Integrated fire, rescue, EMS and incident command technology
Volume 3 No 4
Contents 2
Comment
Competition 3 FRI Images 4
Cover profile The world of Rosenbauer
Incident command 10 Western Cape holds incident command system summit 42 Implementing incident command systems on the ground - by Reinard Geldenhuys News 7 Snowstorm hits north-east US states 9
Disaster Management supports NSRI
14
Grabouw/Sir Lowry’s Pass fire
16 Kenya launches air ambulance service for security forces Bus collides with truck 17
SteadiDrone donates quad copter drone to SCFPA
18
Nagano earthquake strikes injuring 44
19
Shacks gutted by Mossel Bay fire
62 New locally engineered mobile chemical and biological lab Obituary 64 Obituary of Peter Dennis Fuhri South African Private Ambulance and Emergency Services 65 The South African Private Ambulance and Emergency Services Association formed after amalgamation Fire awareness campaigns 67 “Where there’s smoke, there’s an awareness campaign”… Reflections, lessons learnt and the future for fire awareness campaigns - by Leanne McKrill Heritage 69 History of fire poles What’s on? 70 Fire, disaster and rescue related events across the globe Poem 72 “This I do” - by Anthony J Cornelius
26 Sasol Secunda advanced petrochemical fire fighting course 30 Southern Cape Fire Protection Association summer fire season launch A new puppy for Children of Fire 20
Western Cape fire season Western Cape Summer Fire Season launched
Ebola preparedness 32 Ebola preparedness for emergency services in South Africa Structural shoring 38 Structural shoring basics (part 1- vertical shoring) - by Colin Deiner
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Wildfires 45 Building resilience against wildfires in rural areas - by Malcolm Procter 50 Prescribed burning in the Western Cape - by Rob Erasmus Winter fire season review 52 Contrasting fire season experienced across the country in 2014 Training 57 LO Tantsi Training Institution reaches new heights Technology 61 Wireless information system for emergency responders (WISER)
26 Volume 3 No. 4
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Comment Editor Lee Raath-Brownie lee@fireandrescue.co.za Cell 082 371 0190 Journalist Taryn Champion edit@fireandrescue.co.za Cell 071 641 3884 Advertising advertising@fireandrescue.co.za Cell 079 107 3967 Design and layout Marc Raath marc@fireandrescue.co.za Digital newsletter Pierre du Plessis Finance Noddie Knibbs accounts@fireandrescue.co.za Circulation Vicki Jacob subs@fireandrescue.co.za Secretary Vicki Jacob pa@fireandrescue.co.za Administration Mirriam Moroane Contributions Africa Colin Deiner Reinard Geldenhuys Malcolm Procter Rob Erasmus Pprof Lucille Blumberg Leanne McKrill Anthony J Cornelius Publisher Lee Raath-Brownie FIRE AND RESCUE INTERNATIONAL Tel 011 452 3135/6 Fax 086 671 6920 Box 8299 Greenstone 1616 Subscriptions 12 editions per annum South Africa R285 per annum incl VAT Non-subscribers: R35 incl VAT per issue
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Fire and Rescue International (FRI) proudly presents its 28th edition, brim-filled with news, information, practical knowhow and reference material. We trust you will find this issue informative and of use. Cover profile Manufacturers of high-performance fire fighting vehicles, Rosenbauer, features on our front cover this month. The new Rosenbauer AT compact municipal series is available in 10 to 20 ton configurations, offering greater accessibility in cities.
Lee Raath-Brownie
FRI Images photographic competition A very dynamic photograph of the end of a long slash burning day won one of our readers the competition this month. See page 3 for details. CONGRATULATIONS! Submit your high-resolution photograph featuring a rescue, emergency, incident or fire scene and win R2 000 cash! News section Our news section leads with the recent ferocious US snowstorm, the Provincial Incident Command System Summit held by Western Cape Disaster Management, major fires fought at Grabouw, new air ambulance service for Kenyan security forces, Japanese earthquake and Mossel Bay shack fire. The launch of the Western and Southern Cape fire seasons feature prominently and we walk readers through the recently held Sasol Chemical Operations’ Advanced Fire Fighting course in Secunda. Ebola preparedness FRI met with several specialists including Professor Lucille Blumberg of the Centre for Communicable Diseases and detail the symptoms, precautions and pertinent questions all emergency service and health workers should ask. We also supply the World Health Organisation’s guidelines for putting on and removing personal protective equipment (PPE). Structural shoring basics Colin Deiner details the basic principles of structural shoring including shoring potential, viable voids, the size-up and the establishment of safe areas. Other points of discussion include the areas that need to be considered for shoring and schematics for various shoring constructions. Incident command Reinard Geldenhuys discusses implementing incident command systems on the ground and looks at the responsibilities, priorities, functions of the incident command system. Wildfires Building resilience against wildfires in rural areas is explained by Malcolm Procter who looks at the various aspects of integrated wildfire management. Rob Erasmus looks at prescribed burning practices in the Western Cape, detailing the reasoning behind reducing fuel loads. Winter fire season review We review the 2014 winter fire season and look at the statistics and challenges faced by the umbrella fire protection associations throughout South Africa. Training We profile LO Tantsi Training Institution and feature its learnership programmes, facilities, staff and courses. Emergency medical service (EMS) South African Paramedic Service is our featured EMS for the month and we detail its footprint, staff complement, scope of operations and resources. Obituary We honour another fallen hero. Peter Dennis Fuhri sadly passed away after contracting malaria in Nigeria while assisting with the recent building collapse. Rest in peace, Brother. SAPAESA FRI profiles the South African Private Ambulance and Emergency Services Association, its history, objectives, membership benefits and challenges faced. Fire awareness campaigns Leanne McKrill explains the ins and outs and effectiveness of fire awareness campaigns and shares feedback received from these campaigns.
Southern Africa (airmail) R480 per annum
Heritage The fire pole has been around for centuries and we trace its origins and current deployment.
International (airmail) R680 per annum
We invite you to share your viewpoint with our readers. Fire and Rescue International is your magazine. Read it, use it and share it!
Copyright All rights reserved
Lee Raath-Brownie Publisher
Volume 3 No. 4
Images
This month’s FRI images winner! Congratulations to Riaan Webb for his photograph ‘End of a long day’ taken with a Samsung Note 2, ISO-50, a shutter speed of 1/311th of a second and an aperture 2.6 F-stop.
Well done!
Photo description: End of a long day slash burning was taken at the Sappi Sudwala plantation near Nelspruit, Mpumalanga.
Riaan Webb wins this month’s prize money of R 2 000!
Submit your rescue, fire or EMS photo and win R2 000! Fire and Rescue International’s (FRI) monthly photographic competition is open to all its readers and offers you the opportunity of submitting your digital images of fires, fire fighters, disasters, emergencies and rescues.
The rules are simple: • • • • • • • •
All photographs submitted must be in jpeg format and not bigger than 4 megabytes. Photographs must be in high resolution (minimum 1500 pixels on the longest edge @ 300dpi) for publishing purposes Allowed: cropping, curves, levels, colour saturation, contrast, brightness, sharpening but the faithful representation of a natural form, behaviour or phenomenon must be maintained. Not allowed: cloning, merging/photo stitching, layering of two photos into one final frame, special effects digital filters. Fire and Rescue International (FRI) reserves the right to publish (printed or digitally) submitted photographs with acknowledgement to the photographer. Winners will be chosen on the merit of their photograph. The judge’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into afterwards. Brief description should accompany photo.
Entries must include:
Name of photographer Contact details (not for publishing) Email: (not for publishing) Name of photograph Brief description of photograph including type of fire Camera, lens and settings used
All entries must be emailed to: lee@fireandrescue.co.za.
>>ENTER NOW! Volume 3 No. 4
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News
Snowstorm hits north-east US states
Snow clouds roll in over Buffalo
A
ferocious snowstorm swept over parts of upstate New York in November 2014 as temperatures dropped to freezing or below. The storm, which resulted in over seven deaths in the Buffalo area swept across the Great Lakes,
dumping 1,5 metres of snow. The cause of deaths included car crashes and being trapped in vehicles, while majority were as a result of heart attacks. In another case, a 46-year-old man was found in his car buried under roughly four metres of snow.
Whilst rescue teams from 10 counties were called to assist residents in the storm, many were injured in the line of duty. Three fire fighters in Indiana were injured when a trailer struck on a snow-covered roadway. Rescue teams worked long and hard to save a woman who spent more than 24 hours trapped in a bus on a highway, eventually freeing her. “We have tried to get out of our house and we are lucky to be able to shovel so we can open the door,� said Linda Oakley, a resident of Buffalo. Residents were trapped in their homes while schools closed and other extramural activities hampered as strong winds and icy roads increased risk. As a result of the piled up snow on the road, a woman had to give birth in a Buffalo fire station after attempts to travel to a hospital failed.
Vehicles come to a standstill as the blizzard worsens 8
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On 12 November 2014, over 100 national guard members were deployed to assist in clearing roads and removing 5 000 tons of snow and abandoned vehicles as drivers left their cars after being trapped in piled up snow alongside a New York
News
Disaster Management supports NSRI
O
n 6 December 2014, Minister Anton Bredell handed a cheque for R375 000 to the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) CEO, Dr Cleeve Robertson. The Western Cape government presented NSRI and Lifesaving SA
each with a cheque at the Gordons Bay Yacht Club before enjoying a demonstration showing the rescue readiness of the two organisations for the pending Christmas holidays. The minister and his entourage enjoyed experiencing the rescue environment from NSRI’s deep sea rescue boat Jack Riley.
Minister Anton Bredell, Dave Roberts, Cleeve Robertson and Anton Prinsloo with the cheque
state roadway. Described by New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo as a ‘historic event’, the National Weather Service stated that some places could top the record for a single day of snowfall, which is 1,93 metres. A state of emergency and travel bans were put into effect across Buffalo’s Erie County, while authorities ordered people to stay at home to allow crews to clear roads, repair power lines and provide emergency assistance to the most vulnerable. Roof collapses were reported around the region, and more than 50 people had to be evacuated from several mobile home parks because roofs were giving way. South Buffalo implemented a driving ban and 18 snow mobiles were being used to respond to emergency medical calls and rescue stranded motorists. The
Minister Anton Bredell at the helm of the sea rescue boat Jack Riley
Minister Anton Bredell, NSRI CEO Dr Cleeve Robertson, Dr Hildegaard Fast and Dylan Tommy
New York governor, Andrew Cuomo, declared a state of emergency for 10
counties, deploying National Guard troops to assist residents.
Homes covered in snow in South Buffalo, New York Volume 3 No. 4
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Incident command
Western Cape holds incident command system summit Speakers at the ICS summit
S
outh Africa’s Western Cape Disaster Management (WCDM) held a Provincial Incident Command System (ICS) Summit in Cape Town as part of its objective to further the aims of the ICS in the province. WCDM sees the roll-out of the all hazard incident command system in the Western Cape as crucial to ensure inter agency operations. The event was well attended and all major agencies participated. Reinard Geldenhuys, head, Disaster Management and Fire Services, Overberg District Municipality, welcomed all and briefly gave an overview of the summit after which Ken Terry, head of the National Disaster Management Centre (NDMC), presented the opening address. In his frank manner, Terry reminded of recent incidents that occurred where incident command was lacking. The events of the rescue operations at the recent collapse in Soweto and the major wildfire near Harrismith were used as case in point. “The management of incidents is paramount,” said Terry. Terry added that the NDMC had appointed a task team, Colin Deiner
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and Jurgens Dyssel, to oversee the standardisation of IC on a national level. He added that the good work done in the Western Cape regarding IC must filter through to the rest of the country. “We need to be more pragmatic,” said Terry. “Too much is theoretical. We need to implement it. We sit here as a collective but when something goes wrong, there are too many thrones. We need to work together,” added Terry. He concluded by reminding all of the basic fitness level of management and staff in disaster management and said that fitness will take you further during a disaster. Tim Murphy, US Forest Services, gave a brief history and overview of the incident command system. The Incident Command System (ICS) was developed in the mid-1970s following a series of catastrophic fires in California’s urban interface and involved multiple jurisdictions. Property damage ran into the millions and many people died or were injured. The personnel assigned to determine the causes of this disaster studied the case histories and discovered that incident failures could rarely be attributed to lack of resources or failure of tactics. The US Government
put all parties in a room and said “Don’t come out until a solution to prevent the chaotic response has been found,” conveyed Murphy. The outcome was FIRESCOPE, which is an abbreviation for ‘Fire fighting REsources of Southern California Organised for Potential Emergencies’ and has the US Military/ Navy system as a foundation. Although the system worked in California, major wildfires in occurred in 1984 after which all US wildland agencies adopted ICS. In 2000 more major wildfires occurred with more than 12 000 fire fighters on the fire line. Forest Services resources were depleted and the US Military were called in. The fires were too great and resources and crews were brought in from Canada, Australia and New Zealand, all using various forms of IC. These countries forces were in charge of US forces. The result was that these countries all adopted similar IC systems. 11 September 2001 had US Forces experiencing pandemonium during very chaotic incidents. Ambulances couldn’t communicate with police; the police had no communication with the fire departments and each had its own form of ICS. The presidential directorate mandated
INTERNATIONAL INCIDENT COMMAND SYSTEM TRAINING Working on Fire Training in collaboration with the SAICS Working Team and USA instructors (experts in their field) will be presenting the following courses in February and March 2015
Course Title Incident Command System: Basic
Position Specific - Logistics Section Chief
Position Specific – Incident Commander Type 3
Area Command
Multi Agency Coordination
Course Details To provide personnel with the background information required to operate efficiently during an incident or event within the Incident Command System (ICS). To provide local and provincial-level emergency responders with a robust understanding of the duties, responsibilities and capabilities of an effective Logistics Section Chief (LSC) on an All-Hazards Incident Management Team. These responsibilities fall into two categories: Logistics Section Chief Duties: (1) responding to the incident, and (2) effectively fulfilling the position responsibilities of an LSC on an AllHazards Incident Management Team. To prepare participants to manage emergency incidents, including understanding the role and functions of the command team, multi-jurisdictional agency coordination, setting healthy command climate based on clearly defined objectives, assuming and transfering command. This course intended for senior personnel expected to perform in a management capacity in an area command/complex incident environment. The course provides why, when, where and how Area Command is established, and the organization, facilities, communications required and demobilisation process under an Area Command organization. It also covers the organizational relationships between Area Command and incidents, and between an Area Command and jurisdictional authorities. This course introduces Multiagency Coordination (MAC) Systems and shows how these systems can be used to improve incident response. MAC Systems consist of a combination of elements: personnel, procedures, protocols, business practices, and communications integrated into a common system. After taking this course, you should be able to improve the overall coordination with, and support for, incident management by developing and operating within MAC Systems.
Date, Location & Tarrif 24 th to 26th February 2015 Bloemfontein R 3 900 Excl. VAT per participant 2nd – 6th March 2015 Bloemfontein R 7 250 Excl. VAT per participant
16th – 20th March 2015 Cape Town R 7 750 Excl. VAT per participant
23rd - 26th March 2015 Cape Town R 2 380 Excl. VAT per participant
26th – 27th March 2015 Cape Town R 1405 Excl. VAT per participant
Contact: Stephen Devine: stephen.devine@wofire.co.za; +27 (0)13 741 1119; +27 (0)76 390 5346
Volume 3 No. 4
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Incident command information flow logic and the six levels of command as per the research done and proposed by the late Pat Reid. “An ICS forum was established to formalise the required legislative means and standard operating procedures (SOPs) to support a multi-sector ICS system for South Africa,” concluded Dyssel.
