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2018 WOR Day 2: Medical Incident Response

Ribbon symbol for survivor next to the Wildland Fire Leadership logoWeek of Remembrance June 30-July 6

This Week of Remembrance is dedicated to all those who have fallen in the line of duty and is intended to serve as an opportunity to renew our commitment to the health, wellness and safety of wildland firefighters.
 

On July 25, 2008 a falling module from an engine company was assigned to mitigate hazard trees along a fireline in Northern California to enable crews to safely work in the area. At approximately 1350, a firefighter called ICP for medical assistance for a severely injured crew member—18-year-old Andy Palmer. Emergency medical personnel responded and treated the injured firefighter for severe bleeding. Due to heavy smoke conditions requiring Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) capability, primary helicopter resources were unable to respond to the injured firefighter’s location. Firefighters carried the injured party by litter to a location where he was eventually hoisted into a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter (USCG) at approximately 1630. The USCG Helicopter carrying the injured firefighter arrived at Redding Municipal Airport, where Andy was pronounced dead at 1710. This was Andy Palmer’s first fire assignment. This line of duty death would later be referred to as the Dutch Creek Incident.

“We honor and remember through learning”

Brit Rosso
Director, LLC

This incident and the loss of Andy shocked and saddened the wildland fire service. Many wondered how it could take more than three hours to get a severely injured firefighter off the line and to a hospital. After all, this fire was being managed by a Type 1 Incident Management Team. There were line EMTs assigned to the fire. There was a medical plan in place. Yet with everything in place, we still lost a young firefighter.

Everyone on scene and in a supporting role that day did everything they could do to help Andy Palmer. The questions and discussions that emerged in the aftermath were about reducing the chance of this happening again. What do we need to change in our systems? Where are the holes and gaps that allowed this to happen? What new tools do we need to provide to our firefighters, fire managers, dispatchers and IMTs when it comes to planning for a medical response and evacuation to a hospital?

In July of 2009, the Dutch Creek Accident Review Board (ARB) recommended eight corrective measures to “…help prevent similar accidents from occurring in the future”. In May of 2010, NWCG released a memo titled “Dutch Creek Serious Accident Investigation Report Response: Three (3) New Incident Management Team (IMT) Daily Operation Protocols/Procedures”. This memo later became known as the “Dutch Creek Protocol”.

One of the recommendations in the Dutch Creek Protocol memo was to add some standard language to the ICS-206 Medical Plan, Block 8 titled “Emergency Medical Procedures”. These procedures were printed on adhesive pink stickers by the Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center (LLC), and could then be added to the Incident Response Pocket Guide (IRPG) medical section. More than 100,000 stickers were sent out to the field. Over time, the pink sticker protocol was tested, refined, and is now referred to as the Medical Incident Report (MIR), which was first included in the IRPG in 2014. It was recently updated and improved for the 2018 IRPG.

 

Action: Watch this video and then do the following:

  • On page 2 in your IRPG, review and discuss the value of “Planning for Medical Emergencies”.
  • On page 118 & 119 in your IRPG, review and discuss how to use the “Medical Incident Report”.

The topics, review, and resources for the NWCG “Wildland Firefighter Week of Remembrance” have been contributed by the Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center, the Wildland Fire Leadership Subcommittee, the Interagency Helicopter Operations Subcommittee, interagency dispatchers, and many other field SMEs.

 

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NWCG Latest Announcements

NWCG Risk Management Committee Releases Safety Bulletin: 24-001 Use of Respirators on Wildland Fires

Date: November 7, 2024
Contact: Risk Management Committee

The Risk Management Committee (RMC) has released Safety Bulletin: 24-001 Use of Respirators on Wildland Fires. As wildland fire respirators are available through several established vendors, wildland fire personnel need to understand regulations and limitations of respirator use in the workplace.

Safety Bulletin 24-001 outlines the following topics regarding respirator use for wildland fires:

  • Requirements for Respirator Use
  • Voluntary Respirator Use
  • Current Respirator Options
  • Unknown Risks of Respirator Use

This bulletin also provides mitigation recommendations to help reduce smoke exposure for wildland firefighting efforts.

References:

NWCG Safety Bulletin: 24-001 Use of Respirators on Wildland Fires

NWCG Smoke Management Guide for Prescribed Fire, PMS 420-3

VIDEO: Protecting Wildfire Personnel from Smoke - How Incident Management Teams Address Smokes Risks

VIDEO: Smoke, Knowing the Risks

The Incident Position Standards and Next Generation Position Task Book are now available for Medical Unit Leader (MEDL)

Date: October 16, 2024
Contact: Incident Medical Subcommittee

NWCG is excited to announce that the NWCG Incident Position Standards for Medical Unit Leader, PMS 350-39 and NWCG Position Task Book for Medical Unit Leader (MEDL), PMS 311-39 are now available.

The Performance Support Package, which for MEDL includes the Incident Position Standards and Next Generation Position Task Book, were developed through the Incident Performance and Training Modernization (IPTM) effort. The Performance Support Package will support trainees, those qualified in the position, and evaluators.

References:

NWCG Medical Unit Leader Position Page

NWCG Incident Position Standards for Medical Unit Leader, PMS 350-39

NWCG Position Task Book for Medical Unit Leader (MEDL), PMS 311-39

The Wildland Fire Learning Portal is Now Available

Date: October 9, 2024
Contact: Wildland Fire Learning Portal

The Wildland Fire Learning Portal (WFLP) is back online following a migration to a new learning management system (LMS) application. The WFLP team is actively addressing any issues that may arise as a result of the update, and appreciates your patience as the team works to enhance your experience. NWCG will share information from the WFLP as it is available.

Should you have any issues with accessing or using the WFLP, please use the link below to submit a ticket through the Help Center.

References:

Wildland Fire Learning Portal

Wildland Fire Learning Portal Help Center

NWCG Equipment Technology Committee Releases New Equipment Bulletins

Date: September 27, 2024
Contact: Equipment Technology Committee

The Equipment Technology Committee (ETC) has released three new Equipment Bulletins:

  • ETC-EB-24-003 Diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) in fuel containers.
  • ETC-EB-24-004 Two-compartment fuel and oil container (Dolmar) unavailable in the United States (US) and reminders for upkeep of current inventories.
  • ETC-EB-24-005 Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Inspection, Care, and Maintenance.

These bulletins remind field going personnel of important issues related to equipment for wildland firefighting efforts.

References:

NWCG Alerts

ETC-EB-24-003 Diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) in fuel containers

ETC-EB-24-004 Two-compartment fuel and oil container (Dolmar) unavailable in the United States (US) and reminders for upkeep of current inventories

ETC-EB-24-005 Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Inspection, Care, and Maintenance