Tesla Motors, Brock Archer, and Ron Moore put together a great training video that goes over the procedures for first responders on scene of a motor vehicle accident involving an electric vehicle (EV). Make sure you also take note on some of the body structure fractures while being cut. This video is packed full of useful information, make sure you take advantage of it!
A big thanks to Tesla Motors for putting the time and money into making this video.
After one of the calls at 02:00, I just couldn’t fall back a sleep in the bunk. So I wondered over to the admin side of the station and picked up the latest Firehouse magazine. I started reading an article written by Ron Moore about the use of the TIC on an extrication/MVA scene. The TIC was used to help determine the number of occupants when there is an altered level of concousisness with the patients and a definite number of occupants cannot be accreiately obtained. The article shows the TIC used to determine if the surface temperature of the seat is higher than the ambient temperature. Many features could let to success and failure with this technique. For example, summer and winter temperatures could quickly heat or cool a seat surface if the occupant was only briefly in the vehicle before the crash and the material the seat surface is made from. In a future post, I will have the results of different tests done on the surface temperatures of a seat after different durations of an occupant sitting and different outside temperature.
Moore’s article made me think back to a call on the highway where a truck rolled multiple times ejecting the driver and almost ejecting the passenger. The driver was scooped up and transported to a trauma center by a private ALS before my truck arrived. The passenger was out of it and couldn’t answer any questions. The one thing that made everyone on scene believes there was a 3rd occupant was there were 3 different sizes of shoes scattered across the highway. At 04:00 in the morning, it’s difficult to see anything off in the tall grass in the shoulder, even with a ton of lighting. I used the TIC to walk through the grass looking for anything that would stand out as warm. One thing did, decomposing logs! The logs looked awfully like a human body on the TIC. In the end, lucky for everyone there were only two occupants in the truck, both accounted for.
The bottom line is there could be use for a tool that is most likely already on the truck. Is this an outside of the box tactic? Yes and No. The tool is most likely on the truck; why not use it when the circumstances on scene are unknown? Just put this idea into the old mental toolbox.
The handouts for a good number of the Fire house Expo 2012 were posted online for everyone to benefit from. Check out Ron Moore and Billy Leach’s handouts!
Hopefully, I’ll get a chance to present at Firehouse Expo 2013. I have a few great ideas for classes!
Hands-On Training: Heavy Rescue For Heavy Vehicles (HT4 OR HW4):
The Challenges of Extrication Involving Vehicles With Advanced Steel:
Heavy Truck Anatomy and Extrication:
Hybrid & Electric Plug-In Vehicle Fire & Rescue Procedures:
Brock Archer is one of the few guys out there with a vehicle extrication train the trainer course. His course has been fined tuned and is a 4 day Train the Trainer that fully prepares participants to teach the latest in Vehicle Extrication. This course is hosted by the Denver Fire Department and Ron Moore is also teaching a full day in the classroom and a full hands on day bringing the knowledge he continues to grow because of his work with the NFPA, American Iron and Steel Institute, and automakers globally. Sign up quick, before all the spots are gone!
If you are looking for a train the trainer extrication course in the Detroit area, look no further! Brock Archer, Ron Moore (from Firehouse Magazine and the University of Extrication) and myself are teaching a 5 day extrication course. The classroom portion will be at the Ann Arbor Fire Department and the hands on training will be by Detroit Metro Airport. Brock will be bringing his West Coast extrication knowledge to the Motor City! Ron Moore will also be presenting, I have stated this before, every firefighter needs to see Ron present in person! This will be a course that everyone will be talking about!
Check out the flyer below and the course outline and contact me with any questions.
First off, if you haven’t liked the Boron Extrication page on Facebook, please do that now to make sure stay up to date with all the extrication information that is shared by global extrication technicians. Second, since Ron Moore has created the University of Extrication Facebook page it should be a no brainier to like that page as well. Otherwise, you would miss out on a sneak peek from a University of Extrication article in Firehouse magazine below!