Schematic of the National ICS Work Group the implementation of the National Incident Command System (NIMS). The full implementation of NIMS allowed all levels of government throughout the US to work efficiently and effectively together. Murphy explained how ICS was introduced to South Africa in 2003 by Working of Fire and the FFA Group and said phase two was to build capacity for disaster management in southern Africa by using NIMS. The expansion of NIMS into the all hazard community including disaster management, law enforcement, search and rescue, emergency medical, NGOs and utility companies was imperative. The institutionalising of ICS in the university system was followed the ‘Train the Trainer’ program in South Africa. The expansion of NIMS to other countries in Southern Africa, potentially Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia and Zambia is next. Murphy complimented the City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service on demanding that all their officers receive ICS training. Jurgens Dyssel, NDMC, discussed the legal and constitutional framework that underlines ICS in South Africa. Dyssel said the key component of ICS is about working together to achieve an optimal result. He added that unlike other major countries in the world such as the United States of America, British Columbia, Australia and the United Kingdom, that have adopted a national incident management system, no national standard system currently exists, outright 12
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in law, in South Africa for the integrated and coordinated management of multi-agency response operations. “The primary problem that causes general resistance amongst agencies involved in initial emergency response that require the services of allied response agencies, is the fear that the application of incident command methodology will allow one agency to exercise command over another agency or impinge on their authority,” stated Dyssel. He gave an overview of the various legal frameworks relating to ICS, quoting Chapter 3 (Section 40 and 41) of the Constitution, which states that “Three spheres that are distinctive, interdependent and interrelated; All spheres must, secure the well-being of the people; respect the powers and functions of the spheres of government; don’t assume a power or exercise their powers in a way that encroach on the powers of another sphere; cooperate with one another; coordinate their actions and adhere to agreed procedures.” Dyssel also quoted the Disaster Management Act, 57 of 2002 and the policy guidelines of the NDMC, The Public Service Regulations and various other formal documents including SANS 10264 - 1, 2, 3, SANS 10090 and ARP 22399:2008 (ed1) ie societal security, guideline for incident preparedness and operational continuity management. Dyssel also alluded to the formation of the National Joint Operational Centre (NATJOC) and joint operations system of Government (JOINTS) in 1997 and discussed its successes to date. He explained the NDMC disaster
Professor Dewald van Niekerk, director: African Centre for Disaster Studies at North West University discussed the academic and accreditation processes of ICS in South Africa and confirmed the needed elements of training, education and research. He also promoted the need to South Africanise ICS, adding that the skills should be portable. “Incident command is not agency specific but rather task driven,” said Van Niekerk. He echoed the need for standardisation and recognition and said that sector partners need to get involved. Van Niekerk reviewed a simulation done at Sasko, where the exercise went well as far as IC was concerned but changed as another facility was added to the scenario. Van Niekerk also flighted the importance ‘training the trainers’ the ICS working group. Ian Schnetler, chief fire officer, City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service, discussed the roll out of ICS in the City of Cape Town, explaining why they are the ‘big dogs’. “Theory and practical has to go together,” reiterated Schnetler. He gave an overview of the City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service’s history, its service delivery areas, vision, mission, staffing levels, incident response volumes the reasoning behind the implementation of ICS in the city. Schnetler added, “The risks areas situated within the city’s borders gave impetus to the need for ICS to be introduced, not only to manage the wildfires during summer but to provide for a system of effectively managing all risks within our city.” He also reviewed the current training program and said that the fire training academy was tasked to draw up a training program to introduce ICS into the service, ensuring the program ascertained a level of competency before the forthcoming summer season. Etienne van Bergen, Willie Olivier and Mark Bosch were assigned to draw up and implement the program, which included senior and middle management, with position specific
Incident command training to some lower levels. “You need the senior management and the guys on the floor to understand the system,” added Schnetler. “All future training will include ICS and the upcoming summer fire season will serve as a pilot project. The community needs to receive the best service, irrelevant of which agency supplies it,” concluded Schnetler. Colin Deiner, chief director, Western Cape Disaster Management, discussed ICS in the South African all risk environment and said that South Africa had a splintered and disparate response capacity. Deiner reviewed the legal framework said that following the Marikana incident on 16 August 2012, the head of NDMC recommended the implementation of National Incident Command System. “The draft document was accepted by the National Disaster Management Advisory Forum in 2014,” stated Deiner. The National Incident Command System is based on nine principles: 1. Modular scalable structure 2. Common terminology 3. Integrated communications 4. Unity of command 5. Unified command 6. Integrated action plans (IAPs) 7. Span of control 8. Incident facilities (ICPs, JOCs, etc) 9. Comprehensive resource management Deiner furthermore detailed the National Hazardous Materials Response Task Force and Squad Concept that was established in preparation for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the placement of the response units. “Specialised components of SAPS and the National Department of Health, in conjunction with the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), the NDMC and national, provincial and local emergency services are trained and equipped to manage incidents such as the intentional or accidental release of nuclear biological chemical (NBC) agents. Chemical, biological, radiological/nuclear and explosive (CBRNE) response teams are crews of specially trained personnel who will respond to emergency situations involving the accidental or deliberate release of hazardous chemicals, biological agents, radiological/ nuclear agents or explosive/incendiary agents with the purpose of controlling and mitigating the effects of such
Certificates of appreciation awarded to Lauren Chitty, Ian Schnetler, Reinard Geldenhuys, Fred Favard, Willie Olivier, Tim Murphy, Michelle Kleynhans and Steve Devine incidents,” added Deiner. He described the difference between the squad and task force teams, their roles and functions and the typical structure of a CBRNE team. In his discussion on urban search and rescue (USAR), Deiner said, “USAR became massively professional after September 11, just like ICS. He added that USAR is governed by the National Urban Search and Rescue Framework and that South Africa is a signatory to the United Nations (UN) resolution, International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG). Deiner explained the USAR mobilisation procedure and discussed a multi group response organisation structure. “My recommendations for the way forward are that the NDMC should lead the implementation of a national ICS and that this becomes a priority in the next five year planning. Also that the Western Cape should promulgate regulation making ICS mandatory and that allhazards ICS training is prioritised,” concluded Deiner. Etienne du Toit, deputy director, Fire Brigade Services, Western Cape Government and Stephen Symons (on behalf of Patrick Ryan) of Patrick Ryan Images, presented the ICS Toolkit and the delegates had the opportunity of providing input in the design, typography and layout of the toolkit. Symons explained the approach to the design of the document and said that the document will be used when under pressure so it would be ringbound and colour-coded for ease of reference. Standard Pantone colours
were used and the pages can be enlarged or reduced, resulting in a fluid document. It included T-cards, which can be filed; the current T-card system being redesigned. Symons and Du Toit also shared examples of the posters. Du Toit said, “This is a work in progress. The document will be circulated for comment.” The Summit provided the opportunity of handing over certificates of appreciation to those who had spearheaded ICS training and was presented to Lauren Chitty, Ian Schnetler, Reinard Geldenhuys, Fred Favard, Willie Olivier, Tim Murphy, Michelle Kleynhans and Steve Devine. Reinard Geldenhuys reviewed the summit and pin-pointed some pertinent issues in the way forward including the South African ICS Working Team to be evolved to an ALL RISK team, its strategic placement, sub workgroup of the National Disaster Management Advisory Forum (NDMAF), the rollout of ICS 100 and 200 in the Western Cape and the handover to districts; also the focus on ICS 300 and 400 and the formalisation of district and provincial IMTs. Other issues include the ‘Coastal Provinces All Hazard Cooperative Agreement’, assistance with training in neighbouring provinces, assistance with IMT response shadowing opportunities and assistance into Africa. Geldenhuys thanked all presenters, the Western Cape Government for hosting the event and Lourensford Estate. Colin Deiner was elected as chairman of the newly-formed National ICS Work Group. Volume 3 No. 4
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News
Grabouw/Sir Lowry’s Pass fire
Recent fire at Grabouw that spread to Sir Lowry’s Pass
F
rom 1 December 2014 to 12 January 2015 South Africa’s City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service responded to 212 incidents involving informal structural fires. “A total of 863 structural units were destroyed and 10 fatalities were encountered,” stated Theo Layne, station commander at
Goodwood Fire Station and media liaison for City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service. On 8 January 2015, the City’s Fire and Rescue Service responded to an extensive area of vegetation fire, including a pine forest in the Sir Lowry’s Pass/Grabouw area. The fire
The fire was fanned by a very strong south-easterly wind 14
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was fanned by a very strong southeasterly wind, which caused a rapid spread up the adjacent mountain slopes. Immediately, on arrival the first arriving officer had requested additional resources as the terrain and extent indicated that specialised vehicles will be required. Layne elaborated, “The initial response request resulted in six fire engines, six water tankers, a bush tender and three skid units. The fire spread to the slopes of the mountain, which was largely inaccessible to vehicles and crews, resulting in the City’s contracted helicopters being activated. An initial response of two helicopters and one spotter was dispatched. This proved to be insufficient and at one stage five helicopters, three fixed-wing water bombers and a spotter was on scene. A severe smoke hazard against the mountain slopes prevented the aircraft from bombing a section of the fire that was high up on the peaks of the mountain. The fire then spread at this point to the Sir Lowry’s Pass side of the mountain.” A multi-agency incident command centre was set up involving various fire services.
News
The fourth day only enough crews remained on scene to monitor for hotspots and deal with flare-ups
Huey helicopters with Bambi buckets
A fire engine was dispatched to the affected area to monitor the rate and spread of the fire while two helicopters were also dispatched to water bomb the fire on the upper slopes that were inaccessible to fire fighting vehicles and crews. The fire then spread to areas where fire fighters, on the ground, could access and additional resources were dispatched to assist.
A total of 250 fire fighters from various services including the City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service, Cape Nature, Working on Fire, City Bulk Water, Cape Pine and Overberg Fire and Rescue Service fought the blaze daily for the first three days of the incident. The fourth day only enough crews remained on scene to monitor for hotspots and deal with flare-ups.
The fire was essentially contained and confined to safe levels but not extinguished on Saturday, 10 January 2015 but monitoring and mop-up crews were in attendance until the 12th, when the fire was finally extinguished. “The cause of the fire could not be conclusively determined,” added City of Cape Town’s Layne.
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News
Kenya launches air ambulance service for security forces Kenya’s security forces struggle to get treatment in remote areas.
President Kenyatta of Kenya
K
enya has launched its first national air ambulance service to evacuate security forces wounded in battle. President Uhuru Kenyatta launched emergency air rescue services to be provided by AMREF Flying Doctors for security forces across the country, through the enhanced medical cover provided by the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF). President Kenyatta said the service was vital to ensure they received swift treatment. The Kenyan government reached a deal with the Red Cross and private firm AMREF Flying Doctors to despatch helicopters and vehicles as soon as distress calls are received. The initiative is likely to boost the morale of security personnel facing multiple threats. Some soldiers and policemen have bled to death or have died of dehydration in remote areas of Kenya because of long delays in getting them to hospital.
The launch event was held at the AMREF Flying Doctors hangar at Wilson Airport, Nairobi, which was attended by interim Amref Health Africa CEO, Dr Lennie Kyomuhangi-Bazira and AMREF Flying Doctors CEO, Dr Bettina Vadera. Dr Vadera gave the president a tour into the plane and also into one of the Advanced Life Support ambulance used for medical evacuations. She assured the President of AMREF Flying Doctors readiness to deliver high level of prehospital care services to the disciplined service officers. In his address, President Kenyatta noted that this is a crucial service, especially for the security officers who put themselves on the front line against our enemies to ensure Kenyans are safe wherever they are. He noted that the civil servants and members of the disciplined forces will now be able to call for emergency rescue services for evacuation in case of unexpected injuries or illness. “This will greatly enhance dedication to duty” the president said. President Kenyatta reiterated the government’s commitment to ensuring that no Kenyan dies because of not affording medical care. “My government is dedicated to
eliminating this kind of vulnerability, to enable our people to lead productive lives,” said President Kenyatta. He observed, however, that Kenyans are unable access healthcare because services require direct payment that is beyond their ability to pay. “The cost of health care pushes people into poverty,” he said. The President urged the Ministry of Health and the NHIF to ensure that at least 25 million people had general health insurance cover provided by the NHIF in the next 12 months in order to cushion Kenyans from the draining effects of ill health. Five million people are currently registered under the scheme. Somali Islamist group al-Shabab has stepped up attacks in Kenya in recent years. Last month, the militants killed 64 people in two attacks in the northeastern region of Mandera, which borders Somalia. Security forces are also battling bandits and cattle rustlers in the north-western Samburu region, which is known as the ‘Valley of Death’. In 2012, more than 40 security officers were killed in the area and it took more than two days to rescue the injured. “This is a crucial service, especially for our security officers, who put themselves on the front line against our enemies, to ensure that Kenyans are safe wherever they are,” Mr Kenyatta said at the launch in Nairobi.
Bus collides with truck
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bus resulting in the driver and driver assistant experiencing fatal injuries.
when the incident after midnight.
ER24 paramedics arrived on scene and found the two vehicles crushed together with the entire front section of the bus entirely ripped open.
A number of other patients were found on scene with injuries ranging from minor to critical. Paramedics treated the patients and thereafter transported them to nearby hospitals for further treatment.
On inspection, ER24 paramedics discovered that two people had been crushed in the front of the
The Intercape bus, with 56 passengers on board, was en route to Cape Town from Johannesburg
It is alleged that the truck driver stopped to find out why a bakkie had parked in the middle of Virginia Road, when the bus rammed into the rear of the truck. “The bus driver and his assistant were killed on impact. Hydraulic rescue tools were used to free them from the wreckage. 56 people were taken to hospital in Welkom,” said warrant officer, Malebo Khosana.
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wo people died on impact when a bus collided with a truck near Welkom, Free State, South Africa, on 13 December 2014.
Volume 3 No. 4
happened
News
SteadiDrone donates
T
quad copter drone to SCFPA
he Southern Cape Fire Protection Association’s (SCFPA) family happily expanded on receiving a quad copter drone donated by SteadiDrone. Named by the SCFPA as ‘FireFly’, the drone is fitted with a GoPro and transmits live footage to a field monitor while recording. Flight time is approximately 15 minutes per battery. “It is a sturdy little thing and can fly in winds up to 40km/h with a range of over one kilometre”, says extension officer, Danie Gräbe. Thanks to SteadiDrone, the SCFPA can use FireFly for quick fire size ups, hot spot identifications, spot fires, mop ups, flank inspections, firebreak inspections and to give complete eagle-eye-views of fires, training footage, block burn planning and assistance, to name a few. “We can use this drone to service our 3 691 members. One drone over four million hectares sounds crazy but it is a start and a step in the right direction,” states Gräbe. At present, FireFly is used as a fire fighting tool until aerial resources are en route. Its principal tasks consist of fire suppression assistance and controlled block burning assistance.
The SCFPA extends their utmost gratitude towards SteadiDrone for helping improve their toolbox The SCFPA, together with this new partnership, is jumping ahead with integrated fire management.
Aerial view of a fire at the Knysna heads
‘FireFly’ can fly in winds up to 40km/h with a range of over one kilometre Volume 3 No. 4
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News
Nagano earthquake strikes injuring 44 Nishino was in the restaurant’s wine cellar when the quake struck, however nothing broke. Another seven homes were lost in Otari, a nearby village to the north. Fortunately, there were no life-threatening injuries resulting from people being trapped underneath collapsed houses and all individuals were rescued. More than 300 rescue workers were deployed to search for people trapped in collapsed homes. “We are trying to assess the situation as quickly as possible, and we’ll do our utmost for the rescue of the injured people,” Japan’s government spokesman, Yoshihide Suga said. Rescue workers use a sniffer dog to search a damaged house in the village of Hakuba
O
n 22 November 2014, eight weeks after the Mount Ontake disaster in Japan, an earthquake struck in the Nagano city vicinity of Japan injuring 44 people and heavily damaging 141 houses. At approximately 22h00 the destructive earthquake hit at a depth of over five kilometres. Reports differed in the intensity of the quake. The Japan Meteorological Agency reported it was magnitude 6,8 while the United States Geological Survey
(USGS) said it was magnitude 6,2. Due to the quake occurring inland, there was no possibility of a tsunami.
Many houses lost water as a result of ruptured pipes and landslides on two major roads blocked access to some areas. Government further warned residents of additional landslides to follow.
Most affected by the disaster was Hakuba, a ski town west of Nagano that hosted the 1998 Winter Olympics. At least 43 homes were destroyed in the area resulting in dozens of people injured. Ryo Nishino, a restaurant owner in Hakuba, told Japanese broadcaster NHK that he had, “never experienced a quake that shook so hard. The sideways shaking was enormous.”
The earthquake was felt across much of northern Japan and in Tokyo, approximately 200 kilometres southeast of Hakuba. Aftershocks followed the main quake the same night, including one measured at magnitude 4,1, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. Roughly 200 people from Hakuba and Otari were evacuated to shelters.
Emergency responder rush to a collapsed house in Hakuba after the area was rocked by the earthquake 18
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An aerial view shows collapsed houses and destroyed surroundings after the earthquake hit
News
Shacks gutted by Mossel Bay fire
Fire fighters toil to prevent the shack fire from spreading
D
uring November 2014, the informal area, Power Town in Mossel Bay municipal area, South Africa, experienced a shack fire resulting in the death of one. At 21h31 the Mossel Bay Fire and Rescue Services were notified of the fire telephonically. The officer in charge, platoon commander AC Gelderblom and a crew of four fire fighters arrived at the scene at 21h43, shortly after
the Great Brak River fire fighters who cover the area. It was found that a wooden and iron structure was burning on the informal dwelling on vacant municipal land. The fire was extinguished using one line and selfcontained breathing apparatus sets from Engine 1. After damping down was completed by Mossel Bay Fire and Rescue Services, a body of a female adult was found under the debris. The body was handed over to the forensic department to be examined.
Fire fighters tackle the shack fire from all angles
The cause of the fire could not be determined; however it is suspected that the son of the owner set the place alight after his mother refused to give him money to purchase drugs. The suspect has been arrested and is currently in custody. The scene was made safe by Mossel Bay Fire and Rescue Services within 16 minutes from arrival time. Property and content damage was estimated at R40 000.
Shacks were gutted by the fire resulting in the displacement of many Volume 3 No. 4
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Western Cape fire season
Western Cape Summer Fire Season launched
MEC Anton Bredell with participants at the recent launch of the Western Cape fire season
T
he Western Cape provincial summer fire season was launched on 1 December 2014 by the Department of Environmental Affairs’ (DEA) Working on Fire (WoF) programme at the Stellenbosch Airfield, Cape Town, South Africa. The Western Cape has already experienced many multiday fires since September 2014, although the summer fire season officially started on 1 December. Coupled with this year’s worst fire season in seven years, recorded in the northern parts of South Africa, a rough fire season lies ahead for the Western Cape.
Dr Mmaphaka Tau, acting director general, Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF), said that the key is collaboration and coordination to ensure an incident free fire season and that the fire protection association must be commended for their important role in mitigating factors leading to fires. Dr Tau added that the fire fighters play a crucial role in the success of Working on Fire.
The customary parade by WoF fire fighters kicked off the proceedings after which Shane Christian, general manager for WoF Cape, officially welcomed the delegates and said, “We (WoF) are ready to support
Dr Hildegarde Fast head of department, Local Government, Western Cape, introduced MEC Anton Bredell whose portfolio is Environmental Affairs and Development Planning. MEC Bredell read a letter written
MEC Anton Bredell 20
the authorities charged with responding to fires”. WoF Helderberg team’s Xola Mhloli read a poem she wrote describing how the programme restored her dignity through employment.
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Dr Christo Marais
Dr Mmaphaka Tau
Trevor Abrahams
Llewellen Pillay
Western Cape fire season
A performance by female fire fighters from WoF Helderberg in support of Governments ‘16 Days of No ViolenceAgainst Women and Children’ by Rebecca Brown, a 12-year old scholar, who wrote a thank you letter to the fire fighters and was an honorary delegate at the launch, accompanied by her per parents. “The Western Cape Disaster Management Centre will this year provide 26 aircraft using 36 strategically located
Wednesday 19 November 2014 To the pilots of the helicopters that put out the mountain fires in Fish Hoek on the 19th of November 2014. May I just start by saying that you guys rock!!!!! My name is Rebecca Brown, I am 12years old, and I live in number 11 Drongo Close in the Peers Hill Security Village, right next to the vlei where you filled your buckets with water to pour on the mountain fires, the vlei is near a golf course. Today I watched in awe as you expertly flew your choppers over the fires then to the vlei to fill up. To tell the honest truth it was AWESOME!!!! I mean to watch two firefighting helicopters fill up then pour out the water on those terrible fires , is just… wow! One thing that you have done for me is given me as memory that I shall never, and I mean never, forget. But I have to ask, I know that you must have done this numerous times, but do you get scared on your fist time and never again, or just every now and again when there are gargantuan fires?? Anyway, you are my hero’s, and became heroes only by doing your jobs, which I think is positively resplendent. I hope to hear back from you soon Yours truly Rebecca
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Kishugu Group’s co-CEOs Johan Heine and Chris de Bruno Austin with Wesley Langeveldt
airstrips to assist fighting fires in the province,” said MEC Bredell. He added, “This remarkable project initiated by Colin Deiner and his team is called the ‘First hour saves lives’ initiative. There will also be a major emphasis to reduce shack fires.” Trevor Abrahams, outgoing managing director of Working on Fire, reflected on the successes and statistics of the Department of Environmental Affairs’ (DEA) WoF programme. “There are currently more than 5 000 beneficiaries in the programme, 85 percent of whom are youth and 29 percent are women, the highest level in any comparable fire service in the world,” said Abrahams prior to introducing Dr Christo Marais, chief director, Natural Resource Management, Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA). Dr Christo Marais delivered the keynote address on behalf of Deputy Minister of the Department of Environmental Affairs and custodian of the Working on Fire programme, Barbara Thomson. Dr Marais quoted the famous Gettysburg speech and said, “Our fire fighters are like soldiers protecting us, our assets, resources and livelihoods.” He also alluded to the sobering statistics that the media hyped the recent St Francis Bay fires that claimed 68 houses, which was recovered financially via insurance but that the saddening impact of informal settlements fires are not seen in the same light. “Roughly 23 shacks are raised daily”, said Dr Marais. “Statistics over a three year period indicated 25 000 shacks were destroyed, with an estimated four people per shack, resulting in 100 000 people who had lost their livelihoods with no insurance coverage. The Institute of Race Relations found the Western Cape Province worst hit,” added Dr Marais. He said that being a fire fighter is a noble profession. “WoF not only fights unwanted forest and wildfires but also the scourge of poverty. The programme is one of governments leading Expanded Public Works (EPWP) jobcreation and poverty alleviation programmes and recruits and trains young people into becoming professional veld and forest fire fighters.”
