZQA US 20538

Tier 4 SPECIALIST NZQA US 20539

Risk Assessment

Rappel/Abseil (rig & descend)

Descender based rescue

Self Equalising Anchors

Scene Management

Create simple (fixed) anchors

Rappel knot pass

Patient Transfer Device (Stretcher) rigging

Response & Safety Legislation, Regulations & Codes of Practice.

Create edge line

Rappel/Ascend change over (on rope)

System knot pass (haul and lowering system)

Use an established edge line

Simple knots

Ascend knot pass

System change over (haul – lower – haul)

Knowledge, care and identification of rope rescue equipment.

Responder Recovery (haul or ascend)

Mechanical advantage (hauling systems)

Signals & Communications

Rope Physics

High lines (cable ways, Tyrolean)

Tiered Model Knowledge

Equipment knowledge, care and maintenance

Lowering systems

Rig and manage safety (independent) belay (second line).

Artificial High Anchors (A Frames/Tripods)

Pre-requisites: 20536and 6400 Manage first aid

Pre-requisite: 20537

Pre-requisite: 20538