The University of Extrication article in the March issue of Firehouse Magazine looks at changes in the structural design of new vehicles.. I had a chance to photograph a brand new Cadillac body structure while in Michigan recently. Pictures of that vehicle were used in the article. What we need to make sure that rescue personnel are aware of is how the bottom of A-pillars and B-pillars are going to get "fatter." Look at this close-up view of the driver's side A-pillar, 2012 Cadillac ATS. If you were "rolling" or "jacking" this dash, because of this design, you will have to cut almost all four sides of the base of the pillar before it will move.
My trip started off at the Fremont Fire Department Administrative offices for some classroom training. The picture of the hydrant below was a gift from the Recruit Class of 01-1 in appreciation for the time, knowledge and training given. Something I thought was really cool!
I have said this many times on this site. Ron Moore is one fire service instructor you need to see in person whenever you get the chance. Ron has a passion for extrication and informing firefighters with useful knowledge to stay up to date with the continuous changes in vehicle technology. Wednesday was a full day in the classroom where Ron covered airbags, hybrids and electric vehicles, and the advanced steels in vehicle body structures.
Here is a question Ron asked during the airbag portion of class. What is the maximum number of airbags possible in a vehicle? What’s your answer? 9, 12, 15, 25 or infinity. There is no easy answer! Seatbelt airbags, center mounted seat airbags, door airbags, and the list goes on and on! Also remember that the “airbag” advertisement on plastic trim and seats is just that, an advertisement. The location of the airbag and or gas inflator has no direct relation to the advertisement.
The lead instructor, Brock Archer, arranged for a BMW ActiveE electric vehicle to be displayed after lunch for everyone to review and look at. I have a bunch of the pictures of the BMW ActiveE on the Boron Extrication Facebook Page. Make sure you check the images out and if you don’t already like our Facebook page, please do!
Stay tuned for parts 2 and 3 of the West Coast Extrication trip! Part 2 will be on school bus extrication and Part 3 on advanced extrication techniques.
Well the West Coast Extrication trip is over, all that is left to get on the plane and head home back to Detroit. The bad part is it was almost 80 degrees today in Redwood and it snowed in Detroit last night. The plan is to break down the trip into a 3 part post. Brock Archer from AdvancedExtrication.com hooked me with a great exposure to West Coast Extrication. Which is not different from everyone else except they get to train in warm weather in February!
The first will be the classroom portion that Ron Moore from Firehouse Magazine presented. The second will be the school bus extrication with the scrap yard workers showing how fast they can rip apart a bus. The final part will be a rundown of the extrication techniques and evolutions covered over the two days of hands on training.
BoronExtrication.com’s first post flying high over the central United States. Heading out to Fremont California for a train the trainer extrication class that Brock Archer is holding at the Fremont Fire Department Training Center. Brock Archer is the former Assistant Fire Chief for the Hopland Fire District. He is a California State Fire Training instructor and teaches swift water and rope rescue at the NFPA level. Brock is currently teaches auto extrication throughout the U.S. which is why I’m headed west! I missed the first two days of the class but with Ron Moore flying in tonight to teach a full day tomorrow then two solid days of practical extrication training to finish up the class. Every firefighter needs to see Ron Moore at a live presentation. Ron is one the best fire service instructors because he gears his topic to areas that are important and relevant to firefighters operating on an extrication scene.
I also plan to stop by a few firehouses in the San Francisco/ Oakland area. I really would like to meet the firefighters behind Axehead Clothing and Wolfpack Leather Works. Both of those guys are Oakland Firefighters I believe. 
Brock Archer from AdvancedExtrication.com is hosting a 5 day train the trainer class in Fremont, CA. Brock and Ron Moore from Firehouse’s University of Extrication. Check out the information below and give Brock a call and sign up!
http://advancedextrication.com/event/brock-archer-ron-moore-train-trainer/
Ron Moore from the University of Extrication sent me this photos a few months back from a 1998 Volvo C70 that he cut up. Ron found a hollow Boron pipe inside the A-pillar that actually bends and is inserted into the rocker. You would have to completely cut through this at the base of the A-pillar when doing a dash roll or dash jacking. While the C70 is a convertible, don’t let that fact drop your guard and think that it will be a routine extrication.