Western Cape fire season
Llewellen Pillay, Yuval Hoomsh, Rebecca Brown with her brother with MEC Anton Bredell
Air support A total of 27 aircraft, which include 13 Bell Huey helicopters, five fixed-wing bombers (three Airtractor (AT) 802s, one Dromader and one Thrush) and nine spotters. The aircraft, on contract from FFA Aviation, will be based in Tulbagh, Porterville, Donkerhoek, Stellenbosch, Bredasdorp, Stilbaai/ Riversdale, Newlands, Plettenbergbay and Knysna. City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Services contracted two Hueys and one spotter, which are based at Newlands. A fourth AT 802 is on its way from Spain to assist. Ground support A total of 820 fully trained and super fit fire fighters based at 28 bases across the Western Cape. A total of 5 000 fire fighters from across the country, that could be deployed to the Western Cape, should the need arise.
The mighty Airtractor 802 with MEC Anton Bredell, Trevor Abrahams, Winston Smith and Llewellen Pillay
Women and Children’. The message was clear: Say no to physical, emotional, sexual and financial abuse. The Yellow Card Training Camp winning trophy was handed over to Wesley Langeveldt, crew leader type 2, WoF Limietberg team and presented by the Kishugu Group’s coCEOs Johan Heine and Chris de Bruno Austin. Norman Malatjie, who was awarded the Southern Cape FPA’s bursary to study at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) for his Higher Certificate in Veld and
special risk fire protection
WoF prides itself on its partnerships where some of the fire fighters are based: CapeNature (eight teams), SANParks (three teams), Southern Cape FPA (eight teams), Overberg District Municipality (two teams), Cape Peninsula FPA (two teams), Greater Cederberg FPA (three teams), Tulbagh/ Wolseley FPA (one team) and City of Cape Town Nature Conservation (one team). “Our pilots and fire fighters are on standby 24/7 and could reach a fire within 15 minutes of callout. The deployment of aerial resources is part of the rapid initial attack on fires and prevents fires from spreading and becoming bigger,” said Dr Marais.
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All delegates observed a minute of silence during a candle lighting ceremony, commemorating the one year anniversary of former president Nelson Mandela’s passing and World Aids Day. A demonstration by Working on Fire’s high altitude team (HAT) followed while Josan de Smit, operations manager for HAT, gave a brief presentation of the background of the team. A moving self-defence performance by six female fire fighters from WoF Helderberg followed in support of Governments ‘16 Days of No Violence Against
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Western Cape fire season Forest Fires, gave a brief overview of his background and journey with WoF. WoF’s incoming managing director, Llewellen Pillay, thanked all delegates and VIPs for their attendance and the various participating entities for the continued partnerships. “As an Expanded Public Works Programme, we are rendering critically needed integrated fire support services to South Africa and helping to restore dignity and improving the lives or our youth,” Pillay concluded. An impressive aerial fire fighting demonstration followed, showcasing the excellent performance of the Airtractor 802 assisted by a ground team and Huey helicopters fitted with Bambi buckets.
The Huey dropping its load
A skilful demonstration by Working on Fire’s high altitude team (HAT)
The customary WoF parade and flag raising ceremony
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News
Sasol Secunda advanced petrochemical fire fighting course
Advanced Petrochemical Fire Fighting Course participants
S
asol Chemical Operationsbased in Secunda, Mpumalanga, South Africa, held its Advanced Petrochemical Fire Fighting Course in October 2014 at its Emergency Management Training Academy. The course was preceded by a two-day instructor’s course.
Academy history The Sasol Secunda Chemicals Operations, Emergency Management Training Academy has developed form a modest beginning in the 1980’s to one of the most advanced technological training centres in the control of petrochemical incidents.
The Instructor’s Course prepared instructors for presentations and practical components of the threeday advanced course that followed.
The techniques used at the training academy were not only developed at Sasol but also include techniques developed at refineries in South
Africa and worldwide. The courses are of a high standard and The Emergency Management Training Academy is accredited by both the Southern African Emergency Services Institute (SAESI) and the International Fire Service Accreditation Congress (IFSAC). The training academy is also accredited by the Joint Oil and Industry Fire Forum (JOIFF) and Local Government Sector Education and Training Authority (LG SETA). The three-day advanced petrochemical fire fighting course is aimed at professional fire fighters and plant personnel from throughout the country who might encounter petro chemical fires. The course objective is to train participants in the practical skills required to mitigate and control large petrochemical fires. Proof of a two day intermediate petrochemical fire fighting course is a prerequisite to attend the course.
The Centrum Guardian project sponsored three participants
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The theoretical component of the advanced petrochemical fire fighting course includes types of fuels, types of petro chemical fires and safety on the training ground.
News Practical component • Advanced portable fire extinguisher training • Hydro-foam and hydrochem technology • Fire streams • Valve isolation • Flame bending • Flame sweeping • Foam and foam making equipment • Pool fires • Water failure - emergency procedures Instructor’s course The advanced petrochemical fire fighting instructor’s course is aimed at professional fire fighters and plant personnel who in performing his duties would lead a team when encountering petrochemical fires. The training objective is to train participants in the practical skills required to instruct others and lead teams during petrochemical fire incidents. The duration of the instructor’s course is five days. Proof of a three day advanced petrochemical fire fighting course is a prerequisite to attend the course. The course is run in conjunction with the
advanced petrochemical course and cannot be separated. Full personal protective equipment (PPE) including bunker pants, boots, gloves, flash hood, tunic jacket and helmet. The theoretical section of the instructor’s course includes types of fuels, types of petro chemical fires and extinguishing methodologies, safety on the training ground and teamwork and commands. Practical component • Preparation of material and training simulators • Team work and how to apply commands • Advanced portable fire extinguisher training • Hydro-foam and hydrochem technologies • Fire streams • Valve isolation • Flame bending • Flame sweeping • Foam and foam making equipment • Pool fires • Water failure – emergency procedures
Fire and Rescue International attended the advanced petrochemical fire fighting course along with several members of the South African petrochemical industry. Various training scenarios were experienced including applying different extinguishing methods with the aid of foam, dry chemical powder (DCP) and water, utilising different water patterns for protection and extinguishment of LPG and flammable liquid fires, understanding three-dimensional fires, applying flame bending techniques, knowing how foam and DCP works, understanding hydrochem technology and dealing with pressurised liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and flammable liquid fires. An illustrative pictorial of the event follows, showcasing these highlyefficient emergency response teams. The legendary night exercise included gas loading facility demonstrations, explosion of gas cylinders and the mother of all fires, a simulation of a tanker over the bridge.
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An illustrative pictorial of the event
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An illustrative pictorial of the event
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Southern Cape Fire Protection Association summer fire season launch between the WoF teams and included tug of war, team songs and a toughest fire fighter competition. Personnel from Eden Fire and Rescue also attended the day and won the toughest fire fighter competition.
Drill parade by the eight SCFPA WoF teams
O
n 20 and 21 November the Southern Cape Fire Protection Association (SCFPA) set aside two days of thanksgiving to the eight Working on Fire (WoF) teams
appointed to them and launched the start of the summer fire season in the Southern Cape region. Taking place in the town of Hartenbos, the first day was set out for competitions
The second day kicked off with a drill parade by the eight WoF teams and followed with various presentations and speeches by noteworthy individuals such as the chief director for Disaster Management And Fire Brigade Services in the Western Cape, Colin Deiner; Mpumalanga Fire Protection Association (MUFPA) manager, Trevor Wilson; SCFPA managing director, Paul Gerber; WoF managing director, Llewellyn Pillay and WoF assistant managing director, Winston Smith. Prizes were also handed over to the winning teams of the previous day’s competition. WoF and the SCFPA Working on Fire is a government funded job creation program focusing on integrated fire management in South Africa. WoF fire fighters are recruited from marginalised communities and trained in fire awareness and
A new puppy for Children of Fire
F
ire and Rescue International donated a puppy to Children of Fire International, which now goes by the name of ‘Shadow’, after their previous dog died.
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According to founder, volunteer and director of Children of Fire, Bronwen Jones, “She was named after her shape and colour that are similar to a German Christmas cake”. He is a long, thin, loveable puppy who jumps high and is very talkative. “Everywhere there are shoes. Half chewed, tossed in the air, sat upon, and slept upon. The children have become better at closing doors as part of the newly invented shoeprotection-society” says Jones. Black
and tan with a chest splash of white, Shadow might be part Doberman but only time will tell. By pulling her ears, jumping on her and playing tag all day, he is trying to help their other dog, ‘Stollen’, who is part Boerbul, to slim down for Christmas. According to Jones, skinny Shadow and stocky Stollen are a good pair. “Thanks to Fire and Rescue International for covering the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) cost to rescue this naughty but nice dog,” delights Jones.
News
Tug of war competition
education, prevention and fire suppression skills. During 2009, WoF and the SCFPA formed a partnership and provided the organisation with fire fighting teams to service the members of the SCFPA. Currently, they have eight WoF teams, consisting of 226 fire fighters. SCFA provides WoF fire fighter with full bursary Due to the upliftment aspect of Working on Fire, the SCFPA thought it well to provide one of the fire fighters with a chance of a lifetime to study for a Higher Certificate in Veldfires (wildfire) management at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University on George campus starting next year. During the event the full bursary was awarded to Norman Malatji, a WoF fire fighter based in Crags near Plettenberg Bay. “I am very excited
to study veldfire management next year. I have been a fire fighter for Working on Fire for almost two years and have grown a massive interest in veldfires,” said Norman, the chosen candidate for the bursary. To make the event more exceptional, WoF Huey helicopters gave an aerial fire fighting display over the ocean showcasing various types of water drops done during wildfire suppression. SCFA is equipped and ready for the summer fire season The Southern Cape region’s fire season occurs throughout the year, as seen by the many fires during the past winter. Summer brings higher temperatures, lower humidity, wellknown south-easterly winds, with a high inflow of vacationers and tourists thereby increasing the risk of fires significantly. The SCFPA
Aerial fire fighting display
requests the public to stay vigilant this summer and contact the local fire brigade if they see any smoke. Open fires are also prohibited during this period. The SCFPA is ready for this summer fire season and have to their disposal eight WoF teams with their own transport based throughout the Southern Cape region at Goudveld, Crags, Sedgefield, George, Mossel Bay, Riversdale and Ladysmith. Aerial resources are also available, which include three spotter planes, three helicopters and two fixed wing bomber planes. Also, at the SCFPA Knysna office the Advanced Fire Information System (AFIS) terminal and satellite have been set up that act as an early fire detection system and improves response time to wildfires.
Toughest fire fighter competition Volume 3 No. 4
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Ebola preparedness
Ebola preparedness for emergency services in South Africa Paramedic assist Ebola patient into the back of an emergency vehicle
E
bola virus disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever is a severe, often fatal illness in humans. Forest dwelling fruit bats in certain countries in West, Central and East Africa are the likely reservoirs. It is not clear how humans are infected, either directly through exposure
Professor Lucille Blumberg 32
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to these bats or through handling infected animals in forests through the handling of tissue for bush meat The virus spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission when family members are exposed to blood and body fluids while caring for family members at home or during traditional funeral practices. Health workers in many of these countries become infected as they too may handle blood and body fluids without protection. The average EVD case fatality rate is around 50 percent, however, case fatality rates have varied from 25 percent to 90 percent in recent outbreaks. Early supportive care with rehydration, symptomatic treatment improves survival, however, there is as yet no licensed treatment proven to neutralise the virus. A range of blood, immunological and drug therapies are still under development. There are currently no licensed Ebola vaccines but two potential candidates are undergoing trials. The current outbreak in West Africa, with its first case noticed in March 2014, is the largest and most complex Ebola outbreak since the
Ebola virus was first discovered in 1976. There have been more cases and deaths in this outbreak than all others combined. It has also spread between countries starting in Guinea then spreading across land borders to Sierra Leone and Liberia, by air to Nigeria and by land to Senegal and Mali. A small number of imported cases with limited spread to health workers have been confirmed managed in the USA and Spain. Symptoms of Ebola virus Symptoms of Ebola may appear anywhere from two to 21 days after exposure of Ebola, however, the average is eight to 10 days. The incubation period is marked by the time interval from infection with the virus to an onset of symptoms, meaning that humans are not infectious until they develop symptoms. While recovery rates are quite low, if caught early and treated appropriately, recovery is possible. Ebola recovery is also dependent on good, supportive clinical care as well as the patient’s immune response. Those who do recover from the virus develop antibodies that last for at least 10 years.
Steps to put
on personal protective equipment (PPE)
1
2
3 Gather all the necessary items of PPE beforehand.
Always put on essential required PPE when handling either a suspected, probable or confirmed case of viral haemorragic fever.
The dressing and undressing of PPE should be supervised by another trained member of the team.
Put on the scrub suit in the changing room.
4 Put on rubber boots. If not available, make sure you have closed,
5 Place the
puncture and fluid resistant shoes and put on overshoes.
impermeable gown over the scrubs.
OR, IF BOOTS UNAVAILABLE
6 Put on face protection: 6a Put on a medical mask.
7 6b Put on goggles or a face shield.
8 Perform hand hygiene.
9 Put on gloves* (over cuff).
If available, put a head cover on at this time.
10 If an impermeable gown is not available, place waterproof apron over gown.
• Avoid touching or adjusting PPE • Change gloves between patients
While wearing PPE:
• Remove gloves if they become torn or damaged • Perform hand hygiene before putting on new gloves
* Use double gloves if any strenuous activity (e.g. carrying a patient or handling a dead body) or tasks in which contact with blood and body fluids are anticipated. Use heavy duty/rubber gloves for environmental cleaning and waste management. All reasonable precautions have been taken by the World Health Organization to verify the information contained in this publication. However, the published material is being distributed without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied. The responsibility for the interpretation and use of the material lies with the reader. In no event shall the World Health Organization be liable for damages arising from its use.
Ebola preparedness
Waste must be collected and disposed of appropriately to avoid risk
Early symptoms of Ebola to look out for, include, the sudden onset of fever fatigue, muscle pain, headaches and a sore throat. This is followed by vomiting, diarrhea, rash, fatigue, fever, symptoms of impaired kidney and liver function and internal/ external bleeding such us blood from the gums, in the stool, etc. bleeding is an uncommon feature. Laboratory findings include low white blood cell and platelet counts and elevated liver enzymes. South Africa’s high risk areas should take precaution Health Minister, Aaron Motsoaledi, says if Ebola comes to South Africa, it is more likely to enter through Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport than by way of the country’s porous borders. Airlines quickly take passengers from one part of the globe to another. Health and airline officials note, however, that Ebola only spreads through direct contact. Fire and Rescue International met with deputy director and head of division of Public Health Surveillance and Response, Professor Lucille Blumberg, to get an understanding of what protocol first responders need to follow when dealing with a potential Ebola patient. Professor Blumberg confirms that 34
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screening at airports in South Africa has a limited effect. Symptoms of Ebola can occur anywhere from two to 21 days. If, however, a passenger is screened at the airport and it is discovered that a fever is present, one cannot jump to the conclusion that the passenger has the Ebola virus as various early symptoms of Ebola can also be associated with other illnesses, such as malaria. Emergency medical services need to be cautious Emergency medical services (EMS) should be prepared and understand how to recognise and manage patients, with or without Ebola symptoms. EMS agencies and systems that provide nonemergency and/or inter-facility transport, moreover should ensure that their personnel is able to suspect a person with possible Ebola, protect themselves so that they can safely care for the patient and respond in a coordinated fashion. By following safety precautions, transmission of Ebola can be prevented. Many emergency medical workers are very anxious to get their patient out of a situation, however, if a patient experiences a lot of bleeding, diarrhea etc, emergency personnel should take precaution with gloves and not touch their face, especially
the mouth, nose or eyes, with their gloves after making contact with a patient, as this is an area germs can travel through. “Ebola is an uncommon disease but there are many things that look like Ebola, so don’t jump to conclusions”, says Professor Blumberg. Professor Blumberg suggests that if any health worker develops an unexplained fever, including emergency service workers, they must report it to their health provider as they may have had unexpected contact and been exposed to the Ebola virus. The history of an ill patient, according to Blumberg, is critical as it may be used as a guide for a doctor to diagnose a patient more accurately. Thus, if any emergency services personnel present with a fever they should be iced and details of the patient assisted previously by them should be recorded. Questions all health workers should ask According to Blumberg, it is of utmost importance that health workers are aware of Ebola and that they ask the correct questions. Questions all health workers should ask their patients with fever include: 1. Where have you visited the last three weeks? If the person has
Steps to remove personal protective equipment (PPE) 1 Remove waterproof apron and dispose of safely. If the apron is to be reused, place it in a container with disinfectant.
4 If wearing rubber boots, remove them (ideally using the boot remover) without touching them with your hands. Place them in a container with disinfectant.
7 Remove face protection: 7a Remove face shield or goggles (from behind the head). Place eye protection in a separate container for reprocessing.
2 If wearing overshoes, remove them with your gloves still on (If wearing rubber boots, see step 4).
5 Perform hand hygiene.
3 Remove gown and gloves and roll inside-out and dispose of safely.
6 If wearing a head cover, remove it now (from behind the head).
8 Perform hand hygiene. 7b Remove mask from behind the head. When removing mask, untie the bottom string first and the top string next.
Source: Modified from Clinical Management of Patients with Viral Haemorrhagic Fever: A pocket Guide for the Front-line Health Worker. World Health Organization, 2014
All reasonable precautions have been taken by the World Health Organization to verify the information contained in this publication. However, the published material is being distributed without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied. The responsibility for the interpretation and use of the material lies with the reader. In no event shall the World Health Organization be liable for damages arising from its use.
Ebola preparedness to Johannesburg for medical treatment. The connection between the two patients was recognised by the attending physician at the Johannesburg hospital and together with the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) a new viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF), better known as the Lujo virus was recognised. Early recognition of the problem, contact tracing and use of infection control practices allowed the outbreak to be contained.
