Specialized Rescue

Specialized Rescue Capabilities

Vehicle extrication is accomplished with a variety of equipment and training within the Fire Department. They include the "Jaws of Life", air bags, and vehicle stabilization equipment. We provide quick, safe and efficient rescue services of removal of trapped victims while maintaining advanced life saving techniques with our paramedics.

Lorain County’s Fire Departments participate in a regional effort to provide each jurisdiction with hazardous materials response, collapsed building rescue, collapsed trench rescue, large area search, advanced rope rescue, incident management, fire scene investigation, and swift water rescue.  

Hazardous materials can be found on our railways, roadways, in our industrial and commercial occupancies as well as in our households.  The federal government mandates how each type of hazardous material is to be managed if they are released.  
 
Collapsed building rescue can be necessary in a structure after an explosion, fire, structural failure, earthquake or tornado.  Collapsed trench rescue can be necessary during construction activities.  

A large area search is used when a person or persons become lost, a coordinated search is necessary for a quick recovery of those lost.  

Advanced rope rescue may be needed with persons who may fall from a cliff or become trapped in a situation high above the ground.  

Swift water rescue may become necessary if a rescue is needed in a water way with rapidly moving water current.   

Our department is an active participant that has 7 firefighters involved with these regional teams.  Each of these disciplines is expensive to provide but due to their infrequent occurrences, it’s cost effective to provide these services in this fashion.  
 
Additionally, our department is trained and equipped for ice rescue and water rescue responses.