I found a company on the internet called the Nathan Group that makes the Rapid Access Tool kit. The kit comes in two sizes, Tactical Operator Kit and First Responder Kit. Take a look at their video and tell me want you think. If the vehicles in the video were cribbed how stable would the vehicles remain when the Rapid Access Tool kit is used?
Just remember, as trained first responders we can be held liable if a vehicle is not stabilized before the patient(s) are extricated. That’s one point Ron Moore from Firehouse.com stresses religiously during his presentations and training. So view this video and product as a tool that may not apply to fire service extrication in its’ current configuration. However, the company could refine the kit to meet our needs.
If you missed Ron Moore’s University of Extrication Vehicle Rescue Update for 2011 on Firehouse.com on 4/29/2011 you are in luck! This free webcast training that was sponsored by Amkus Rescue Systems is available on Firehouse.com until 4/28/2012.
It’s a known fact that the field of vehicle rescue and extrication is rapidly changing. The constant introduction of new model vehicles, new vehicle technologies, even new rescue tools and techniques have become the new norm. What’s the latest update with airbags? What do you really need to know about the Volt and Leaf electric vehicles? Are you able to tackle the challenges of advanced steels in vehicles today? Join Ron Moore as he presents a unique and interactive University of Extrication on the newest and most critical items that responders have to be aware of today. Bring your questions and Ron will bring the answers.
Moore broke the webcast down into three topics: Airbags, Hybrids, an update on changes in the use of steels in vehicles. This was a train the trainer webcast and was worth every second spent listening and watching the carefully selected slides.
Working in the automotive industry I’m very proud of all the advancements that the United States has made in terms of making a safer car and protecting the occupants. Many times automotive safety pioneers like Mercedes-Benz are first to implement new costly safety devices in production vehicles. I mean Mercedes-Benz has a car with automatic partial braking that intervenes if driver does not react in face of acute danger of accident. So I was not surprised to find out that a revolutionary extrication tool was implemented across the pond. There is something that an international foundation has started and needs to gain the legs to get it spread around the globe, especially here in the US. The FIA Foundation has developed a standardized A4 “rescue sheet” that includes information on the location of cabin reinforcements, tank, the battery, airbags, gas generators, control units etc. – and indicating adequate cutting points must be used throughout Europe. The best part, the rescue sheets are free! The only catch is that individual vehicle owners, our “customers” if you will, need to print out the sheet and put it on the driver side sun visor.
The FIA Foundation decided to take the rescue sheet one step further. The ADAC Initiative (the ADAC is Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobile-Club which is the largest auto club in Germany) main goal is to provide a fast on-site access to non-commercial database of all rescue sheets for all makes a models. No small task!
Ron Moore from Firehouse Magazine’s University of Extrication proposed something very similar to the Rescue Sheets called the “Vehicle Safety Data Sheet” (VSDS). Ron proposed requiring one VSDS placard to be applied to the underside of every hood and a standard location for a second VSDS placard under or behind the rear license plate. Just like the rescue sheet, Ron also thought the best inside location driver’s side sun-visor. Interesting enough, Ron proposed this idea back in 1999! Ron is truly a pioneer in the world of extrication and if you have never been to a live training class that he puts on you are missing out!
Another interesting fact about the rescue sheets is the very common appearance the sheets have compared to Moditech’s Crash Recovery System. I have a feeling that Moditech is creating the sheets for the automakers.
ADAC (Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobile-Club)
The FIA Foundation is an independent UK registered charity which manages and supports an international programme of activities promoting road safety, environmental protection and sustainable mobility, as well as funding specialist motor sport safety research.
First off, if you do not receive the Moditech Newsletter than go straight to their website and sign up for it! Archive newsletters as far back as 2006 as also available on their website. Take advantage of the free very useful information that Moditech Rescue Solutions provides in the newsletter. While you are at the Moditech Site, make sure you take a look at the Crash Recovery System (CRS) . Below is an image of the new 2011 Ford Explorer that id from the Crash Recovery System. If this is the first time you have seen an image like this, I’m sorry! Many of the top extrication experts in the world have promoted how useful Crash Recovery System is. Those name’s include Ron Moore, David Dalrymple, and Randy Schmitz.