Emergency personnel need to ensure that PPE is worn in the correct manner
been in one of the three affected countries: Sierra Leone, Guinea or Liberia in the previous three weeks and had potential exposure to persons with Ebola (contact with faeces, vomitus or blood of ill persons) the risk increases. 2. What is your occupation? Health workers would be a specific high risk group. Malaria has been the commonest diagnosis in persons with fever Professor Blumberg suggests that asking the right questions are critical as it is a way of protecting staff and containing Ebola. “You want to
contain the disease when only one is present she says. By getting a brief history and background of a patient, one can determine whether he/she has a common disease or virus of whether it may be a potential Ebola case, in which immediate isolation and treatment can be conducted. Professor Blumberg makes reference to a case where a female travel agent, who lived in the outskirts of Lusaka, suffered from fever, which worsened with time. She was evacuated to Johannesburg for medical treatment, however approximately two weeks later, the paramedic that nursed the patient on the flight to South Africa fell ill and was also transported
Before removing PPE, first responders should ensure that they are disinfected
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The outbreak of Ebola virus disease in West Africa is unprecedented in many ways, including the high proportion of doctors, nurses and other health care workers who have been infected. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Ebola has taken the lives of prominent doctors in Sierra Leone and Liberia, depriving these countries not only of experienced and dedicated medical care but also of inspiring national heroes. As it is possible that individuals infected with Ebola Virus seek medical care from EMS personnel, first responders should take precaution in order to reduce the risk of transmission. Steps EMS personnel should follow Emergency vehicles Emergency medical services should utilise one dedicated ambulance vehicle for patients with suspected Ebola. Once the call centre has screened the caller for signs and symptoms of Ebola, the EMS needs to ensure that the correct type of vehicle is dispatched. Vehicle cleaning and decontamination teams are an essential part of infection control. Teams should be stationed at Ebola care facilities and at the central ambulance maintenance depot. Ambulance setup Ambulances should be divided into two separate areas, namely, the front cab being the ‘clean zone’ and the back cab, being the ‘contaminated zone’. Seats and surfaces of the vehicle should be covered with plastic or other easily cleanable materials. The ambulance should contain latex gloves, gowns, aprons, face shields, face masks, shoe covers, and
Ebola preparedness towels or absorbent pads. Reusable items that should be appropriately disinfected after use include scissors, heavy reusable outer utility gloves for cleaning the vehicle, goggles, rubber boots and hand sprayers with mild chlorine solution. A supply checklist should be completed daily to make sure that enough supplies are in the vehicles. Recommended supplies stored in the back cab include a basic stretcher with plastic or other material that does not allow fluid, a thin mattress pad covered with plastic or other material that does not allow fluid to pass through, a liquid waste bucket with a small amount of strong chlorine solution and tight fitting lid, biohazard waste bags or buckets with tight fitting lids, one each for disposable waste such as latex gloves and reusable equipment such as goggles, disposable towels or absorbent pads, hand sprayers with mild and strong chlorine solution. These should be labelled and made fresh each day. Strong chlorine solution is a sufficient disinfectant for cleaning spills of body fluids. Oral rehydration solution sachets and safe drinking water in bottles for passengers must be available.
Reusable PPE must be disinfected with chlorine solution. Vehicle cleaning, decontamination and maintenance Each EMS should have a designated cleaning team that performs cleaning and decontamination of the outside surfaces and inside of the back cab of the ambulance between patients. The ambulance vehicle should be fenced off as an isolation zone so that water and waste are collected and disposed of appropriately. Cleaners should wear appropriate PPE (heavy utility gloves, gown, apron, goggles or face shield, face mask, rubber boots or shoe covers). A partner or supervisor should ensure that PPE is put on and removed correctly. Management of waste Waste includes medical equipment, sharps, linens, soiled towels or absorbent pads, used PPE and cleaning materials. The EMS team should obtain appropriate waste containers such as puncture-resistant sharps containers. Thick leak-proof biohazard waste bags should line buckets with tight-fitting lids for disposable waste and re-usable
equipment. Liquid waste bucket with a small amount of strong chlorine solution and tight fitting lid should also be used. Used reusable patient care equipment should be placed in biohazard bags and labelled for cleaning and decontamination by the receiving Ebola care facility. The most important message as noted by Professor Blumberg is for emergency personnel to know who their patient is. By getting a background of the patient, by asking the correct questions and by following the correct steps when dealing with an Ebola patient may result in successful containment. “While front-line workers are at risk of infectious disease because they deal with people, the risk of Ebola is extremely low,� concludes Blumberg.
Personal protective equipment (PPE) Appropriate PPE including gloves, gown, apron, goggles or face shield, face mask, and rubber boots or shoe covers should be worn at any time a team member (including drivers), anticipates direct contact with a person with suspected Ebola. PPE should be counted and stocked at least daily and stored in the front cab of the ambulance. All ambulance team members should receive training on putting on and taking off PPE before starting to work as an ambulance team member. Infection control precautions Used PPE should not enter the front cab of the ambulance. PPE should be removed and hands washed prior to getting into the front cab. Used PPE should be discarded in tightly covered buckets or biohazard bags and these containers should be in the back cab of the ambulance. Separate containers should be used for reusable and disposable PPE. Volume 3 No. 4
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Structural shoring
Structural shoring basics (part 1- vertical shoring) By Colin Deiner, Chief Director, Disaster Management and Fire Brigade Services, Western Cape Government common interior shores and are used to stabilise floors in multi storey buildings. Interior rake shoes are used to brace interior walls that are out-ofplumb and to transfer the weight from the walls to the floor where it can be more evenly distributed. Horizontal (diagonal) braces are used to laterally stabilise inward leaning interior walls in narrow areas such as passages. Interior shoring is also employed to stabilise doors and windows, either to stabilise the damaged opening or to provide a sustained access for rescue and medical teams. Exterior shoring is used to prevent any outward movement of structural members. Shoring will, in this case, largely consist of a series of raker shores that are interconnected along the length of the structure (laced post).
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The most dangerous factor in any structural collapse is the possible collapse of load-bearing walls
n Fire Rescue International Vol 2 no 11 we focussed on structural collapse and its causes. We also looked at collapse patterns, the formation of collapse voids and void search techniques. This month we will cover the basic principles of shoring and some thoughts on establishing and maintaining a sustained access into an area of work.
should be employed as a temporary measure to provide a degree of safety for rescue personnel. Shoring structures should just be used to take up the open space below the unstable load but never to force structural elements back into place. Attempting to move an unstable load by force could cause a secondary collapse with catastrophic results.
I like to think of rescue shoring in basic terms as collecting an unstable load and distributing it over a stable area. Simple as that. In order to do this you will need to identify structural hazards, damage and potential victim locations, determine best method to mitigate the hazard and damage and determine the type and placement of shoring systems in relation to structural hazards and potential victim location.
A number of factors will determine if your shoring is effective. The main features of an effective shore are: • Adjustability • Positive connections • Lateral bracing • Ductility • Warning of failure.
Structural shoring is not meant to replace collapsed structural elements for an extended period of time but 38
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Shoring can be divided into two basic categories: exterior and interior. Interior shoring includes a number of variations that are largely dependent on the load needing to be stabilised. Vertical or dead shores are the most
Shoring potential – viable voids The main objective of any rescue operation is to find and extricate live victims. In their efforts to achieve these objectives in a structural collapse incident, they should try to ascertain the existence and location of collapse voids and the viability of live victims in these voids. We all know that void formation will occur to a larger or lesser extent during a structural collapse. The extent of the voids is determined by the total energy released during the initial collapse (and through subsequent collapses), the structure type, size and configuration, the collapse pattern and the building contents. By taking all the above factors into account, an experienced rescue team will be able to identify voids that could present a viable and accessible victim. Size-up Size-up can be defined as the process of gathering on-scene information that will enable rescuers to make effective
Structural shoring
The T-spot shore (vertical class 1 shore) This is a rapidly assembled and installed temporary shore that is intended to be used only until a more permanent and complete shoring system can be installed. Has no lateral bracing and can become unstable if not placed directly under the load. Drawing: Mickey Deiner
and safe initial decisions and provide a platform for ongoing decision making for the duration of the incident. The initial size-up will be performed by the officer responsible for shoring operations. If possible, he/she should be assisted by a structural engineer attached to the team. I have made use of structural engineers on many occasions and have found their knowledge and expertise invaluable. The important thing is that structural engineers must be recruited as part of your specialist resources during the planning phase. They must be made aware of what your intentions and work processes will be during a structural collapse rescue operation. They understand buildings, structural elements and loads very well but might not always understand fire service techniques and tactics and need to understand this in order to provide valuable assistance. Basic rescue techniques such as rappelling, confined space entry, etc must also be taught to them in order to get
Door or window shore (vertical/class 2) This shore is used to support loose masonry over openings and where door or window headers have been damaged. Drawing: Mickey Deiner
them into a position from where they are able to observe certain situations. No emergency rescue service can appoint structural engineers solely for this purpose and it will therefore be necessary for you to visit civil engineering companies and try to persuade them to volunteer their time to your structural collapse rescue team. You will find that this is quite easily achieved. Everyone wants to get in on the action. The initial assessment should include the condition of the building, survey of the structural damage and possible location of victims. Possible routes of access to these victims should also be considered. Questioning eye-witnesses, coworkers, site-supervisors and building owners will provide valuable information on the number, location and degree of entrapment of the victims. This information will give direction as to the level of difficulty of the pending rescue operation.
The entire building needs to be assessed during your size-up and must include all four sides of the collapse area as well as the bottom and the top. Surveying the top of the structure will reveal any loose, shifting or hanging structural elements while the bottom will provide an indication of which areas can be used to transfer loads on to stable ground. This ‘six-sided’ approach is a vital first step in the size-up. Whilst assessing the walls, check if they are stable or leaning in any direction. Also check if they are nonload-bearing or partition walls and if they will affect your activities in any way. If they are going to be a problem they must be shored. The most dangerous factor in any structural collapse is the possible collapse of load-bearing walls. The collapse of one of these walls could cause extensive further collapse. Beams and other structural supporting elements will be under increased Volume 3 No. 4
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Structural shoring
Vertical shore (vertical/class 2) This multi-post shore needs to be assembled in place in the hazard zone. To reduce risk T-spot shores should precede the placement of these shores. Alternatively ‘Double-T spot shores’ can be used which are quicker to build. Drawing: Mickey Deiner stress if they are located directly below the main collapse area or debris pile. Although supporting elements can withstand large loads, severely bowed or cracked beams must be supported with additional shoring. Should a structural element be missing, a solid shoring structure must be erected before any rescuers can be committed to the area. Consider the condition and age of the building before it was involved in the collapse. Was it involved in a fire recently? What was the level of standard of maintenance? Finally, the size-up should not end after the initial assessment has been done but should be continuous as conditions will change over time and certain work done on the building will possibly have an effect on the stability of the building. Personnel should be allocated to certain areas as ‘look-outs’ and 40
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Laced post shore (vertical/class 3) High capacity four post system. Constructed similar to a pair of 2-post shores but laced together. Drawing: Mickey Deiner
should be tasked with monitoring the structure to check for shifting debris, airborne dust, changes in crack patterns and creaking and cracking sounds that could give early warning of a potential secondary collapse. Where to shore The placement of structural shoring should be consistent with two main objectives: • Maintaining the structural integrity of all unstable elements and • Transmitting collapse loads onto a stable surface capable of handling the additional loads. Areas that need to be considered for shoring would be: Unstable structural elements. The primary structural building supports such as bearing walls, girders, columns and arches normally support other structural elements such as interior walls and by shoring them you are in fact transferring the stability to these other elements.
Directly under the main debris pile if it is located in an overhead position. This will be of importance in a V-shaped collapse. You might have to conduct a time consuming search and removal of the debris pile and the area below this pile must be stabilised before any rescue personnel can work on top of it. Around the victim. Removing the victim from a position of entrapment may be a long and involved process and may include some debris removal, concrete breaking and breaching and metal cutting. All these activities could cause the initial structure to become unstable. To maintain a sustained access route. During a prolonged operation where rescuers have to enter a building and move deep into the building to work, it will be necessary to establish a safe route through which they can move. They might also have to move large shores and other heavy equipment in and out of the site, which will require sufficient space to be done safely.
Structural shoring For this purpose it might be the best option to strengthen or reinforce normal openings such as doors or windows. Establish safe areas. If a rescue team is working in an area deep inside a building from which they would struggle to rapidly escape from in the event of a secondary collapse, a safe area should be erected close to the area. This is generally a lacedpost, vertical, square structure. Vertical shoring Any shore should not be erected as a single support element or brace but must be seen as a system; the double-funnel principle. A shoring system should include the following: • A header beam or wall plate which is used to collect the load • Post or other load carrying element that has adjust ability and positive connections • Sole plate or bearing plate for spreading the load to the floor or surface below • Lateral bracing to prevent any sideways movement and • Be able to give a warning of potential failure. When erecting the shoring system, it should be done in a particular sequence aimed at ensuring a safe methodology that is understood and practiced by all shoring team members. As far as possible, try to construct most of the elements of the shore outside the structure in a safe area. It can then be carried into the space when required and completed before being fitted in place. Always start the shoring from a safe area and work towards the unsafe area, shoring as you go. To reduce the risk of working in an unsafe area, quickly erect and fit a ‘T-spot’ shore (Class 1 shore). Follow this up with twopost vertical shores (Class 2 shore). Further stabilisation can be assured by bracing all shores in two directions (Class 3 shore) A good sequence to practice is as follows: • First place a ‘T-spot’ or ‘double-T’ shore. • Place pairs of 2-post vertical shores or pairs of ‘Double-T’ shores.
• Tie the 2-post vertical shores or pairs of ‘Double-T’ shores together as laced-posts to prevent lateral or diagonal movement. Remember to check on the shoring at regular intervals and to ensure that they maintain their position and integrity for the duration of the rescue operation. As a rule, shores should be thoroughly inspected at every new work period or shift change. Laced-post vertical shores are normally assembled by connecting (or lacing) a pair of 2-post vertical shores to form a high capacity four-post system. A series of laced-post shores placed below the loads will provide the stability required to stabilise an overhead load or provide a safe area for rescuers within a structure. Calculating the required capacity of the shore is no easy task and should be done in consultation with a structural engineer. In a multi-storey building it is accepted that one un-damaged floor will support one damaged floor in a wood frame structure and two un-damaged floors will support one damaged floor in a steel-frame structure. In a reinforced concrete frame structure it will require three undamaged floors to support one damaged floor while in a pre-cast structure the shoring should be extended to the ground. The best strategy would be to start directly under the damaged floor and work your way down to spread the load as soon as possible. Another technique would be to install all shores at each level simultaneously and then tighten them as soon as they are all in place. Door and window shores Generally, the door and window shore is meant to hold up or stabilise loose headers or lintels that have lost their integrity and to provide a sustained access point for rescuers. It prevents accidental dislodging of building materials while rescue operations are undertaken through that opening. It may not seem to be necessary but a size-up must be done before the window or door shore is erected. The size-up must include a determination if the area is safe enough for rescuers
Always start the shoring from a safe area and work towards the unsafe area, shoring as you go to operate around and if shoring the opening will create a safe access and egress route. Door and window shores, which are not properly constructed will not work when needed and provide rescuers with a false sense of security. The most important consideration will be the additional load stress that may be exerted onto the opening. When this stress is from above, the header or top plate of the door or window shore should be fully supported by the posts to ensure that it absorbs the largest amount of weight imposed from above it. Door or window shores used for sustained access must provide sufficient space for rescuers in bulky gear and carrying equipment to move in and out without any hindrance. If these openings are, however, not needed for access, it can be cross-braced to strengthen them. In closing This is the first in a three-part series on shoring basics. The next part will follow in future editions (not necessarily the next one). Hopefully by the end of this series a lot of the questions you may have had about structural shoring will have been answered. Always remember, however, that this is an article that is designed to inform and get you thinking about the topic. This is not a comprehensive training manual. The technical aspects around structural shoring must be thoroughly understood before they are attempted. A number of excellent publications exist and there are also very good internet sites (eg fema.com) that will provide you with the kind of technical knowledge you will need to develop a sound foundation in this field. Volume 3 No. 4
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Incident command
Implementing incident command systems on the ground By Reinard Geldenhuys, chief fire officer, Overberg District Municipality Responsibilities of the incident commander The incident commander (IC) is responsible for safely managing the incident and ensuring everyone goes home! The IC has the authority to turn his/her decisions into actions by using ICS to formulate the incident objectives, strategy(s) and tactical direction to those units assigned to the incident.
The incident commander (IC) is responsible for safely managing the incident and ensuring everyone goes home
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mergency services respond to a wide range of emergency incidents. In order to effectively manage personnel and resources, as well as to provide for the safety and welfare of personnel, services operate within the incident command system (ICS) during all incidents from Type 4 to Type 1. The incident command system is also used on medical emergencies and public service calls when the response exceeds the first turnout assignment. Single unit responses or Type 5 incidents may not necessitate the use of the full IC system but there will always be an incident commander. Incident types will be discussed in a follow up article.
An ICS briefing 42
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The purpose of the incident command system is to: • Ensure that a strong, direct and visible command will be established from the onset of the incident. • Establish an effective incident organisation defining the activities and responsibilities assigned to the IC and the other individuals operating within the incident command system. • Provide a system to process information to support incident management, planning and decision-making. • Provide a system for the orderly transfer of command to subsequent arriving officers. The incident command system will inter alia address the following: • Incident command responsibilities • Incident priorities • Functions of command • Personnel accountability • Condition reports • Command options • Command posts • Transfer of command • IC and command and general staff roles and responsibilities • Radio systems • Proper personal protective equipment (PPE)
Incident priorities should always involve and address: 1. The safety, accountability and welfare of personnel (this priority is ongoing throughout the incident). 2. Remove endangered person(s) and treat the injured. 3. Stabilise the incident and provide for life safety. 4. Protect the environment. 5. Property conservation. Functions of command The functions of command define standard activities that are performed by the IC to achieve the tactical objectives. The functions of command include: • Establishing IC named by location (and, if appropriate, a command post). • Rapidly evaluate the situation (sizeup) and provide a ‘situation report’. • Identify the overall incident objectives and strategy. • Assign resources and personnel consistent with incident priorities, plans and standard operating procedures. • Request additional resources based on anticipated need. • Establish and maintain personnel accountability. • Develop an effective ICS organisation that meets the needs of the incident (expand system to fill positions as needed). • Review, evaluate, and revise (as needed) the incident objectives and plans. • Provide for the continuity, transfer (as necessary) and termination of command.
Incident command Establishing command and situation reports The first unit to arrive at the scene establishes command. The initial IC remains in command until the command is transferred or the incident is stabilised and command is terminated. As command is established, an ‘initial situation report’ is given. This report will include: • A brief description of the incident situation (ie building size, occupancy, hazmat, multi-vehicle accident, etc). • Obvious conditions (working fire, hazmat spill, multiple patients, etc). • Any obvious incident priorities (safety, rescue, exposures). • Additional resources needed (additional or special resource requests). An ‘updated situation report’ will be provided based on further size-up, determination of necessary action and any need for additional resources. Command options The first arriving unit or member to establish command of the incident has several options, depending on the situation. One of the following command options may be used: Nothing showing-investigative mode These situations generally require investigation by the initial arriving resources while other units hold at a determined staging area. Fast attack mode These situations require the immediate action of the initial arriving resources and require the incident commander’s (IC’s) involvement in the action. In these situations the ICs lead their crew, to provide the appropriate level of supervision, while utilising radio or other types of communication to remain in command of the incident (command may be passed at the appropriate time). Examples are as follows: 1. Critical life safety situations that must be addressed immediately (ie rescue). 2. Offensive fire attacks. 3. Defensive fire attacks with immediate exposure threats. 4. Any incident where the safety and welfare of fire fighters is a major concern. 5. Obvious working incidents that require further investigation by the IC.
