Pittsburgh drill

Rapid Intervention Team Drill

By Lt. Scott Barfield

TCESD 3/ Oak Hill FD.

Purpose

• The Pittsburgh Drill was developed by the Rapid Intervention Training Associates staff to force train your RIT to work as a team.

• If any one of the team members that have entered the obstacle course fail to give anything but 100% the entire team will fail the drill.

Set Up

• The obstacle course is 50 ft in length with 3 obstacles evenly spaced out to encounter (under/over/through). The first is a small wall breach (low profile), the second is an A-frame (3 pallets screwed together), and the third is a 10-12 ft tube (three 55 gallon drums welded together or wood chute 10' long and 20" wide square) and another low profile

Instructions.

• . A section of 1 3/4 inch hose is stretched from the entrance of the course through all 3 obstacles to the firefighter victim at the end (preferably a 150 to 175 lb dummy in fire gear, SCBA, and facemask on - rather than a live victim, they will get to beat up).

• A minimum of a 4 person, to a maximum of 5 person team will enter the course with face pieces covered (wax paper works great and simulates a Smokey vision).

• The catch here is the team only gets a maximum of 20 minutes to complete this course

Cont.

• They have to maneuver all three obstacles to the victim then work as a team to bring the victim back through the obstacle course while on air

• At the entrance to the third obstacle (the tube), two team members will low profile through the tube to the victim while the remaining crew waits in place at the entrance of the tube

Cont.

• Once through the tube, the condition of the victim is that he has a good air supply but is unconscious. The two team members must prepare the victim for a low profile back through the tube using a handcuff knot or girth hitch.

• The victim is rolled out of their SCBA, the handcuff knot is tied to the victims arms or girth hitch to the chest, victim SCBA is tied off in front of the victim on the handcuff knot rope keeping the victim in a low profile.

Cont.

• The rope has been thrown back through to the team members waiting. These members will pull the rope with the SCBA and victim back through the tube.

• The two members will now low profile back through. Once everyone is back through the third obstacle the team works together to maneuver the victim over the second obstacle (A-frame).

Cont.

• Send two rescuers over the A-frame before the victim so that they can pull from the opposite side, then onto the first obstacle (wall breach).

• The team must send two members through the breach first to pull from the opposite side. The remaining team positions the victim into the breach and pushes the victim through as the team members on the opposite side pull the victim through.

Cont.

• The rest of the team must get themselves through the breach and assist getting the victim to the starting point where the time will stop.

• The victims face piece must remain on the face the entire obstacle course. If it dislodges, the team is stopped to fix it (which eats up time).

Cont.

• The team is on air through the entire course.

• Spare SCBA or SCBA cylinders may be kept at the entrance to the course and if (sorry, when) a team members low air alarm sounds, they must follow the course hose back to the spare cylinder to change out and get back into the obstacle course to continue to help with the extrication.

Cont.

• The faster you change out, the faster the team works as a group again. If you elect to peter out and stay out, the team must continue without you.

• If you elect to peter out and stay out, the team must continue without you. If you run out of air while on the course you will be pulled off the team reducing their manpower.

Cont.

• Once the clock hits 20 minutes the drill is terminated regardless of where the victim is in the obstacle course. The average time recorded is 18 to 20 minutes.

The Drill Field

• Drill field lay out of the course.

Wall Breach

• The lay out of the wall breach.

A-Frame

• A-Frame set up.

Average Times

• A good time is 18 to 20 minutes.

• A great time is 16 to 18 minutes.

• An exceptional time is 14 to 16 minutes.

• Anything under 14 minutes is superman status and you can come be my RIT anytime.

Fastest Time recorded

• The current record time is 6:30 held by the Yakima, Washington Fire Department.

Summary

• It's a training tool that teaches teams to work together and share the load. It will show you how important physical fitness is in RIT operations so that we can rescue our people and not recover them.

Stay safe...