About 50 emergency services personnel, including medical technicians and firefighters, braved cold, windy, rainy weather as they took a vehicle extrication training at the Price County Fairgrounds on Saturday, May 13.

The day-long class, which was presented by members of the Safe and Fast Extrication (S.A.F.E.) Inc., was sponsored by the Central Price County Ambulance Service and attended by Phillips, Park Falls, Prentice, Catawba-Harmony, Kennan-Georgetown, Ogema, Rib Lake, Butternut, Pike Lake, Rib Mountain and Schofield emergency service volunteers.

S.A.F.E. director and lead instructor John Olshanski began the training with a video presentation about the importance of proper extrication training and related some examples of situations which had lead to the formation of the S.A.F.E. organization. He explained why he and many other concerned people from throughout the state recently appeared before the state legislature requesting that extrication training be made a part of basic emergency medical technician and firefighter training.

"Most of the accident scenes emergency services people in the state respond to involve vehicles, yet the only extrication training provided is one lesson in the Firefighter II curriculum," he said. "The state spends at least two million dollars of public funds each year on hazard materials training and certification, but no funds on extrication training and certification."

According to Olshanski, S.A.F.E. an internationally known extrication training program, is a non-profit, 501(C3) organization which depends on private funding. He said there is a great need for more funding for extrication training, research about the best ways to prevent further injury while extricating people from vehicles after an accident, and proper training and certification for extrication instructors.

"In the case of any fire, eventually it will be put out, and in the case of a vehicle accident, eventually the victims will be able to be extricated," he said, "But when there is a vehicle on fire, or when a victim’s life is involved, the question is not if we will get them out, but how fast we can do it."

Olshanski said it amazes him that a person who teaches cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) needs to have more training, practice and testing than someone who teaches extrication. He warned those in the class to be wary of extrication tool companies who offer "training."

"Often, their sales representatives act as trainers, but do not provide training in realistic situations," he said. "In most vehicle accidents, you will not be extricating someone from an undamaged car setting on all four wheels on a smooth, level surface."

He expressed concern about vehicles transporting handicapped people or school children, motor coaches with many passengers traveling to and from casinos and semi-trucks and other large vehicles. He said those situations often presented the need for special extrication techniques, ones few if any local volunteers may have been trained to handle.

"When you want to have your plumbing repaired, do some remodeling or purchase a large appliance, you check around to see who has a good reputation for service and would do the best job," Olshanski said. "If you are the victim of a traffic accident, you can only hope that whoever responds to the scene has the training they need to rescue you as soon and as safely as possible."

There is a lot going on at any accident scene, he said, and the training the S.A.F.E. team members provided would help the emergency services volunteers as they evaluate each situation, follow the directions of the person who was in charge, and practice using various extrication tools.

After the classroom session, the volunteers went outside and S.A.F.E. team member Kurt Wiggert demonstrated the use of the extrication tools they would be using and presented safety guidelines for their use. Donated vehicles which had been brought to the fairgrounds courtesy of Stan’s Auto and DeLeasky Brothers, Phillips, and Adam’s Automotive, Prentice, were set up in realistic accident scenarios, many of them with mannequin "victims" who needed treatment. The volunteers were divided into groups, with each group practicing a variety of extrication techniques under the leadership of a S.A.F.E. team member.

The training session lasted until almost 4 p.m., with another a break for a catered lunch from Phillips Café, which was provided by the Central Price County Ambulance Service (CPCAS). Dorothy Lepke, a CPCAS member who had helped coordinate the training presentation, said she was very pleased with both area participation and the excellent quality of the instruction.

"Olshanski and the other S.A.F.E. instructors offer a very high-caliber training," she said. "Most of them have competed in and won international extrication events. We were pleased to be able to have them here this year; two years ago, they taught a similar class in Prentice."

Lepke said about half of those who attended Saturday’s eight-hour course had no previous extrication training. She said all those who completed the course would receive an extrication training certificate.

"The ambulance service and fire departments who sent volunteers paid their fees for this training," she said. "We had applied for grant funding to help cover our expenses. We haven’t received it yet, but decided to go ahead with the training anyway. We needed to take advantage of the opportunity so that we can be better prepared to care for those who need our help when there is an accident or emergency.