An incident command post (ICP) can start out on the hood of a vehicle and progress to a dedicated incident command vehicle NB! The fast attack mode should not last more than a few minutes and will end with one of the following: 1. Situation is stabilised. 2. Situation is not stabilised and the IC must withdraw to the exterior or out of the tactical arena to assume a strategic role. 3. Command is transferred to another on scene officer (who confirms the acceptance of IC). Command mode Certain incidents, by virtue of their size, complexity or potential for rapid expansion, require immediate strong, direct, overall command. In such cases, the IC will initially establish an exterior, safe and effective command post, initiate the command mode and maintain in that position until command is transferred or terminated. An ICS 201 form or incident organiser should be initiated and utilised to assist in managing these types of incidents. Establishing the command post The first officer on the scene of an escalating incident should also establish an incident command post (ICP). An ICP can start out on the hood of a vehicle and progress to a vehicle, equipped for this purpose, providing appropriate work space for the IC and staff personnel, lighting, communications equipment, supply items and some isolation from external distractions making the command more effective and enhance safety for the on-scene members. Mobile command unit can be requested for this purpose.
In the case of wildfires, it may be necessary for the IC to initially remain mobile in order to determine the most effective strategies and develop the tactics needed to control the incident. If this occurs, a clearly defined reporting point for incoming units must be communicated. Transfer of command Command is transferred: • to improve the quality of the incident command system and enhance the safety of the members assigned to the incident or • dictated by the level of the incident or • at the discretion of the chief fire officer or senior manager. Transfer of command procedure: • The more senior officer arriving on scene may at his/her discretion: • Assume command of the incident. • Allow the current IC to retain command and monitor command activity and effectiveness. • Request a more qualified or more appropriate IC from another agency or an agency with higher level of jurisdictional responsibility to take over. The officer assuming command will communicate with the person being relieved by radio or face-to-face (faceto-face is the preferred method). The person being relieved will brief the officer assuming command indicating at least the following: •Conditions – general situation status, significant events, plan (IAP), completed objectives, safety considerations. • Actions – assignments of Volume 3 No. 4
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Wildfires
Building resilience against wildfires in rural areas By Malcolm Procter, deputy director, Department of Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF), Free State, South Africa
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limate change continues to challenge both the nation and affect food security. Fire seasons come later and stay longer each year, fires burn with more intensity. They are more damaging and dangerous to our fire fighters, the public and people’s properties. When appropriate, management of wildfires for resource benefits is one component of fire management that can help us improve the condition of the land where, ultimately, we will be better able to control those unwanted fires when they happen. Emergencies often strike without warning and can cause major damage and financial loss. Farmers are strongly advised to develop emergency preparedness plans before
companies and personnel. • Needs – for additional resources. A ranking officer may elect to have a subordinate officer continue the role of IC in cases where an individual is effectively managing an incident and satisfactory progress is being made to bring the incident under control. Additional overhead responsibilities The response and arrival of additional senior personnel or qualified personnel from other agencies on the incident scene strengthens the overall ICS. As the incident escalates, the IC should use these personnel to fill various ICS positions. The priorities to fill IC positions include: operations, safety, divisions/groups, information officer (IO) and plans. It is important the ICS expand as necessary to accomplish the overall objectives. Incident command assignments will be based on incident need, priority and area coverage issues. Each incident is unique, therefore needs and priorities change. The flexibility in the use of incident command positions is critical to appropriate resolution of the incident. 44
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an emergency occurs on the farm. First response to an emergency is the responsibility of an individual. Help should be sought once farm or resources or ability has been overwhelmed. Having a contingency plan will assist in formulating a preparedness plan that is specific to your farm operation. As disasters undermine both socioeconomic development and environmental management efforts, there is a compelling need to explore how a lack of resilience changes hazard and vulnerability patterns. The degree to which farms can absorb impacts, increase overall resilience and provide effective and economical solutions to reduce disaster risks is therefore jeopardised. Furthermore, societies’ traditional coping strategies are challenged.
In general, the first position to be filled after IC is the operations section chief. The officer originally managing the incident as IC can assume the operations section chief if command is transferred. This allows him/her to continue with his or her operational plan. General staff positions 1. Operations section is responsible for the management of all operations directly applicable to the primary mission (implementing incident objectives, strategy and tactical directives). 2. Logistics section is the support mechanism for the organisation. Logistics provides facilities, services and material in support to all the organisational components involved in the incident. 3. Planning section responsible for collection, evaluation, dissemination and use of information needed for effective decision making. 4. Finance section evaluates and manages the risk and financial requirements for the service’s involvement in the incident.
While it may not be possible to prevent wildfires completely, wildfires resilience can be improved through good veld management. This should focus on reducing the likelihood of wildfires occurring, reducing the severity of damage and impacts on people and the environment if they do occur and assisting with fire suppression activities. Resilience is the capacity of an individual or a community to recover from an adverse event, such as a wildfire. Resilience is not a static notion, being resilient now, doesn’t mean you will be resilient forever and the opposite is also true. If you didn’t cope well this time, it may help to improve you resilience and you may cope better in the future. Instead it depends on what the event
Command staff positions: 1. Safety officer to develop and recommend measures for assuring personnel safety and to assess and/or anticipate hazardous and unsafe conditions and/or tactics. 2. Information officer responsible for developing and releasing information about the incident to the news media, incident personnel, other appropriate agencies, organisations and the public on scene. 3. Liaison officer may be used in incidents that are multijurisdictional to communicate needs and concerns among participating organisations. Command teams If an incident is expected to potentially exceed district command resources and/or expected to last longer than one operational period, a provincial incident management team (IMT) can be requested to assist in certain positions. The provincial team does not however relieve the controlling authority of responsibility.
Wildfires is, when it occurs, what other events have occurred, the experience of the person or the community or individuals in the community. Resilience is a moving target. People and communities are a mixture of strengths and weaknesses, depending on the circumstance and this changes over time and what makes people more or less resilient are varied and broad reaching. Resilience can also decrease rapidly eg a farmer may be coping well with the drought, having stored several years of feed, however, if all this feed is burnt in a wildfire the farmers ability to cope decreases almost overnight. Three factors have been found to be important to individual resilience: 1. Self-efficacy ie the conviction that one can behave or perform successfully in a given situation. 2. Coping strategy, specifically use of problem-focused coping rather than emotion focused coping. 3. Sense of community, or ‘the feeling of belonging or attachment to people and places’. In other words, the individual’s sense of social connectedness; such connectedness has been shown to be associated with community and social support network involvement during times of disaster etc. This has a community-level equivalent in the notion of social capital.
Bethlehem 2010
Emergencies often strike without warning and can cause major damage and financial loss In summary, individual response to an extreme event such as a wildfire is important to community resilience because communities are made up of individuals and the groups to which they belong, and are therefore relevant to the way a community responds. Psychological research on disasters also provides a useful model for thinking about resilience as well as proven measures for assessing individual resilience in advance of and after an event. Resilience: It’s about what we can do before the fire starts that increases our resilience.
With such a high wildfire incident rate resulting from the actions of people, community education in South Africa is particularly important. Education takes on a number of forms and is generally designed to provide people with a better understanding of the risks they face from Veld fires and the measures the community can take to minimize these risks. Inadequate clearance around structures has been repeatedly identified as a major factor in the destruction of homes in wildfires. Defensible space is an area around a structure where vegetation is treated, cleared or reduced to slow the spread of wildfires toward the structure. The reduced volume of fuel results in a reduction in fire intensity, allowing fire fighters to remain with the structure during a wildfire. Inadequate protection or fire proofing of homesteads is the main reason for houses being destroyed during wildfires. One method is to clear grass within 10 metres of a structure. Irrigated ornamental plants are allowed within the 10-metre zone, trimming, pruning, mowing and selective removal of non-irrigated shrubs in the area between 10 and 30 metres from the structure, which is called the fuel modification zone. Agriculture practices such as slash and burn and/or shifting agriculture by local communities have long been implicated as one of the main cause of wildfires. However, to be considered Volume 3 No. 4
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Wildfires Animal mortality is a regular occurrence on livestock operations; however, in the event of mass mortality, farmers and ranchers need to be prepared to manage large volumes of animal carcasses rapidly. The formulation of a mass mortality contingency plan is an essential step to timely and effective management of a potentially ‘messy’ situation. Feed crops An independent irrigation system with its own water supply will provide protection to structures and fodder banks. Hay stacks, hay sheds and silos should be surrounded with a bare area, at least five metres wide, with another 20-metre wide fuel-reduced strip around this.
Harrismith 2007 is that communities are also part of the solution as they often use fire positively to manage the landscape. Mosaic burning under prescribed conditions creates a pattern of fuel loads of differing ages that reduce the possibility of a fire spreading. However, prescribed burning is just one tool in the toolbox. An irrigation system on both the edge of the property and on the roof of the structure can also help prevent these structures from being destroyed during a wildfire. Unless piping is adequately below the ground, it should consist of metal piping. The water supply and pump for this system should also be independent. One major challenge faced by landowners in the hours after wildfire has burnt across their land, is how to feed livestock. Establishment of fodder banks on each farm may not help an individual landowner, however, it will mean that locally sourced fodder is available in the area and can be accessed easily. Too often we hear of donated fodder that has been transported over long distances at great cost, only to discover that once opened it is rotten. The wheels of Government turn slowly and in the event of a disaster having been declared and the possibility of funding being made available, this doesn’t solve the problem in the short term. Harvesting grass from lesser used road reserves has a duel 46
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beneficial effect; it lowers the fuel load and whilst possibly not the best quality, does provides emergency fodder. Strategically placed feeding areas on farms provide safe refuges for cattle in the event of a fire. Protecting your farm resources from wildfires Livestock producers Concrete or metal buildings located away from fire paths provide a more fire safe livestock shelter option. Owners should have an evacuation plan for livestock if threatened by fire. If your animals cannot be moved onto a safe area on your property, make and confirm transportation and feeding arrangements in advance. The risk to farm animals can be reduced by preparing and maintaining fuel-reduced areas onto which stock can be moved and held during a fire. Use a ploughed or heavily grazed field with a minimum of grass or stubble. If possible, this field should be shaded and located well away from fire paths and to the leeward side of your property. As a last resort, if you are unable to move livestock into a safer area, cut fences, turning the animals loose to take their chances with the fire as long as there is no danger to people or vehicular traffic.
Do not attempt to burn off around these areas. Graze, mow or slash grass to desired height. Adequately dry hay before it is baled and stored to reduce the risk of spontaneous combustion. Store hay away from roads and fences. Hay and straw are fine fuels and vulnerable to ember ignitions. Grazing livestock can be used to reduce flammable grass around buildings, fence lines and haystacks. In case of fire Having a comprehensive contingency plan may be useful should the question of due diligence arise as a result of an emergency situation. It is also critical that insurance policies be obtained and kept up to date to ensure eligibility for relevant emergency financial assistance. The information in your farm contingency plan will help to ensure the safety of family members, employees and emergency responders, minimise financial loss, property damage and protect the environment. Your emergency response plan should include an overview of your property, identifying the location of storage areas, buildings, emergency equipment, utilities, wells and surface water. It should also include information on hazardous and flammable substances stored on the farm, manure handling information for livestock operations and emergency contact telephone numbers. Don’t place yourself, your family or employees at risk; stay out of burning
Wildfires buildings. Eliminate the source of the fire, if possible. Assess extent of fire. Notify attending landowners of location, type and extent of the fire. Attempt to contain or eliminate the fire provided you can do this safely. Protection of assets during periods of extreme fire risk can only be achieved if wildfire ignitions are attacked quickly and with maximum available resources. Even where prefire mitigation actions such as fuel reduction burning have been carried out, weather conditions on days of extreme fire danger will assist a small fire to build rapidly to an uncontrollable state. Previous research done in other countries clearly shows that the initial attack is critical to controlling and extinguishing a wildfires and that use of aircraft in this initial attack phase significantly increases the chances of successful result. Aircraft are a relatively expensive resource available to fire managers and we believe there is often a reluctance to use aircraft in the first instance in an attempt to save money. This is a false economy. Aircraft cannot extinguish a bushfire without the support of ground crews. While an aircraft can drop water, retardant or chemically-enhanced water (using additives such as surfactants or water enhancing gels), these can only reduce the fire behaviour temporarily; unless directly attacked by supporting ground crews during this period and the fire will eventually burn through, around or over the drop, particularly if the fire is spotting heavily. Aircraft cannot mop-up burning and smouldering fuels, which are a primary source of reignition. If necessary, evacuate to agreed safe meeting place or local emergency services shelter. Wildfires can cause more than visible damage to livestock Analysing injuries to livestock following a wildfire is important, secondary problems can lead to infections and further problems. • Livestock must be sought and given adequate nutrition; if necessary a veterinarian must be consulted • If they can be moved to unburnt ground it is best for them. • It is important to get livestock to high quality forage with a protein and
Kroonstad 2010 mineral supplement and good water thereafter rotate their feeding area to prevent the build-up of pathogens. • If livestock is unable to get adequate nutrition and water immediately, their health can deteriorate rapidly. • Other livestock should be evaluated for possible health disorders and treatment or determining if the animal can be salvaged or if for humane reasons should be slaughtered or euthanised. Can you determine the cause of the fire? Post fire assessment: Review actions taken to contain, minimise or prevent the fire. There are four basic directions the results of the investigation can take: 1. Administrative action to recover costs for suppression and/or property loss. 2. Court proceedings under civil law to recover costs for suppression, and/ or property loss. 3. Court proceedings for criminal violations of, national or local by-laws or regulations. 4. To assist in policy development, implementation of fire prevention programs and presuppression planning Were there signs present before the incident? How could this be prevented? How did the clean-up progress? What has to be changed on your contingency plan? Adaptive strategies are the most important when we look at developing the long term resilience of a community.
They ensure that we can learn from an event, adapt to our changing environment and plan for the future. Clean-up site Follow spill reporting contingency plans in the event that a spill occurred as a result of the fire. Follow mass mortality contingency plan if large numbers of livestock or poultry died as a result of the fire. On farm disposal may be preferred for some; however site conditions ie high water tables, porous soils or heavy rainfall, may restrict the ability of a farm site to be used for disposal. The cause of the mass mortality will initially direct the disposal options. Off-site disposal may be a more expensive option with less time and management requirements for the farm/ranch operation. Local government disposal sites should be considered when capacity to deal with mortalities on farm is overwhelmed. Local and regional off-site disposal is not available in all areas of the province. Recovering from a fire may take a long time and many things will be new to landowners. If not insured, recovery from a loss will likely be dependent on their own resources and coping strategies that can be called upon. If landowners are insured, their insurance will be an important component in recovering from their loss. Volume 3 No. 4
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Wildfires: prescribed burning
Prescribed burning in the Western Cape By Rob Erasmus, Enviro Wildfire Services
Dangerous fuel loads make it both difficult and dangerous to fight Fynbos fires
P
rescribed burning takes place across South Africa throughout the year for a variety of reasons, including ecological, promotion of grazing, alien vegetation clearing, managing bush encroachment and general fuel reduction, to name but a few. In the Western Cape with its Fynbos vegetation that is fire adapted and reliant on it for its survival, it becomes a balancing act for land-use managers to undertake such burning operations due to the associated high risk of such fires burning out of control and the few days’ available to them. Unlike other areas in South Africa where fire protection associations (FPAs) play a greater direct role, prescribed burning within the Western Cape is undertaken with the permission of a permit issued
by the local district municipality fire department. There is variation between numerous authorities regarding procedures and requirements and can range from an application taking three days to up to six months. This, in itself, creates problems in that effort by landowners wanting to undertake prescribed burning to remove dangerous fuel loads is thwarted by bureaucratic red tape. Further frustrations are met when burning is, in some cases, only authorised to take place Monday to Thursday and not on weekends or a public holiday. As Fynbos is a fire-adapted group of plants, it historically burns during the hot dry summer months of December to March. It will, however, burn during
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any time of the year but ecologically it is believed that the summer months are the best time for such burning. This has to do with natures calendar of coinciding bird nesting times, the temperature and speed of advancing fire to avoid a too hot (destruction of seeds in the soil) or too cold (medium – heavy fuels not removed) and various ‘triggers’ such as CO2 levels, correct heat, etc being available to stimulate buried seeds to germinate. An added complication is that the Fynbos needs to reach a suitable age before being burned. This is normally between 12 and 18 years, depending on the type (dry mountain or coastal) and location. The general rule of thumb is that the last flowering species in that community should have flowered at least three times before the veld is burned again. When undertaking Fynbos burning the recent, current and forecast weather conditions become important, and waiting for the right window reduces the number of days available to burn. When it is considered that one is waiting for the ideal weather window, coupled with the days permitted to undertake such burning, as well as attempting to obtain a permit, one realises that there are certain areas
The attendees of the recent Cape Town course
Wildfires: prescribed burning
The course consists of both theory and practical
in the Western Cape that make it extremely difficult to undertake a safe ecological burn. The result is that the required burns do not take place and the fuel load increases in mass and risk, prompting further reluctance to undertake the burn for fear of the fires burning out of control and causing damage to neighbouring property. The opposite also exist whereby land-users are pressurised into burning due to the limited days available and all too often burn under conditions that are not ideal, resulting in such fires burning out of control causing massive damage to property. Bear in mind that many properties are located in rugged mountainous terrain do not have firebreaks or suitable access roads, so any burning needs to be done with technical precision.
Trainees are required to give burn plan presentations as part of the course
that it becomes both dangerous to burn, and ecologically destructive. In an effort to avoid or at least catch up on the current situation of dangerous fuel loads within the region, assistance is offered to land owners with the preparing and burning of portions of land. It need not be large areas but if strategically placed, it will further serve as wide firebreaks to allow larger adjoin areas to be burned at a later stage. Training courses are also offered in the planning and procedures required when undertaking prescribed burning. In all cases live fire is used whereby the course participants plan, present and undertake the burning operation. In closing, Fynbos needs to burn periodically. In avoiding undertaking
the important veld management task of maintaining veld age for diversity and fuel reduction for safety purposes, one is perhaps behaving in an irresponsible manner.
Comment from Chief Ian Schnetler, City of Cape Town Due to the specific hazards in the Western Cape in terms of weather patterns and unpredictability, prescribed burning does take a lot of specific planning and cooperation between the agent and the municipality and is generally governed more by environmental departments governing pollution matters, than from fire and rescue services.