Now…. go read the “Technology update February 2011 | THE INFLATABLE SEATBELT AIRBAG” newsletter and learn what other vehicles have seat belt airbags and airbelts.
Tesla Motors is a Silicon Valley-based company that designs, manufactures and sells electric vehicles (EVs) and electric vehicle powertrain components. If you used PayPal before the company was bought by eBay than you helped this car company get off the ground running. Elon Musk, a cofounder of Telsa Motors was also a cofounder of PayPal and Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX).
UPDATE!!! September 2012
Tesla Motors has really stepped up to the plate to help get extrication based vehicle information out to firefighters and first responders. Tesla Motors enlisted the help of Ron Moore and Brock Archer. Currently, Moore and Brock are working closely with Tesla Motors on an Emergency Response Guide and other training information and medias. Check back soon for more information!
The Electric Vehicle Safety Training project of the National Fire Protection Association has two very informative reports in pdf format.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the SAE International have released a summary report from the co-hosted U.S. National Electric Vehicle Safety Standards Summit held in October that focused on how current codes and standards address safety and electrical infrastructure concerns related to electric vehicles. The summary report prepared by the Fire Protection Research Foundation, an affiliate of NFPA, focuses on fundamental codes and standards issues as they pertain to electric vehicles in the areas of: vehicles; built infrastructure; and emergency responders.
Fire Fighter Safety and Emergency Response for Electric Drive and Hybrid Electric Vehicles (pdf)
As the use of alternative energy proliferates, the fire service has identified a number of areas of concern with hazard mitigation and emergency response. This includes electric and hybrid electric vehicles, which are introducing new and unexpected hazards to fire fighters and other emergency responders.
The goal of this report is to assemble and disseminate best practice information for fire fighters and fireground incident commanders to assist in their decision making process for handling electric and hybrid electric vehicles. Specifically, this study focuses on vehicles intended for roadway passenger use involving fire and/or rescue emergency situations, either on the roadway or at charging/docking stations (e.g., garages). The project deliverables will be in the form of a written report, which will include best practices that can serve as the basis for training program development by others.
The deliverables for this project collectively review the available baseline information, identify the fundamental principles and key details involving fire/rescue tactics and strategy, provide a summary of core basics, and address and clarify related issues such as training needs, areas needing further research, revisions to codes/standards, and other applicable topics.
A companion study to this report focuses on solar power systems rather than electric and hybrid electric vehicles (Fire Fighter Safety and Emergency Response for Solar Power Systems, FPRF). This has taken an identical approach and focuses on assembling and disseminating best practice information for fire fighters and fireground incident commanders to assist in their decision making process. This companion report addresses buildings and other structures with solar power systems that are intended to supply power to the respective structure, with a primary focus on solar photovoltaic panels used for electric power generation.
This overall initiative (consisting of the reports on Electric Drive and Hybrid Electric Vehicles and Solar Power Systems) is funded through a U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG).
First off, my hat off the fine folks at GM, OnStar, and The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) for setting up and implementing a nationwide training program of First Responders on the new technologies in the Chevrolet Volt. This week is the final stop on a nationwide tour where more than 1,600 fire and emergency service leaders have been trained. Fitting the last stop is where it all started, Detroit! The training was held in the OnStar garage at General Motors headquarters in downtown Detroit. Chevrolet and OnStar, in a joint effort with the NFPA expect 400 Detroit-area first responders to be trained in learning how to deal with emergency situations involving electric vehicles in Detroit, Michigan this week.
© Copyright General Motors
The NFPA’s Electric Vehicle Safety Training project is a nationwide program to help firefighters and other first responders prepare for the growing number of electric vehicles on the road in the United States. The NFPA project, funded by a $4.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, provides first responders with information they need to most effectively deal with potential emergency situations involving electric vehicles.
The NFPA is behind the Electric Vehicle Safety Training project Blog and check out the post about GM passes the torch to NFPA on EV Training.
