Twenty firefighters from the White City, Lumsden, and Edenwold volunteer fire departments gathered at the White City Fire Hall on Saturday to learn how to conduct a confined space rescue from a grain bin.
A specialized trailer rigged with a small grain bin full of wheat, designed to replicate the conditions a farmer may face where grain is being emptied, was placed inside the fire hall to give firefighters a realistic and interactive rescue scenario. Each firefighter had the chance to both be part of a rescue team and be the one rescued.
Master instructor Tyrone Mogenson, who is also fire chief for the City of Melville, said the point of the demonstration and training was so firefighters know what those buried in grain experience, and why fire departments use rounded panels bound together with clamps and augers as part of their rescue.
“It all boils down to making sure our guys understand it better, and in Saskatchewan with agriculture being one of the main industries, our guys need to know how to do things in a safe manner,” Mogenson said. “Not all firefighters are associated with farming activities. I’m from up north in the bush, so anything involving grains, I’m illiterate to. So when I took the training, it was an eye-opener for me.”
White City fire chief Randy Schulz said he had never been to a grain bin rescue scenario before, and neither had the department. That enhanced the need for adding this capacity, as mutual aid agreements with other rural fire departments could mean they encounter this scenario in the future.
Schulz opened up the training to other area fire departments as White City didn’t have enough of its own firefighters available to fill an entire session.
“We found out this trailer was available and we have a big enough building to put the trailer in, so with Mr. Winter coming we could deal with that,” Schulz said. “We have a contractual agreement with the RM of Edenwold to support it. When something big happens, mutual aid partners all get together. Earlier this week, we helped out McLean with a big grass fire, and there, South Qu’Appelle, McLean, Balgonie, Pilot Butte and White City all responded. That’s a far way from us but when something bad happens in the fire industry, everyone comes running.”
Training started by explaining the differences in the rounded shields used to create a small tunnel inside the grain bins, which assist the person being rescued. Then a firefighter, wearing a harness so they could be raised up in an emergency, stepped on top of a full bin of grain. Once the auger below was turned on, the firefighter sank into the bin enough so they would feel the same pressure anyone else would as grain filled in open spaces. If deep enough in the grain, a person could suffocate, since when they exhale, grain shifts and prevents them from being able to breathe in again.
Once in the grain, firefighters placed mats down on the grain to ensure they didn’t become trapped themselves, then put the four curved metal plates into the bin, around the person being rescued. They fastened them together with clamps to form a tube. Then, a drill-powered auger was inserted into the tube, and the grain around the trapped person was taken out, allowing the victim to eventually use a ladder to get themselves out of danger.
The training was provided through the Canadian Agriculture Safety Association and other sponsors.