Add all these components together and one soon realises that burning Fynbos can at times be a tricky undertaking with few days in the year to do such work. And as if these challenges weren’t enough, due to the type of fuel load it is important to have staff monitor the fire perimeter for a few days afterwards to watch for rekindled fires. While some landowners and managers will happily put their proverbial heads in the sand to avoid the inevitable, the reality is that every year that the ideal ecological burn date passes, the fuel load increases to a more dangerous level until it reaches a stage whereby it is so old
Recent courses have been sponsored by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Fynbos Project with assistance from local Working on Fire (WoF) crews during the practical burning operations
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Winter fire season review
Contrasting fire season experienced across the country in 2014 When asked what the fire fighting budget and costs were in 2014 Thomas stated that the overall direct aviation budget was in the region of about R11 million for the province, which was paid for by the members of the various aviation FPAs. In addition, the total fire fighting costs reported by the various FPAs was in excess R16 million.
Losses incurred during the 2014 Gauteng fire season
F
ire and Rescue International reviews the South African winter fire season for 2014, which typically runs from May to October/November each year.
In this review of the winter wildfire season, we have sourced fire statistics and reports from various fire managers and fire protection officers (FPOs) from the umbrella fire protection associations (UFPAs) across South Africa. KwaZulu-Natal Fire protection officer (FPO), Simon Thomas, says that the 2014 winter fire season in KwaZulu-Natal was not extended this year but did have an earlier start commencing in May. KwaZulu-Natal faced a number of devastating fires this season with their most tragic fire taking place in the Cedarville area, burning a massive area of grazing and resulting in the displacement of over 1 000 livestock and seven lives lost at the beginning of June. “In my opinion, the reasonably wet summer of 2013/14 resulted in higher than normal fuel loads. This combined with early frosts and unfavourable burning days when firebreaks and subsequent block burns needed to be done was a recipe for disaster”, says Thomas. A total of 1 365 fires with the majority of these being timber, were reported from the various fire protection associations (FPAs) throughout the season. The area loss totalled to 6 379 hectares of timber and 24 479 hectares of grass and cane. This excludes an unconfirmed area of approximately 120 000 hectares of grazing in the Cedarville area. “99 percent of all fires reported within KwaZulu- Natal were as a result of human involvement, with the highest as a result of suspected arson” says Thomas. 52
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New systems and technologies introduced by the FPAs/ UFPAs this year that have proven to be successful and effective in operations include the Go Pro camera’s in all of the Midlands spotters. This footage was used to train new fire managers on the ground and was used in post mortem meetings after fire events. “We were able to use these amongst the aircrews as well as to improve the accuracy of loads and to train our new observer”, Thomas notes. A new camera detection network was installed in the Umvoti Fire Protection Association area. This has resulted in all members in the area subscribing to the detection system and has increased the coverage of the existing camera detection network in the Midlands. An additional base was established in the Richmond area to ensure that initial attack could be applied in the southern area of KwaZulu-Natal. The Working on Fire (WoF) programme provided two helicopters and two spotters to the province and these were placed at Richmond and Vryheid respectively. “With the establishment of the base in Richmond, aircraft were utilised far more than previous seasons due to their close proximity of fires. It has furthermore resulted in nonaircraft members realising the benefit of having aircraft as initial attack tools, which in turn will probably result in an increase in membership,” says Thomas.
Fires raging over the Magaliesberg Mountain range
Winter fire season review North West Province Provincial manager of the North West UFPA, Kobus Roux, confirms that the fire season did not extend in the province this year, remaining within the June to October period. A total of 736 fires occurred this season, burning 80 056 hectares as a result of extremely high winds and greater fuel loads in comparison to last year. “This made the physical fighting of the fires much more difficult due to the high temperatures. We had to rely on more mechanical equipment like trucks and aerial resources to name a few, “says Roux.
Estimated expenses and damage costs totalled R92 953 974 in the Gauteng Province Eastern Cape FPO of the Eastern Cape Umbrella Fire Protection Association (ECUFPA), Thinus Botha says, the Eastern Cape Province fire season started late due to early rains in the Eastern Cape, resulting in the season starting at the beginning of July and ending in mid-October. The province, however, experienced a large number of fires that went over the firebreaks due to extreme weather conditions resulting in major damage. A total of 830 fires were recorded in the province this season that destroyed approximately 236 000 hectares of land. Botha says that the main cause of fires is attributed to negligence and arson resulting in majority of fires during the summer rainfall being community fires. Botha emphasises two significant fires that occurred during their winter fire season. In July, a human-influenced fire broke out resulting in 38 000 hectares destroyed and leaving seven dead in the Matatiele area. Fuelled by strong north-westerly winds, the fire destroyed 72 structures. Shortly after this a fire caused by lightning, broke out close to the largest wilderness area in Stinkhout destroying 55 000 hectares of vegetation and extending over a period of 10 days.
The most devastating fire occurring in the region this year extended over a period of three days between Potchefstroom and Fochville, burning approximately 30 000 hectares. The aerial resources of WoF fought the fires in winds up to 70km/h over two days. This resulted in six people sustaining moderate to serious burned wounds and one being airlifted to hospital. Roux says that 80 percent of the causes of fires are attributed to negligence and arson with the remaining percentage being attributed to natural causes such as lightning. Fortunately within the season no human lives were lost, however the region did lose four structures, three vehicles and 29 cattle. For mitigation purposes, the FPA launched a number of awareness programs in the winter months with their largest program being held in Potchefstroom with a life exhibition. Strategic firebreaks were implemented, while prefire season work in the form of firebreaks and clearing of possible fire risk sites was implemented by WoF. Gauteng A seasonal fire report compiled by Aletta du Preez, representative of the Gauteng UFPA shows that a total of 1 088 fires in the 2014 fire season were experienced in the province up to October 2014, resulting in 70 428 hectares burnt. The Gauteng province fire season started as early as January 2014 with seven fires occurring. These were attended to by Hartebeestfontein FPA, Fochville FPA, Krokodilrivier FPA and Wilgerivier FPA.
Overall, 90 percent of structures destroyed this season were rondawels/huts. In addition, two houses, roughly 100 structures mainly from the Matatiele area, 290 livestock, 236 000 grazing and 1 947 hectares of plantation was lost this season. The Eastern Cape relies heavily on early warning systems and fire lookout towers with manned camera fire lookouts. “We go out with maximum force in the plantation and fire areas with early smoke detection,” says Botha. This year, the ECUFPA implemented an incident command system (ICS), which minimised losses. Botha notes that although the Eastern Cape Province experienced fewer fires in comparison to the previous season, the damage caused was more significant. 54
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Map highlighting the Harrismith farm portions
Winter fire season review The most devastating fire occurring in the Gauteng region was reported from the Midvaal FPA, burning 6 000 hectares and panning over a period of two days at the Suikerbosch Nature Reserve. This resulted in livestock and structures being destroyed. Du Preez reports a total of eight human injuries, 13 destroyed structures and 24 destroyed livestock within the 2014 winter fire season. Manpower costs for the region in 2014 totalled R28 227, while estimated expenses and damage costs totalled R92 953 974, respectively. Du Preez confirms that the cause of the majority of the fires in the province is attributed to human negligence. Mitigation strategies deployed by the province include prefire seasonal meetings within the FPA areas for tactical planning regarding high risk area identification, strategic burning, firebreaks, inspections, available resources, FPA member capacity, compliance from state entities and non-members. Strict deadlines for completion of firebreaks are implemented and firebreak procedures and related Act requirements are distributed amongst landowners. In addition to this, awareness campaigns are frequently executed by the West Rand District Umbrella FPA, which rotates quarterly within the eleven registered FPA regions. Equipment utilised by the regions FPAs consist of bakkie sakkies, tractors, fire beaters, drip torches, water cars and bakkies. WoF teams are used for ground support when needed. Aerial support is crucial in certain regions especially mountainous areas where no vehicle or ground crews have access to combat fires.
Fires extended 70 428 hectares in the Gauteng province up to October 2014 The province’s most devastating fire resulting in four lives lost, eight houses and at least six farm sheds destroyed, occurred in September in Harrismith. More than 1 000 sheep and 350 cattle were lost. Two WoF helicopters were deployed as the fire spread uncontrollably as a result of north westerly winds brought on as the cold front passed. Throughout the continuing fire season a total of eight lives
Du Preez confirms that the 2014 winter fire season experienced by the province differed to the 2013 winter fire season as there was a noticeable reduction in the amount of wildfires this year. “According to statistics, a reduction was noticed with wildfires. Most FPAs implemented preventative measures in their area with the aim to prevent fires or attend to them as early as possible before they become uncontrollable,” she states. Free State The 2014 winter fire season in the Free State is continuous extending to December 2014, however, the province is experiencing fewer and smaller fires. “Whilst rain fell and the relative humidity has increased, the long range weather forecast indicates that we are on the edge of an El Nino pattern and hot dry conditions are expected, which can only lead to more fires,” says FPO, Malcolm Procter. Thus far 656 fires have occurred in the province, burning 414 170 hectares of grassland only. Procter says that human activities not only results in huge losses to the environment but also increase the vulnerability of the environment to disasters and alters the resilience of the natural environment by reducing the ability to recover completely from damage. “This results in human activities having a notable impact on the frequency and impact of fires in the region this year,” he notes. The fire season in the province additionally starts later and lasts longer resulting in large temperature differences when the cold fronts arrive leading to stronger winds. Volume 3 No. 4
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Winter fire season review
Acceptable response times for fire stations in the Free State were lost, 12 houses and more than 1 000 cattle, eight farm sheds, 2 000 sheep and 414 170 hectares of grassland were demolished.
start on that terrible day. This year it seemed like every bad day guaranteed fires, which is something that we have to work on,” says standing MUFPA manager, Trevor Wilson.
With the cause of the majority of fires not investigated, Procter states, “It would appear as though one major contributing factor is as a result of landowners burning for early grazing without having monitored weather conditions. This was evident in many cases and can only result in litigation”. In addition, drought plays a contributing factor in the province.
28 August 2014 saw one of Mpumalanga’s most devastating fires with winds exceeding 100km per hour. Multiple fires on the Highveld ran totally out of control for most of the day with multiple landowners losing large tracts of grazing. Over the same period the forestry sectors also battled multiple fires with large scale losses.
Mitigation strategies implemented in the province saw an additional 2 000 kilometres of firebreaks adjacent to roads and railway lines. In an effort to reduce response times, roads were constructed in the mountains adjacent to Clarens. A wildfire risk assessment was done for the entire province and six desktop wildfire simulations were also completed. Resources utilised in the regions suppression activities include an additional three WoF teams stationed in the Free State, bringing the number of WoF teams to a total of 23 throughout the province. A WoF helicopter was also stationed at Bethlehem for the duration of the fire season.
The total area of 102 132,8 hectares, ranging from grazing to forestry was burned over the active season, resulting in three fatalities of which two were landowner ground
As much as mitigation strategies have been put in place, Procter confirms that in terms of damage incurred, this season has been one of the most costly. Mpumalanga Extending over a period of six months from 15 May to 15 November 2014, the Mpumalanga region saw a total of 5 907 fires. “Very dry and multiple fires all on the same day is not unusual but the fires season cycle was definitely in an upswing year. Extreme fire weather can be forecast pretty accurately now but it still doesn’t mean that a fire has to 56
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Aerial shots of a fire between Sabie and Pilgrims Rest in Mpumalanga
LO Tantsi Training Institution
Training
reaches new heights
LO
Tantsi Fire Training Institution was founded in 2006 by Lulama and Olivia Tantsi who first opened the training institution in 2009 at China Gate Mall, Kempton Park, South Africa. Since inception, LO Tantsi has certified over 600 fire fighting candidates thereby confirming their core function of training fire fighters. Other training services offered by LO Tantsi comprise of first aid, basic fire fighting and various other rescue operation courses. With extensive reach, LO Tantsi does not restrict itself to training only at their institution but provides training throughout South Africa as and when required by their clients. Learnership programmes Since 2009, LO Tantsi Fire training institution has run two learnership programmes for Fezile Dabi District Municipality and Bakwena Ba Mogopa Traditional Administration. Concluding in November 2014,
Lulama Tantsi with the instructors and students at LO Tantsi the Fezile Dabi learnership saw 100 learners enrolled in the educational programme. Curently Lo Tantsi is running a learnership for Bakwena Ba Mogopa Traditional Administration, which started in August 2014 and will conclude in 2015. 25 students are enrolled in this programme.
fire fighters and one a fire fighting pilot. In addition, four serious injuries occurred while 11 structures were destroyed and six livestock lost. 609 hectares of plantation, 82 465 hectares of grazing and 13 575 hectares of agriculture were also destroyed. Approximate suppression costs excluding aircraft as noted by Wilson totalled to R14,5 million, while reported damages totalled to R108,7 million. While Wilson confirms that the main cause of the majority of fires in the province, making up 96 percent is attributed to human negligence, fuel loads played a notable factor on the frequency and impact of fires in the region as well. “Fuel loads play a part and that is why catastrophic fires seem to follow a 5/7/9 year trend in forestry. The trick is that 70 percent of the fuels are grasslands that can easily burn every year. It would be physically impossible to reduce all the grassland fuel loads every year,” explains Wilson. Recourses and new technologies introduced by the MUFPA in 2014 that have proven to be a success include the Air Tractor 802 due to its large carrying capacity and fast ferry speed, making it an ‘invaluable tool in the toolbox’, according to Wilson. The MUFPA received three of these, proving highly effective in the region. Other resources utilised in the regions suppression activities included maximum FPA member ground resources, 21 WoF teams, 14 fixed-wing bombers, eight spotters and six choppers.
Accreditation The centre received their Local Government Sector Education and Training Authority (LG SETA) accreditation in July 2011. Since 2011, it also boasts a further education certificate in Fire and Rescue Operation, which is accredited by LG
Limpopo With no full-time manager at the Limpopo Umbrella Fire Protection Association (LUFPA), chairperson of the Letaba Fire Protection Association, Trevor Phillips, provided Fire and Rescue International with brief details of the winter fire season with a clear focus on the Letaba region. On the eastern side of Limpopo, the winter fire season extended until mid-November, while certain parts of the eastern side had earlier rains, notes Phillips. Approximately 500 hectares of plantation and 120 000 hectares of grazing was destroyed as a result of over 350 fires that required extended attack. Phillips confirms that the Letaba area experienced a fair amount of mountain fires that were difficult to access and lasted a number of days. Poor maintenance of electricity infrastructure, resulting in lines touching and sparking to the ground has been recorded as the main cause of the majority of fires in the Letaba area. When asked what the fire fighting budget and costs were in 2014 Phillips stated that approximately R3 million was spent in aerial fire fighting alone. Currently, Bela Bela and Tzaneen Limpopo make use of one chopper and one spotter. “There is definitely a need for an effective Limpopo UFPA but without a full-time manager, this is difficult. The hope is that in 2015 the UFPA will become more effective through the pooling of management resources,” concludes Phillips. Volume 3 No. 4
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Training a Public Information Education and Relations (PIER) officer at the City of Johannesburg Municipality, while maintaining volunteer training at Florida Park from 2007 to 2010.
Burnout at the SAEC in Modderfontein
Seta and is registered with Companies and Intellectual Properties Commission (CIPRO) since 2006. The trainers Instructor, training manager and part-owner, Lumala Tantsi, trained at Brixton Academy as a fire fighter and emergency medical technician (EMT) in 2001. From 2001 to 2005 he worked at Randburg and Modderfontein Fire Stations as an operational fire fighter. He then moved on to the Rietfontien Training Academy at the end of 2005, where he was a training officer for a period of two years. Tantsi was then promoted to station commander as
Lumala Tantsi, together with four fulltime and two part-time instructors, make up the staff composite at LO Tantsi. The instructors boast a variety of qualifications. All six instructors are qualified fire service instructors. Two are assessors and moderators and two possess a BTech degree in Fire Technology, while some instructors are hazmat and rescue technicians. Most of these qualifications were obtained from tertiary institutions around the country. Trainees In order for candidates to be considered as trainees at LO Tantsi, it is required for them to have a matric qualification and pass the physical and medical tests conducted by the training centre. The age and gender demographics of the candidates vary but consist mostly of males between the ages 19 to 30. Since inception, over 600 fire fighters have passed through the doors of the institution. 2014 has seen 83 graduates in fire fighting, with approximately 50
in other courses including first aid and basic fire fighting courses. The volume of graduates, however, differs year to year. Facilities and programmes The programme provided by LO Tantsi Fire training institution is unit standard based and modelled against National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards. Two fully equipped classrooms containing an open space for physical training and parade drills exist. For live fire drills such as burnouts and hazardous material drills, the training academy uses the South African Emergency Care (SAEC) premises in Modderfontein, South Africa, as per their memorandum of understanding (MOU). “Our learners are taught the kind of skills and knowledge that will enable them to solve any type of problem they may come across in the workplace. We have passionate and qualified instructors who ensure that every learner is engaged and well informed after lectures,� says Lulama Tantsi. LO Tantsi has also run projects for a number of municipalities and corporate clients. Over the years, the organisation has since employed over 10 part-time and full-time employees.
Students from the Fezile Dabi Learnership after their live fire drill practical 58
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Emergency medical service
South African Paramedic Service responding on a national level
Transportation utilised by the South African Paramedic Services
O
fficially established in 1999, the South African Paramedic Services originated as a sister company to the former Western Cape Paramedic Services. The company is jointly owned and managed by Neil Gargan and Kenneth Hermanus, who together have over 70 years’ experience in emergency medical services (EMS) in South Africa.
events department in Cape Town. The company, moreover, has 24hour bases in the areas of Cape Town, Vredenburg, Langebaan, Klawer, Springbok, Beaufort West and Scottburgh, KwaZulu-Natal. With ambulances based in Kleinsee and Beaufort West for the festive season, they supply additional ambulance resources in surrounding rural areas. The
South African Paramedic Services has its head office in Montague Gardens in Cape Town, where their logistics, control and administration are based. Staff composite The established South African Paramedic Services has a total staff complement consisting of 15 advanced life support paramedics,
During the middle of 2013, South African Paramedic Services formed a specialised industrial, aviation, oil and gas division, thereby becoming associate members of the South African Oil and Gas Alliance (SAOGA). With this, they possess the infrastructure and expertise to provide tailor made, holistic risk mitigating site based medical assistance. Options range from temporary quayside medical clinics, to full time clinics in the industrial, marine and mining sectors. Bases The South African Paramedic Services originally started off with and currently has a base at Grand West Casino and at the Life West Coast Private Hospital in Vredenburg, with an
The aircraft is equipped with a winch, allowing injured persons to be winched from the deck of a vessel where a landing is not possible Volume 3 No. 4
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Emergency medical services component, the safety staffs provide the full safety function including induction and personnel on-board control if requested. Through a preferred service provider agreement the EMS supply medical staff for a ship to shore aeromedical service for the retrieval and in transit treatment of ships crews rounding the Cape of Good Hope. South African Paramedic Services additionally fly aeromedical missions from Cape Town International Airport to the vessel and then to the nearest appropriate medical facility. This service can be made available to ships in transit within the safe operating range of the rotary wing aircraft.