© Copyright General Motors
Detroit Fire Chief Gregory Williams © Copyright General Motors
UPDATE May 22, 2012 – Check out Brock Archer’s post on the Scion IQ Eleven Airbags, it now has 11 airbags!
Scion is a Toyota brand and the Scion iQ is based off the Toyota iQ, so consider them one in the same. The 2011 Toyota iQ and Scion iQ is a tiny car that is packed with Ultra-High Strength Steel. However, the thing that scares me about this car are the nine, count them, 9 airbags. That means 9 cylinders stuffed into hidden areas of the body structure behind the trim panels.
The rear air bag is ejected from the headliner during a fender bender. Toyota says it will help protect the heads and necks back seat passengers. So there is a good chance that the rear air bag will be deployed by the time that first responders arrive. Just remember to always strip away the trim to find the gas filled cylinders. Ron Moore posted on the University of Extrication forum that “inflators now have a stored gas pressure of up to 10,000psi”. Take the time to find the cylinders or at least make sure your cutting thru one. As cars like the iQ hit the market, airbag cylinders are going to show up more often.
I was looking around for a image of the inflators and I ran into an article by Dave Dalrymple that he wrote for Fire Engineering, New Vehicle Technology and New Extrication Challenges.
The curtain’s inflation module is inside the air bag itself and located in the rear roof edge between the rear head rests. As for the rest of the nine systems, count them from the crash recovery system diagram (photo 8). So it’s not just high-end vehicles that have a wide spectrum of SRS systems. Although this vehicle is not yet for sale, look for it in 2010, possibly as the Scion IQ.
What a great year 2010 was! For the first time in a long time the automotive industry started adding jobs here in Detroit! Hopefully, with more people getting back to work the budget cuts in public safety budgets can finally start to slow down, if not end!
As for BoronExtrication.com, I started this blog to help spread around information about the advanced steels used in the body structure of new vehicles. Back in January, I would have never guessed how much traffic to my blog would increase! Also, becoming part of the FireEMSBlogs.com family was huge honor and a great step to gain a larger readership.
Dave Dalrymple and his crew from RoadwayRescue LLC
Please everyone on-duty tonight or like me, skipping the alcohol just incase there’s a MVA on the freeway (fires or even more rare in Wixom, MI), stay safe out there!!
I was contacted a couple months ago by Paul Melfi who is working with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) on a new project called Electric Vehicle Safety Training. The project has some major legs and $4.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy.
The goal of NFPA’s Electric Vehicle Safety Training project is widespread training participation and ensuring that firefighters and first responders are prepared for emergencies involving electric vehicles. The training seeks to:
- Create awareness of unique emergency response needs for electric vehicles
- Drive awareness of availability of training modules
- Remove concern about inherent safety of electric vehicles and ability to safely respond in emergency situations
- Reassure public that trained first responders know what to do in emergency situations involving electric vehicles
The website and the training are in the development phase right now. However, make sure you bookmark the site and start checking it regularly! The Electric Vehicle Safety Training Project has the potential to be an informative resource for First responders dealing with electric vehicles.
I posted some videos of Ron Moore deploying airbags on several different Ford vehicles at the CREST Center in Michigan. Ron hot wired every airbag in the vehicle and deployed each one. The Ford representative was there also, he had an airbag wired up to fancy box with a button. Ron used a battery! The Ford guy did throw out a disclaimer that Ron’s method is not endorsed by Ford.
You should never preform extrication training with a vehicle that has live airbags. Use the opportunity to demonstrate to your department what an airbag sounds and looks like. This can also help on the EMS side of things to understand the speed and the size of the airbags. Here are some step by step instruction how to hot wire airbags. Other useful info available at Firstrespondertv.com.
I consider Ron Moore as one of the best in the Fire Service when it comes to Extrication. Personally, I also plan to take one of his Extrication classes at FireHouse Expo in 2011. That being said, we can all get some free online training from Ron on Wednesday October 20, 2010 at 14:00. If you listen to the webcast live, you will have the opportunity of ask questions of Ron Moore during the presentation. Just sign up at: http://www.firehouse.com/webcasts Ron usually holds a class like this once a year so don’t miss out!
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