By Tom Vines

Photos Courtesy Forsyth County News/Jim Dean

A March 2 response to a motor vehicle accident provided north Georgia firefighters with an unusual and challenging extrication situation.

At 1544 HRS, the first of a series of 911 calls to the Forsyth County 911 Center reported a vehicle down an embankment on State Highway 306, locally known as Keith Bridge Road, near Cumming, Ga.

At 1546 HRS, the Forsyth County Fire Department dispatched Engine 8 (as ALS service), Engine 9, Engine 12, Rescue 12 (all three BLS service) and Battalion 1, along with Forsyth County EMS (a private ALS unit).

Engine 8 was the first unit on scene at 1549 HRS. The crew found a 2005 Buick LaCrosse down a 40' embankment and in a creek, where it lay overturned with the roof submerged in about 2 ½ feet of water.

The only person in the vehicle was a 41-year-old female who was suspended upside-down by the seatbelt. Her knees were pinned by the dashboard. Although the seatbelt prevented her from being submerged, she was struggling to keep her head above water. She pressed her hands against the roof in an effort to create more space in the vehicle, but half her face was still in the water. Increasing the urgency of the situation, the water was slowly rising as the runoff from rain and melting snow spilled into the creek. In addition, the car was slowly settling into the mud of the creek bed.

To stabilize the vehicle, firefighters ran cables from the winch on the front of the heavy-rescue vehicle to the car.

With six firefighters and a sheriff’s deputy working in the creek, it was close quarters and, therefore, difficult to maneuver around the vehicle. While some rescuers commenced the extrication, others were tasked with simply holding the woman’s head above water. With the air temperature in the low- to mid-30s, the woman exhibited signs of hypothermia and other various traumatic injuries.

It was also a challenge to get the extrication equipment in place, but firefighters were able to run the hydraulic hose directly to the heavy-rescue unit. To remove the front passenger-side door, rescuers used Amkus spreaders and cutters. Once the door was removed, rescuers spread the dash using a medium ram. When everything else was clear, they cut the seatbelt and lowered the driver on a backboard and removed her from the vehicle.

Rather than struggle to carry the woman up the creek’s steep slope, the firefighters walked the driver—still on the backboard—200 feet through the creek bed to an area where there was a more graduated slope. This is where they transported her to a waiting ambulance.

At 1634 HRS, Med 9 transported the driver to North Fulton Hospital in Roswell, Ga., where she was admitted in critical condition. Physicians treated her for traumatic injuries and hypothermia.
All units were clear by 1656 HRS.

Sources: Forsyth County Fire Captain Jason Shivers provided information for this report. Some additional details were taken from NorthFulton.com, ForsythNews.com and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

LESSONS LEARNED/LESSONS REINFORCED:
Captain Shivers makes the following observations:

1. “Multi-agency operations can be performed very smoothly with the best outcome for all involved when everyone knows their place and works to ensure a safe scene and the most efficient rescue possible.

2. “Challenging terrain becomes even more challenging when environmental factors that your personnel may not be accustomed to are introduced. Operating in the snow and very cold temperatures are somewhat rare for us in Georgia.

3. “A typical extrication experience, in this case an upside-down vehicle, can suddenly become atypical and very challenging when additional elements are encountered. The entrapment in and of itself wasn’t that unique, but the position of the vehicle in the water at the base of a steep embankment and against a concrete culvert added several more degrees of difficulty.

4. “Stabilize, stabilize, stabilize! This occurrence had the very real possibility of getting much worse very quickly if the vehicle slid or sank any further into the creek. Our options for a rapid stabilization were quite limited and it was made obvious very quickly that our best course of action was to use the built-in, front bumper winch system from the heavy rescue to stabilize the vehicle.

5. “Sometimes you just have to put yourself into a little danger. We had to insert personnel partially into the vehicle to simply keep the occupant’s head out of the water. She very likely would have drowned had we not been able to rapidly access her and support her head.

6. “Civilians/bystanders/witnesses can be your best help and your worst nightmare. Fortunately, this incident worked out well, and no public safety personnel or civilians were injured during the rescue. However, we realized after the fact just how close several civilians came to being in grave danger as well. A family that lives nearby was the first to arrive and certainly was of assistance by supporting the occupant and providing pillows to keep her head elevated prior to our arrival. They quickly removed themselves from the scene once we made contact with the patient. However, they could have easily become injured or pulled under the vehicle if it had slipped any further. We are currently in the process of having that family recognized by the county commission for their bravery and assistance.

7. “It’s important to give your troops the opportunity to recover. Battalion 1 pulled Company 8 out-of-service for a few hours following the incident to give them a chance to warm up and get into dry gear. They had all been in 2 ½ feet of very cold, flowing water for well over 30 minutes. They needed to recuperate and hydrate themselves and, of course, perform some equipment clean-up and maintenance.”

Rescue Editor Tom Vines is the co-author of “High Angle Rescue Techniques” and “Confined Space and Structural Rope Rescue.” He operates a rope-rescue consulting group in Red Lodge, Mont.

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