| Our focus this week was vehicle stabilization. Stabilization is the practice of eliminating or greatly reducing the potential for the unexpected movement of a vehicle, during patient extrication or rescue operations. This can be carried out in a number of ways, from simply using wood blocks for cribbing, straps or ropes; or more advanced using mechanical struts - which is what the majority of our training consisted of this week. Members deployed our strut stabilization systems to simulate stabilizing a vehicle in many different orientations, even as lifting devices. We were able to get creative during these drills, and maximize the potential of our stabilization equipment, better preparing us to use this equipment in a true emergency, if needed. |