There has been much discussion in reference to bail out systems, since the tragic LODD's and serious injuries sustained by members of the FDNY in the Black Sunday incident in the Bronx.
The FDNY has gone to great lengths to come up with a system to provide its members, to hopefully prevent out comes such as those that resulted in the Black Sunday incident.
I recently had a discussion with retired FDNY Lt. Larry Cohen about bail out systems. Lt. Cohen is a certified trainer for the Gemtor harness and the Petzl EXO PSS (Personal Safety System) being used by the FDNY.
In my discussion with Lt. Cohen I learned that you can not purchase the Petzl EXO PSS without first going through certification training.
I think this is a great safety measure being taken on the part of Petzl to unsure that firefighters know how to properly use the Petzl EXO PSS before they are able to purchase and use the system.
My questions to the members of this forum are, What type of bail out system do you currently use? If you are using a bail out system, is the system standard thoughout your department? And finally, Did you do any training prior to putting the system in service.
I am currently using a Gut belt with a rope bag attached to it with 40' of rope, a mini rescue 8, and 2 carabiners. Our department does not have a standard bail out system, we have done training but nothing formal. After doing some research will be trying to get our department to invest in the Gemtor-Petzl system and the training that goes with it. The firefighter is a departments most important tool, I think the investment is worth it. If departments would put less bells and whistles on the apparatus and invest more in firefighter training and safety maybe we could reduce deaths and injuries.
I feel that a standard bail out system should be a part of our standard issued equipment as well as the training that goes with it.
I would encourage anyone looking for training and information about bail out systems to contact Larry Cohen at www.firegroundtech.com
The FDNY has gone to great lengths to come up with a system to provide its members, to hopefully prevent out comes such as those that resulted in the Black Sunday incident.
I recently had a discussion with retired FDNY Lt. Larry Cohen about bail out systems. Lt. Cohen is a certified trainer for the Gemtor harness and the Petzl EXO PSS (Personal Safety System) being used by the FDNY.
In my discussion with Lt. Cohen I learned that you can not purchase the Petzl EXO PSS without first going through certification training.
I think this is a great safety measure being taken on the part of Petzl to unsure that firefighters know how to properly use the Petzl EXO PSS before they are able to purchase and use the system.
My questions to the members of this forum are, What type of bail out system do you currently use? If you are using a bail out system, is the system standard thoughout your department? And finally, Did you do any training prior to putting the system in service.
I am currently using a Gut belt with a rope bag attached to it with 40' of rope, a mini rescue 8, and 2 carabiners. Our department does not have a standard bail out system, we have done training but nothing formal. After doing some research will be trying to get our department to invest in the Gemtor-Petzl system and the training that goes with it. The firefighter is a departments most important tool, I think the investment is worth it. If departments would put less bells and whistles on the apparatus and invest more in firefighter training and safety maybe we could reduce deaths and injuries.
I feel that a standard bail out system should be a part of our standard issued equipment as well as the training that goes with it.
I would encourage anyone looking for training and information about bail out systems to contact Larry Cohen at www.firegroundtech.com
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