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MOMENTS >> Firefighter/medics prepared for emergencies
Date published: 5/26/2009
BY ROBERT A. MARTIN THE INTERCOM at Station 9 The crew of Engine 9 scrambles down 24 steps at the Aquia Harbour Volunteer Rescue Squad building, climbs aboard Engine 9, and within three minutes, the firefighter/medics arrive at their destination a few miles away. Harlow Chandler, a graduate of Stafford County Fire & Rescue's first recruit academy, walks into the business address with a Lifepak heart monitor. He takes one look at the patient and knows he's in cardiac arrest. The patient, who had no prior history of a heart condition, "knew it, too," Chandler said. Chandler attaches wire leads to the middle-age man, and less than a minute later, the monitor confirms his hunch. The man is having a heart attack. Within the next seven minutes, Chandler has transmitted the heart monitor's data to Mary Washington Hospital, where they have alerted a cardiologist and the catheter lab. The patient is stabilized and ready for transport when the ambulance arrives. For this patient, Engine 9's quick response has shaved 72 minutes off the American Heart Association's 90-minute standard for "ER door-to-catheter-balloon time." Chandler--who has worked in public service for 15 years as a volunteer firefighter, rescue squad medic and law enforcement officer--feels that medical training for firefighters is justified by the lives they can save. With that belief in mind, he teaches advanced life-saving skills and pharamacology to other Stafford County firefighters and medics. In Stafford County, firefighter/medics are prepared for every type of emergency. One call has Chandler steering the pumper truck toward a car accident on Interstate 95, cautioning his crew to "keep your head on swivel" while at the scene. Another call has him racing to a residential fire, squirming into his firefighting gear in the jump cab while listening to the radio traffic and instructions from his line officer. During downtime, the crew maintains equipment, exercises and plans. Sometimes they'll train using the truck's hoses and ladders. Other times, they'll scout neighborhoods for hydrant locations or strategize for unexpected emergencies. Though the calls may be unpredictable, the crew of Engine 9 is always ready. "We carry everything on board the truck, except a stretcher," said Chandler. Moments is an occasional photo feature about people and places. Submit ideas to
Date published: 5/26/2009
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