South African Paramedic Services flight crew members 20 ambulance emergency assistants, 28 basic ambulance assistants and six admin staff. While their 24-hour control room is manned by basic ambulance assistants, the South African Paramedic Services employs over 100 part-time staff as and when required. Part-time staff includes doctors, paramedics, professional nurses, ambulance emergency assistants and basic ambulance assistants. On occasion permission is given to students to job shadow operations. With a variety of staff, both off shore and on shore, South African Paramedic Services holds a strong portfolio covering all related sectors of the oil and gas industry. Being based abroad,
remote sites can be established and managed anywhere on the continent Management structure With Neil Gargan as general manager, Warren Cupido as national operations manager and Jonathan Curtis as special projects manager, joint efforts ensure that all operations run smoothly. Scope of operations Currently the South African Paramedic Services rescue and medical teams are providing a rescue service in the industry from confined space rescue to rescue from height. The teams are on standby during shipyard operations in case of any emergency. In addition to the medical and rescue
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Aircraft A Eurocopter AS635 is used to a full advanced life support level and is available for daylight operations at a particular time. The aircraft is equipped with a winch, allowing injured persons to be winched from the deck of a vessel where a landing is not possible while a second aircraft is utilised for the transfer of staff and cargo to ships in transit. Vehicle fleet South African Paramedic Services currently operates five Intermediate life support ambulances at five bases, backed up by five advanced life support rapid response vehicles and a logistics and supply vehicle. In addition to these operational vehicles, they possess four ambulances, four off-road 4x4 rescue ambulances, a 5,5 rigid inflatable boat (RIB) rescue boat and a quad bike used to
Vehicle fleet
Technology
Wireless information system for emergency responders (WISER)
W
ireless information system for emergency responders (WISER) is a mobile application designed to assist first responders in hazardous material incidents. Capable of identifying unknown substances, WISER is a useful tool for first responders who require accurate information about hazardous substances within an instant. Developed by the National Library of Medicine, WISER provides a wide range of information such as substance identification support, physical characteristics of substances, human health information as well as and containment and suppression guidance. WISER is able to assist an emergency responder identify and validate an unknown substance based on signs and symptoms of victims of exposure, physical properties of the
provide specialised event medical support or to provide assistance and backup to the operational fleet. Major incidents The crews respond to a multitude of motor vehicle accidents, primary medical calls in public places, private residences and inter hospital transfers.
substance gathered by observation or sensors, hazard values from NFPA 704 placards, transportation identification, type of road trailer, and type of rail car. WISER moreover allows emergency responders to customise its home page and substance display to bring the information most relevant to the user. WISER now provides radiological support, which includes a substance list and substance data for 21 radioisotopes and general tools and reference materials targeted to onthe-scene support of radiological events. Biological support is also at hand, which consists of a substance list and substance data for the six category A biological agents, and general tools and reference materials including the guide pages from the WMD Response Guidebook.
Screenshot of version 3.1.1 caters to iOS 7 above iOS devices (iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch), Google Android devices, Blackberry devices (internet connectivity required), Windows Mobile devices and Palm OS PDAs.
This free download is now available on Microsoft Windows PC, Apples
The new release of version 3.1.1 provides full support for iOS 7 and above, introducing a new look and feel to match the latest iOS releases.
response vehicles, of which two have 4x4 capabilities. They then opened an advanced life support ambulance base in Beaufort West and introduced their aero medical service. On inspection by the Western Cape Department of Health, the South African Paramedic Services was accredited according to the Western Cape Ambulance Act.
“From one ambulance and eight staff in 1999 to a fleet of 27 vehicles and 69 full-time and 100 part-time staff in 2014, our footprint is now from Springbok in the Northern Cape to Cape Town as well as the central Karoo,Beaufort West and Scottburgh in KwaZulu-Natal�, says national operations manager, Warren Cupido.
Recent significant incidents attended by the service include several ship-toshore casualty evacuations as well as a number of motor vehicle accidents on the N1 Beaufort West in Leeu Gamka and surrounding areas in the Central Karoo . The South African Paramedic Services additionally assisted in search and rescue of a South African Police Service Member that went missing in Vioolsdrift in the Northern Cape. Significant developments In 2014, the South African Paramedic Services built and commissioned a control room. Six new ambulances were purchased as well as three new
The South African Paramedic Services on scene at an industrial incident Volume 3 No. 4
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Technology
New locally engineered mobile chemical and biological lab
The MCBDL is designed to be fitted onto and transported by Iveco trucks engineered for roll-on and roll-off systems
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fter years of testing and evaluation, the South African Military Health Service (SAMHS) possess a fully equipped mobile chemical and biological analysis mobile chemical and biological detection laboratory (MCBDL), enhancing its array of life saving equipment. As a product of Protechnik Laboratories that works in conjunction with Thermodynamics fluids and design (TFD), a lead logistics provider within South Africa, which is a company in Armcor’s portfolio of defence science technology institutes, the first phase of the MCBDL was ready for kick-off in 2014 after which the unit was deployed at Armscor’s Alkantpan test range for evaluation. Additional client requirements were identified after a mock chemical weapons attack manoeuvre. This consisted of the needs and means to transport consumables and services for the laboratory, a decontamination system for water and personnel, a rest and administration area as well as additional ancillary requirements to ensure independent operation of the laboratory. These requirements were incorporated in the second phase of development resulting in a support container system being added as well. The final product was completed and tested in 2013.
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Inside the laboratory Within the laboratory are two standard ISO containers being the laboratory itself and a support container. The space between the two containers is sheltered with tenting providing an area for personnel to relax and carry out daily tasks. Designed to be fitted onto and transported by Iveco trucks engineered for rollon and roll-off systems, the MCBDL fits into seven medical battalion groups, available infrastructure, practises and standard operating procedures (SOP’s). Engineered to provide a safe analytical environment with a core focus on the infrastructure housing the equipment rather than the equipment itself, allows additional equipment to be added into the lab as and when needs change. Controlled access due to pressure within the lab Scientists will enter the lab via a double door changing cubicle. Only licensed staff with access will be able to enter. Once pressure levels have normalised within the laboratory, access by a computerised system will be granted. When safely inside the lab, the pressures of the three compartments will be displayed digitally. Scientists can then move freely to the preparation or analytical compartment if required. There is no need for scientists to wear protective clothing in a tented structure adjacent to the laboratory. Depending on the threat identified in the field, they will either wear gowns and respirators or level B chemical suits. Samples exit and enter through a pass-through box system A pass-through box system unique to the lab enables samples from the outside to enter the lab. The passthrough box is evacuated passively and air is filtered using gas mask filter canisters manufactured by Hazmat, a division of Armscor. Similarly, all air entering and leaving the lab is filtered using a gas mask canister array. These Armscor manufactured off the shelf
items can be acquired and changed rapidly during laboratory operation, reducing downtime. Depending of the sample type and risk status the sample will either be placed in a class two biosfatey cabinet or a class three glove-box. The sample is then processed using standard scientific methods developed at Protechnik Laboratories; thereafter it is passed to the analytical compartment for analysis via a pass-through chamber. Scientific investigations and methods performed in the lab Scientific investigations and methods that can be performed in the MCBDL including, bacterial cell culture, animal cell culture in a dedicated carbon dioxide incubator, cytotoxicity testing, light and inverted microscopy, bacterial staining, microbial metabolic testing, real-time polymerase chain reaction, (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) ELISA, solid phase chemical extraction, basic chemistry sample preparation, and gas chromatography – mass spectrometry. Emergency and safety measures The laboratory is under negative pressure with directional airflow to prevent the escape of harmful chemicals or pathogens. While air entering the lab is high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtered, air leaving the lab is HEPA-carbon filtered. Solid waste is autoclaved inside the laboratory before it is removed ensuring that it is sterilized while water leaving the lab is filtered through particle filters, carbon filters and then chemically treated. A chemical shower with treated water prior to disposal is fitted to the laboratory. Scientists are decontaminated chemically and washed down by high pressure sprayers fitted to the shower. A specifically-designed fumigation port containing chlorine dioxide gas is fitted to the outside of the lab in the event of gross contamination taking place within the lab.
Obituary
Obituary of Peter Dennis Fuhri years and in 1991 was appointed chief operations officer for the Kwazulu-Natal EMS, until 1997.
The late Peter Dennis Fhuri
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oved, respected and honoured by all at the National Department of Health (NDOH), South African health department official, Peter Dennis Fuhri sadly passed away at the age of 62, after suffering a short illness in Nigeria while helping repatriate the remains of South Africans killed in a building collapse. President Jacob Zuma paid tribute saying, “We extend our heartfelt condolences to the family of Mr Peter Fuhri, the director of emergency medical services and disaster medicine at the department of health, who sadly died after contracting malaria in Nigeria. “It is a painful loss for the family and the country as a whole of an official who was dedicated to serving his people and his country. May his soul rest in peace.” Fuhri passed away on Friday, 14 November 2014 just before his 63rd birthday being 18 November 2014. Known by all as a dignified, quiet loving gentleman who had a profound passion to serve his country, Fuhri joined the KwaZuluNatal Emergency Medical Services (KZNEMS) in 1985, where he served as the regional manager of the then Northern Natal EMS. He was appointed as the principal of the College of Emergency Care for four
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Fuhri then joined the National Department of Health (NDOH) in 1997 as the national coordinator for emergency medical service and disaster medicine. “Peter was the initiator of a lot of changes and improvements in the EMS profession. His brief within the NDOH was to be in charge of EMS in the country and he did exactly that. Peter was the leader. His leadership style can be described as one Robin Sharma explains in his book ‘Leader without a title’.” says deputy director of EMS, Diane Naicker. Fuhri was extremely enthusiastic; having coordinated a number of events and response methods to international disasters. During 2003, Fuhri assembled a team of health and medical service responders to help manage the victims of the Haiti earthquake. He was appointed as the ministerial representative on the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA’s) professional board for emergency care of which he served for 17 years. Fuhri furthermore was passionate about professionalising the EMS industry and as such, initiated professionalising the EMS education and training as well. Fuhri motivated for the improvements in the funding of EMS by initiating the inclusion of a separate budget programme in government called ‘programme three’. “I think this is one of the living examples of what Peter achieved, as this programme is now going to be a permanent one in government budgeting. Since this intervention there has been a noticeable increase in the EMS allocations in all provinces within South Africa,” says Naicker. In addition, the national EMS indicator data used to monitor EMS performance was initiated by Fhuri and these indicators are still currently being used.
As the leader of the health coordination section for all government hosted functions and international events, such as the presidential inaugurations and heads of states meetings, Fhuri coordinated the South African response to international disasters and worked very closely with the Gift of Givers non-governmental organisation (NGO), led by Dr Sulliman. His hobbies included leather work, hiking, camping, model building, gadgets, abseiling, reading, pen crafting, wood work and motorcycling. Fhuri passed away while serving his country. On 23 September 2014, an assessment team of specialists including, Peter Fuhri, went to Lagos, Nigeria, to detail the plan on repatriation of the deceased South Africans. He thereafter, with a specialised team, concluded the health and medical plan and on 4 November 2014 returned to Nigeria as the forward team to receive the South African team and facilitate the repatriation of the deceased. On 6 November 2014 Fhuri fell ill and was admitted in Lagos, Nigeria, where he was diagnosed with contracting Malaria. He returned to South Africa on 9 November 2014 and passed away five days later. “The world has lost a man of real value. Let us remember him by following his legacy. In that way, his passing will be felt least by those of us whom he so gently yet deeply touched with his life,” concludes Naicker.
Colleague and friend, Diane Naicker with Peter Fhuri
South African Private Ambulance and Emergency Services Association
The South African Private Ambulance and Emergency Services Association formed after amalgamation
Chairman of SAPAESA, Neil Gargan
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he South African Private Ambulance and Emergency Services Association (SAPAESA) was formed as a non-profit organisation after the amalgamation of the Private Ambulance Association (PAA) and the Private Emergency Medical Transport Association (PEMTA) in 2004. The PAA was formed in 1990 and was the representative association of the private ambulance industry in South Africa. The PAA, which was founded under the guidance of Neil Gargan and Klaas de Vries, together with PEMTA, which was founded by Terence Emsile, formed SAPAESA in 2004 after an agreement was established between the boards of directors of both organisations. Objectives SAPAESA aims to empower private ambulance services by assisting them to grow their businesses whilst adhering to accreditation standards and developing new operating concepts that allow them to grow and develop within the industry. The association is aimed at creating healthy competition within the market by
Chief executive officer, Oliver Wright
Treasurer, Terrence Emslie
ensuring growth and economical sustainability among a number of private operators across South Africa, while offering excellent prehospital emergency care to their respective communities.
services had to use registered EMS personnel only. This document was used by a subcommittee of the PAA to formalise the new requirements for registration with RAMS and ultimately gave the private ambulance industry the first, and up to now, only national regulations of any ambulance service or system.
History The origin of SAPAESA began with the Private Ambulance Association (PAA) in 1990, a Section 21 company. The need for a unified voice in the private ambulance industry was the driving force around building a relationship with the Representative Association of Medical Schemes (RAMS) and its successor, the Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF) and setting standards in an unregulated industry. This was a critical issue at the time, as up until 1994 there were no minimum inspection and accreditation criteria in place for private ambulance services in South Africa. In 1994 the PAA drew up a working document on minimum requirements for ambulances. This document redrew the accepted structure of using unregistered Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel to ensuring that all ambulance
The main focus of the PAA remained to build and develop relationships with organisations such as RAMS, now known as the Board of Healthcare Funders of Southern Africa (BHF), Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (COID), and to steer the industry in a positive direction. In 1998, a group of members broke away from the PAA to form the Private Emergency Medical and Transport Association (PEMTA). This association had very similar goals. The old adage of there being strength in numbers resulted in the two associations amalgamating at a meeting held in Gauteng in March 2002. The combination of the two associations became the South African Private Ambulance and Emergency Services Association (SAPAESA). Volume 3 No. 4
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South African Private Ambulance and Emergency Services Association
Company secretary, Dave Gardner
Road accident claims coordinator, Denise Ferreira
Vice chairman, Clint Ruggunan
In January 2009, a breakaway association, the Private Ambulance Services Forum (PASF) was formed in order to provide an alternative membership association to the private ambulance Industry. As with PEMTA, there were insufficient members to sustain both the PASF and SAPAESA and on 1 May 2010 it was decided that the industry would be best served by merging PASF and SAPAESA. The merged association remained known as SAPAESA but incorporated many of the dynamic and creative ideas within the PASF.
Membership Chief executive officer of SAPEASA, Oliver Wright, says that the organisation is currently going through an exciting period of growth and development. ”As well as providing organisational and developmental support to all of our members, the organisation is constantly representing the industry at governmental level with regard to regulations, development, specialised consulting and industry sustainability,” says Wright.
supplier claims from the Road Accident Fund (RAF), assisting them through a partnership with an insurance brokerage to offer SAPAESA members specialised insurance coverage for assets, fleet and indemnity insurance and by sourcing discounted pricing on ambulance conversions of an extremely high standard. “A number of additional benefits are in the pipeline for implementation during 2015,” adds Wright.
Through the PAA to SAPAESA, these associations remain recognised by government and the private sector as the representative body of the private ambulance industry. Management style With its head office situated in Pretoria, Gauteng, SAPAESA also has directors located in many provinces across South Africa with representatives in all nine South African provinces, resulting in a broad geographical area covered. The executive committee constitute chairman, Neil Gargan; vice-chairman, Clint Ruggunan; treasurer, Terence Emslie; secretary, Dave Gardner and committee members Alan Leicester, Simphiwe Mahlaba and Glen Preston. Staff members at SAPAESA include chief executive officer (CEO), Oliver Wright; national coordinator, Crystal Pateman and Road Accident Fund (RAF) coordinator, Denise Ferreira. 66
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The membership base currently encompasses no less than 43 accredited private providers across the country with operational bases in urban centres, semi-rural and rural areas ensuring that a diverse cross section of the South African population has access to their network of quality members. Membership benefits The association continues to see positive membership growth with support from a range of excellent private ambulance services across the country. “We continue to add member benefits to our offerings as the year’s progress as well as strengthening our relationships with key medical aid schemes, government departments and stakeholders within the medical industry,” says Wright. SAPAESA assists its members by offering them equipment at substantially discounted prices. Moreover, the organisation assists by claiming for EMS
Challenges faced The main challenges faced by SAPAESA comprise rising input costs, which are increasing at a rate that far exceeds the consumer price index, as well as medical aid schemes that continue to make use of a fairly narrow base of service providers within South Africa. “Further contracting between medical aid schemes and SAPAESA members across the country will increase the prehospital offering of a number of medical aid schemes to their members, which will ultimately lead to increased response times to emergencies and an increase in positive recovery rates from major emergency medical conditions,” notes Wright. Current focus The current focus of SAPAESA is to continue to grow value added services to all members, to assist all members to enjoy positive commercial growth over the coming years and to entrench SAPAESA further within the prehospital environment within South Africa.
Fire awareness campaigns
“Where there’s smoke, there’s an awareness campaign”… Reflections, lessons learnt and the future for fire awareness campaigns Written by: Leanne McKrill
Fire awareness is understood to be a pivotal part of integrated fire management
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efinition: Awareness is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as “The knowledge or perception of a situation or fact”. In this instance, that fact is fires and the understanding of these entities. Fire awareness is understood to be a pivotal part of integrated fire management and its mitigating measures. How one comes to understand or learn about these phenomena is and has been determined by several factors, namely: focus and funding for wildfire or disaster mitigation measures, the delegation of responsibility to a particular organisation and finally the communication with and integration of stakeholders and communities related to this task. The aforementioned factors I was able to summarise from various sources of information included: a) a general survey I compiled and sent
to the public, b) asking the broader wildfire community of practice and previous experience I had garnered. The questions posed in the survey were attempting to investigate the knowledge level pertaining to fires, as well as identify key fire awareness messages remembered by the participants. The answers I received were remarkable. Effectually what I wanted to know was: • What role or roles fire awareness had played in all of this?
• Deduce the success rate of awareness campaigns • The key messages broadcast • The target audiences • The regularity of these campaigns or general awareness’. As mentioned, due to previous involvement in different environmental, fire and disaster management campaigns, I had an understanding of the key areas of an awareness campaign. However, after reading through the survey answers, listening to a number of members involved in fire management and weighing up my own experience, I concluded the following: • Fire awareness campaigns are not a one- size fits all • They all have individual goals and agendas • Campaigns usually aren’t or should not be standalone but part of a greater fire/disaster management or environmental management plan (However these are exceptions) • All campaigns need to have reason to be in existence such as forethought, a specific reason to need to deliver the talk. Usually what is factored in are the hazard and risks of a vulnerable community. Furthermore, I designed a short formula, which indicated the placement of emphasis on specific factors taken into account in the lifecycle of a fire awareness campaign.
