Dominick is a 27-year veteran of the fire service. To provide a proper introduction to rope rescue we sat down with firefighter Dominick Briganti. Need to get out of a building quickly, and have a sinking feeling that the stairs and main entrance are being watched? Ropes can get you there. Alternately, think about an escape-and-evasion scenario. Perhaps you routinely work and play in places where you can't dial 911, or maybe you're interested in learning to be an active bystander or “first care provider” who is willing to make a difference before the professionals arrive. If you choose to build and maintain this perishable skill, you'll unlock a rescue “cheat code” and be able to save lives in ways you'd never previously imagined. In this article we'll give you the basics of what you need to know and what gear can aid your mobility.

How would you get down to attend to them?īasic knowledge of rope rescue including raising, rappelling, and lowering allows us to defy gravity in whichever direction we choose. If you're safely barricaded inside a room, wouldn't it make more sense to evacuate a victim through a window before they bleed to death? Or, for example, you're doing a canyon hike with your family and someone falls 20 feet down a sheer cliff. Never participate beyond the level of your training.ĭuring a mass-shooting scenario, it may not be tactically feasible to try and evacuate the wounded (or yourself) by dragging them down a set of stairs and out the main entrance. Climbing or descending with ropes is an inherently dangerous activity, and a magazine article is not a substitute for hands-on instruction.

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