Ever since I moved to the Bay Area I've been interested in learning search and rescue techniques. In the event of an emergency I have no family here to take care of, so as long as I'm ok I'd like to help others.
Of course, I first moved to the Bay Area 15 years ago, and it's only been this weekend when I finally got that training...
The Southern Marin fire district apparently got some FEMA grant money to train lay people to be citizen responders in case of disaster. California is always befalling some disaster or another and efforts are being made in general to make sure the population is ready to deal with them. For instance around here a "Get Ready Marin" campaign is in full swing, running seminars for people to learn what they need to do to prepare for an emergency. Given the recent fires in San Diego and the 5.6 earthquake last week these threats do seem sufficiently real for people to be inclined to take preparation seriously. (Interestingly people used to be advised to stock enough supplies to self-sustain for 72 hours, but ever since Katrina the rule of thumb has become 5-7 days.)
The training I got this weekend was over and above that kind of individual preparation. While volunteers could be helpful in wildfire or other local calamity, it's the occasion of a large earthquake when our help would be most needed. In an earthquake tremendous damage can occur with no warning or chance for evacuation. Injuries will be numerous and serious and widespread. Furthermore the infrastructure rescue professionals need to be able to perform their rescues may itself be out of service. For all these reasons having trained neighbors perform a frontline triage can be invaluable to saving lives by providing basic first aid, performing simple rescues, minimizing additional dangers, and pointing out to the professionals where their help would be most productive so that it can be provided to the most people possible.
Towards these ends we learned about fire suppression, how to turn off utilities, how to search a structure (after first assessing whether it's safe to do so), how to safely remove victims who are trapped, and how to evaluate victims' injuries and begin to provide basic treatment when possible. This course differs, however, from standard first aid and CPR courses in their skills and approach. As one of the firefighter trainers explained it, those courses are for if you are in the supermarket and someone collapses. This training is for when the supermarket itself collapses.
When faced with a situation with so many victims, the goal is to give as many of them as possible the best chance of survival. This may mean that people with more serious injuries are left to fend for themselves. For instance if a victim is not breathing opening their airway might help, and that we can do as we triage. But if there's no pulse the amount of manpower CPR would take to attempt to revive the victim (which is likely impossible anyway given the magnitude of the trauma that put them in that condition in the first place) might deny a dozen more people in a less critical condition from their rescue. There are only so many rescue resources to go around, so the idea is to apply them in the way that does the most good for the most people, even if that means making some tough decisions.
Still, what is the same about every (well, nearly every) rescue course I've ever taken is the admonition to make sure that you yourself are not jeopardizing yourself. Better one victim than two, the philosophy has always been. Nonetheless it's nice to feel that with training certain risks can safely be taken in the effort to help.
So I'm glad I got to do the course and learn the skills I did. I do, however, have a criticism with the training, which is that the one element that was overlooked was how we as trained volunteers will be mobilized. I *think* we are perhaps supposed to contact a volunteer coordinator in our neighborhood, who in theory will give us further instructions, but it wasn't entirely clear. This element is just as critical as any other, as it's of no use for us to have any special training if we do not know when, where, or how we are to employ it. I presume with a few phone calls I can get it sorted out as far as I'm concerned, but as far as the program on a whole is concerned this aspect should be better dealt with in the curriculum.