Fire awareness lifecycle formula Volume 3 No. 4
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Fire awareness campaigns However, it became evident that not each factor was equally focussed on and there was more emphasis placed on factors such as: The message, the preplanning and the delivering of the message. Upon investigation of the survey findings, I began to notice a peculiar trend; there were two distinct views: one was “There’s no awareness” and the other was “I know a lot about it”- the latter was indicative of those individuals from within the wildfire community of practice who had conducted my survey, however, very little feedback from those individuals within the middle ground. There is an implicit message here of our fire awareness campaigns are not doing such a hot job but the question is why? A second interesting trend was from the actual fire awareness messages that were stated by the individuals, which ranged from generic messages aimed at people and their safety, to that of property and livestock protection. However, few messages about the benefits or ecological needs for fire. This too was interesting to note and was indicative of the types of messages that are being focussed on. In many incidences it was apparent that the messages were being aimed too high or too low, often more than one message was presented at an audience but with little logical sequence. Furthermore, fire awareness and the messages spread, did not form part of a greater plan but were often standalone projects, which were not sustained. There was also little to no involvement and or ownership from the communities targeted and members felt like they had been preached at, rather than included. Upon investigating this issue, I found out the following: Historically institutions have tried to take ownership of the ideas pertaining to fire awareness. However, ideas have been poached and therefore individuals and institutions can become territorial. There are also influences of politics and specific messages being delivered to target audiences. Although, all is not lost. In order to face these issues, we, as the wildfire community of practice, need to address key areas to provide more successful and far reaching awareness campaigns. Some suggestions gathered from the data used included: Being more creative with ideas around fire awareness; employing a level of dynamism to the campaigns; being community specific with target audiences, this applies to resources given out and utilised. From both an individualistic and institutional perspective, there needs to be a level of openness, acceptance of new and sometimes challenging ideas – which may deviate from the norm.
The questions posed in the survey were attempting to investigate the knowledge level pertaining to fires, as well as identify key fire awareness messages remembered by the participants 68
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A greater involvement from local media would also assist with the spread of these messages. Further, as previous issues with institutions can impair judgement and interfere with working conditions, these differences need to be laid aside, allowing for constructive criticism and new thought patterns to emerge and finally working toward the common goal of fire awareness.
Heritage
History of the fire pole
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he fireman’s pole (also called a sliding pole, fire pole, or tom) is a wooden pole or a metal tube or pipe installed between floors in fire stations, allowing fire fighters responding to an alarm to quickly descend to the ground floor faster than by using a standard staircase. The device was invented in the 1870s by David Kenyon in Chicago, Illinois, USA. The fireman’s pole allows fire fighters to move down much more quickly, although it is not suitable for climbing up. The pole connects the ground floor to the ceiling of the floor above through a hole in the ground floor ceiling. Spiral staircases Until 1878, spiral staircases or sliding chutes were common but not particularly fast. Fire houses were usually multistoried and the horses lived in the stable on the ground floor while the firemen were on the upper level. Nevertheless, the horses, attracted by the smell of food eaten by the firemen, sometimes climbed the stairs. To avoid this, spiral staircases were installed because it could not be navigated by the horses. Origination Captain David B Kenyon of Chicago’s Engine Company No 21, an all-black engine company, worked in a three-storey fire station; the ground floor containing the fire fighting equipment, the floor above being the floor for recreation and sleeping and the top floor being the hayloft, which was used to store the winter supply of hay for the fire engines’ horses. During transport, the hay was secured to a wagon using a wooden binding pole, which was stored in the hayloft when not in use. Fire fighter George Reid slid down the pole to respond to a call for help once, which inspired Captain David Kenyon to create a permanent pole.
In 1878 he convinced the chief of department to make the necessary hole in the building and install the pole, after agreeing to pay for any necessary maintenance. The company crafted a pole out of a Georgia pine beam by shaving and sanding it into a 7,6cm (3 inch) diameter pole, which they gave several coats of varnish and a coat of paraffin. After being the target of many jokes, people realised Company 21 was usually the first company to arrive when called, especially at night and the chief of department ordered the poles to be installed in all Chicago fire stations. In 1880 the first brass pole was installed in the Boston Fire Department. Safety issues Losing one’s grip on the pole can result in falling from a great height. The fire fighter may hit an object such as a door extending from a truck; poor speed control can result in injured or even broken legs upon impact with the floor and burns can occur due to friction against the pole. Slide poles can be made safer. Cushions can be placed around the base of the pole to soften landings. Other safety features include railings, baskets or closets that surround part
City of Cape Town’s Goodwood Fire Station still makes use of fire poles of the opening, weight-activated doors that open only when weight is applied to the pole to prevent accidental falls, and exhaust control systems that prevent fumes from the apparatus bay from coming into the living quarters. Despite the strong tradition and time advantage of slide poles, the US’ National Fire Protection Association has called for the removal of all poles from US fire stations due to safety hazards. Many cities in the US have removed poles from their stations but some new multilevel fire stations include slide poles with appropriate safety features. Most multi-storey fire stations in South Africa still make use of fire poles. It is still the quickest way to the engine/truck.
Vancouver firemen turning out for a fire alarm in 1910
Source: Wikipedia and others Volume 3 No. 4
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What’s on?
2015 January 18th – 20th January 2015 Intersec 2015 This trade fair for safety and security has expanded to focus on the technical solutions, to commercial security, fire and rescue, safety and health Venue: Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre, United Arab Emirates For more information visit: www.intersecexpo.com 26 – 30 January 2015 Fire appliance reconditioning A course designed to provide learners with a working knowledge of the correct measures to be taken to restore an extinguisher or hose-reel to full operational readiness Venue: FPASA College, 105 Springbok Road, Bartlett, Boksburg, Gauteng, South Africa Contact: Christine van der Westhuizen Tel: 011 397 1618 Email: college@fpasa.co.za For more information visit: www.fpasa.co.za 26 January – 27 February 2015 ATA Training ECP – 5 week Basic Course EMS principal and techniques will be taught up to basic life support level including airway control, CPR, emergency medical and trauma care of critically ill patients and more. Venue: ATA - International Training Namibia, 10 Armstrong Street, Windhoek Namibia Contact: Theresa Foster on Tel: 0264 61 302 931 Email: theresa@ ata-international.com.na For more information visit: www.ata-international.com.na 26 January – 21 May 2015 ATA Training ECP – 16 week Intermediate Course EMS principal and techniques will be taught up to intermediate life support level including airway control, CPR, emergency medical and trauma care of critically ill patients and more. Venue: ATA - International Training Namibia, 10 Armstrong Street, Windhoek Namibia Contact: Theresa Foster Tel: 0264 61 302 931 Email: theresa@ ata-international.com.na For more information visit: www.ata-international.com.na 29 January 2015 Basic Fire / Fire Marshall Training courses run by SA Emergency Care Venue: Modderfontein, Johannesburg, South Africa Contact: Nicole Vermaak Tel: 011 608 0907 31 January – 1 February 2015 International Trauma Life Support (ITLS) ITLS courses are designed for providers who are first to evaluate and stabilize the trauma patient. The courses provide complete training in the skills needed for rapid assessment, resuscitation, stabilization and transportation of trauma patients. Venue: ATA Fourways, South Africa Contact: Gugulethu More Tel: 011 450 4981 Email: gugulethu.more@ ata-international.com
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February
2 – 6 February 2015 Fire prevention and safety strategies Confederation of Fire Protection Association’s (CFPA) course covers the theory of fire, legislation, use of extinguishers, flammable liquids and gases, hot work, fire hazards of electrical equipment and automatic fire detection systems, organisation and management of fire teams and occupational fire brigades. Venue: 105 Springbok Road, Bartlett, Boksburg, South Africa Contact: Christine van der Westhuizen Tel: 011 397 1618/9 Email: college@fpasa.co.za For more information visit: www.fpasa.co.za 9 February 2015 Basic Life Support for Healthcare Providers (BLS) Participants will be able to perform the initial steps of cardiopulmonary resuscitation in victims of all ages, basic airway manoeuvres and rescue breathing with and without adjuncts. Venue: ATA Fourways, South Africa Contact: Gugulethu More Tel: 011 450 4981 Email: gugulethu.more@ ata-international.com 9 – 13 February 2015 Light Motor Vehicle Rescue Week Vehicle extrication course run by Pro-Ethnos Services Venue: Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa Contact: Jurie van Staden Tel: 061 364 2617 9 – 13 February 2015 Confederation of Fire Protection Association’s (CFPA) certificate in principles of fire safety engineering course The course covers the application of fire safety engineering principles to the design of buildings Venue: FPASA College, 105 Springbok Road, Bartlett, Boksburg, Gauteng, South Africa Contact: Christine van der Westhuizen Tel: 011 397 1618 Email: college@fpasa.co.za For more information visit: www.fpasa.co.za 10-11 February 2015 Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support ( ACLS) Candidates will be competent to recognize and initiate the management of cardiac arrest and peri-arrest conditions. Venue: ATA Fourways, South Africa Contact: Gugulethu More Tel: 011 450 4981 Email: gugulethu.more@ ata-international.com 14 February 2015 BLS for Health Care Provider – Half day course Participants will be able to perform the initial steps of Cardiopulmonary resuscitation in patients of all ages, basic airway management, use of an AED, chocking and more Venue: ATA - International Training Namibia, 10 Armstrong Street, Windhoek Namibia Contact: Theresa Foster Tel: 0264 61 302 931 Email: theresa@ ata-international.com.na For more information visit: www.ata-international.com.na
16 – 17 February 2015 Basic life Support Instructor Course ( BLS I) All Instructors must have a valid BLS Instructor Certificate, and have a firm, working knowledge of the training materials, including textbooks and certificates to be issued for each specific course. Venue: ATA Fourways, South Africa Contact: Gugulethu More Tel: 011 450 4981 Email: gugulethu.more@ ata-international.com 23 – 27 February 2015 FPASA Fundamentals of fire investigation This course promotes a clear understanding of fire investigation and the rendering of opinion regarding origin and cause. This includes practical investigation exercises and is aligned with NFPA 921. Venue: 105 Springbok Road, Bartlett, Boksburg, South Africa Contact: Christine van der Westhuizen Tel: 011 397 1618/9 Email: college@fpasa.co.za For more information visit: www.fpasa.co.za 24 – 25 February 2015 International Trauma Life Support (ITLS) ITLS courses are designed for providers who are first to evaluate and stabilize the trauma patient. The courses provide complete training in the skills needed for rapid assessment, resuscitation, stabilization and transportation of trauma patients. Venue: ATA Fourways, South Africa Contact: Gugulethu More Tel: 011 450 4981 Email: gugulethu.more@ ata-international.com 26 February 2015 Basic Fire / Fire Marshall Training courses run by SA Emergency Care Venue: Modderfontein, Johannesburg, South Africa Contact: Nicole Vermaak Tel: 011 608 0907
March 9 – 20 March 2015 Advanced fire prevention course Addresses fire risk management, fire safety legislation, suppression system, fire growth and development, means of escape, flammable liquids and gases, structural protection, business continuity and fire safety management. Venue: 105 Springbok Road, Bartlett, Boksburg, South Africa Contact: Christine van der Westhuizen Tel: 011 397 1618/9 Email: college@fpasa.co.za For more information visit: www.fpasa.co.za 11 – 13 March 2015 AIPS 2015 AIPS 2015 is the meeting place for professionals involved in protection, security, fire-fighting and related fields Venue: Almaty, Kazakhstan For more information visit: www.aips.kz/index.php/en/ 12 March 2015 Basic Fire / Fire Marshall Training courses run by SA Emergency Care Venue: Modderfontein, Johannesburg, South Africa Contact: Nicole Vermaak Tel: 011 608 0907
17 – 19 March 2015 The 5th International exhibition “UzSecureExpo – Indusrtrial safety and fire protection” The exhibition will show the range of equipment and new approaches to security, such as: technical means to ensure safety in industrial, alarm systems for fire and smoke, the equipment to provide integrated security, fire trucks, walkie-talkie Venue: National Exhibition Complex “UzExpoCenter”, Uzbekistan For more information visit: ieg.uz/archives/983?lang=en 23 – 27 March 2015 Fire appliance reconditioning A course designed to provide learners with a working knowledge of the correct measures to be taken to restore an extinguisher or hose-reel to full operational readiness Venue: FPASA College, 105 Springbok Road, Bartlett, Boksburg, Gauteng, South Africa Contact: Christine van der Westhuizen Tel: 011 397 1618 Email: college@fpasa.co.za For more information visit: www.fpasa.co.za 24 – 26 March 2015 Wildland-Urban Interface conference This year’s program includes the following tracks: fire adapted communities, operations and suppression, wildland fire policy & tools Venue: Reno, Nevada, USA For more information visit: www.iafc.org 25 – 26 March 2015 Fire Australia 2015 conference This is a fire protection industry conference, attracting key personnel, peers and significant representation from businesses, government and associations. The program will incorporate two and a half days of presentations, workshops and social activities, Venue: Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre, Broadbeach, Australia For more information visit: www.fireaustralia.com.au 28 – 29 March 2015 Technical Rescue Conference The conference is open to all responders and includes lectures and practical skill sessions in a variety of subjects including rope, confined space, structural collapse, water, vehicle, machinery and trench rescue as well as incident & team management training. Venue: New York State, USA. Details to follow For more information visit: www.dhses.ny.gov/ofpc/news/events/
April 9 April 2015 Basic Fire / Fire Marshall Training courses run by SA Emergency Care Venue: Modderfontein, Johannesburg, South Africa Contact: Nicole Vermaak Tel: 011 608 0907 13 – 16 April 2015 MIPS Moscow International exhibition for the safety, security and fire safety industry Venue: VVC, Pavilion № 75, Moscow, Russia For more information visit: www.mips.ru/en-GB 13 – 17 April 2015 Fire prevention and safety strategies This course covers the theory of fire, legislation, use of extinguishers, flammable liquids and gases, hot work, fire hazards of electrical equipment and automatic fire detection systems, the organisation and management of fire teams and occupational fire brigades.
Venue: 105 Springbok Road, Bartlett, Boksburg, South Africa Contact: Christine van der Westhuizen Tel: 011 397 1618/9 Email: college@fpasa.co.za For more information visit: www.fpasa.co.za 20 – 24 April 2015 FPASA Fundamentals of fire investigation This course promotes a clear understanding of fire investigation and the rendering of opinion regarding origin and cause. This includes practical investigation exercises and is aligned with NFPA 921. Venue: 105 Springbok Road, Bartlett, Boksburg, South Africa Contact: Christine van der Westhuizen Tel: 011 397 1618/9 Email: college@fpasa.co.za For more information visit: www.fpasa.co.za 20 – 25 April 2015 FDIC International Conference Venue: Indiana Convention Centre, Indianapolis, USA For more information visit: www.fdic.com 22 – 24 April 2015 EENA CONFERENCE The conference brings together European emergency services, public authorities, researchers and industry representatives from all over Europe and beyond. High-level issues will be discussed during the plenary sessions while operations and technical issues will be addressed during the parallel tracks. Venue: RIN Grand Hotel, Bucharest, Romania For more information email: tc@eena.org 22 – 25 April 2015 International Fire Service Accreditation Congress (IFSAC) 2014 Annual Conference Venue: Birmingham, Alabama, USA For more information visit: www.ifsac.org 28 – 30 April 2015 Fire & Safety 2015 - The 14th International Exhibition for Fire & Disaster Prevention Applications International Fire & Safety Expo will be held concurrently with Secutech, 18th International Security Expo. A gateway to buyers searching made-in-Taiwan products, exploring the latest technologies, connecting and building relationships with suppliers Venue: Taipei, Taiwan For more information visit: www.chinaexhibition.com/Official_Site/
May 12 – 14 May 2015 Securex and A-OSH Expo Securex will be the largest and most comprehensive show of its kind in Africa and the only show exclusively dedicated to the very latest developments in security, safety, fire and protection. It is aimed at all those in the trade who consider issues of business and personal security, protection and safety to be of paramount importance Venue: Gallagher Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa Contact: Joshua Low Email: joshual@specialised.com 12 – 15 May 2015 NAMPO At the NAMPO Agricultural Trade Show visitors are able to take their time to view all sectors of the show from livestock to computers. The
practical demonstrations of implements and machinery are a unique feature Venue: NAMPO Park, Bothaville, Free State, South Africa For more information visit: www.nampo.co.za/ 13 – 15 May 2015 The Alan Brunacini Fire-Rescue Leadership Institute This retreat for chief officers introduces attendees to an array of case studies and personal experiences by some of the USA’s fire service leaders. Roundtable discussions and presentations designed to prepare individuals for their journey through fire and rescue leadership. Venue: Charleston Fire Department, 1451 King St, Charleston, SC, USA Contact: Tel: 00770 254 3900 Email: fireleadership@ columbiasouthern.edu For more information visit: https://mycsu.columbiasouthern.edu 20 – 22 May 2015 Disaster Management 4th International Conference on disaster management and human health: Reducing risk, improving outcomes Venue: Istanbul, Turkey For more information visit: www.wessex.ac.uk/15-conferences/ disaster-management-2015 21 May 2015 Basic Fire / Fire Marshall Training courses run by SA Emergency Care Venue: Modderfontein, Johannesburg, South Africa Contact: Nicole Vermaak Tel: 011 608 0907 25 – 29 May 2015 Fire appliance reconditioning A course designed to provide learners with a working knowledge of the correct measures to be taken to restore an extinguisher or hose-reel to full operational readiness Venue: FPASA College, 105 Springbok Road, Bartlett, Boksburg, Gauteng, South Africa Contact: Christine van der Westhuizen Tel: 011 397 1618 Email: college@fpasa.co.za For more information visit: www.fpasa.co.za 25 – 27 May 2015 First Aid Level 2 Training Course Training course run by SA Emergency Care Venue: Modderfontein, Johannesburg, South Africa Contact: Nicole Vermaak Tel: 011 608 0907
June 1 – 5 June 2015 Confederation of Fire Protection Association’s (CFPA) certificate in principles of fire safety engineering course The course covers the application of fire safety engineering principles to the design of buildings Venue: FPASA College, 105 Springbok Road, Bartlett, Boksburg, Gauteng, South Africa Contact: Christine van der Westhuizen Tel: 011 397 1618 Email: college@fpasa.co.za For more information visit: www.fpasa.co.za
Volume 3 No. 4
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“This I do” I lay sound asleep in the still of the night, Until I hear the tones, calling me to rise. I rise in a flash, Never stop and think, What for? Already knowing, Someone’s at deaths door. The screams and the shouts of someone in need, They fear for their life. I’m the first they see. My arms stretched out, Too far to reach to bring them to safety And comfort, you see. I’m not a hero, Or a man that ‘saves the day’. I’m simply a man that has a debt to repay. I will give my life anytime, For yours. It doesn’t matter who you are, Of course. I do this without prejudice Or creed. I simply do this Because you are in need.
Author: Fire fighter Anthony J Cornelius Southern Cove Fire Department Company 41 in New Enterprise, Pennsylvania. He has been a fire fighter for 24 years. A special note from Anthony: “My debt is to the ones who refused to give up on me. A fire department saw me as a troubled young man and opened their doors to me and took me in. I never felt like I belonged MORE so than I did that day when I walked in... I knew then my family was the men and women of the fire and EMS services.” Brotherhood of Fire
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