Officials said changing technology makes the continued training necessary.

Officials said changing technology makes the continued training necessary.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
LIBERTY -- Township firefighters are always prepared to do battle with fire in an effort to save lives, but this week firefighters practiced a different live-saving task.
For two days, eight cars and trucks sat in the back lot of the township fire department. Some of the vehicles were turned on their sides, while others were completely overturned. The rest of the vehicles remained on all four wheels.
No accidents had taken place in the back area of the department, but the cars, donated and delivered by Schulte Auto Wrecking on Logangate Road, were arranged to simulate various types of accidents.
Firefighters, imagining the cars filled with accident victims, spent two days practicing vehicle extrication techniques.
Gary Klaus of Howell Rescue Systems in Kettering, Ohio, said firefighters are given basic instruction on vehicle extrication in school, but the learning process is ongoing because design and technology in cars continually changes.
"At one time you had air bags coming from the steering wheel and dashboard. Now they are coming out of everywhere, and we have to know how to work safely around that," he said.
Klaus said a key component for firefighters attempting to pull someone from a wrecked automobile is to identify proper cutting angles and make sure the vehicle does not move when the large, heavy, metal-crushing machinery is used to pull away doors and break windows.
Klaus said the process is a lot more involved than using a a hacksaw to cut a hole in a car.
"You have to know where the strong points and weak points are and how the glass comes apart," he said. "Basically, you have to know how the car comes apart."
Fire Chief Michael A. Durkin said the continued training for those in the department is important because of the changing technology in automobiles and the number of extrications done by the department. The department, he said, performs a considerable number of vehicle extrications.
"We do a lot," he said. "We do an average of between 15 and 18 extrications a month."
Durkin said the two days worth of training cost the department about $900.
jgoodwin@vindy.com