The initial dispatch is for a broken leg. The closest EMS unit is dispatched, as is the next-up engine company. Upon arrival of the first EMS unit, they find that there is indeed a worker with a leg fracture, but he’s in a vault in the ground. This is now a confined-space rescue. The good news: The captain and one of the firefighters are members of the department’s technical rescue team. How will they remove the victim from the vault? This article should help answer that question by addressing rope-rescue rigging specific to confined-space rescue.
Belay & Tag Lines
We still use belay lines when raising or lowering our personnel distances of 12 feet or more. There are many ways to accomplish this task, but when multiple rescuers must enter a space in which there’s a victim, there could be rope-management issues.
An easy way to belay rescuers entering or exiting a confined space is to use a Munter hitch. The Munter hitch requires only a large, locking carabiner. Another option: Use a single Prusik.
As a general rule in rope-rescue rigging, belay lines are attached to the rescuer with a direct tie-in. This avoids problems associated with a potential cross-loaded carabiner and/or an unlocked carabiner. However, in confined-space entries, we make an exception to that rule. Why? Because we don’t want the rescuer to become tangled in a line and unable to easily remove it from their harness. A rescuer should be attached so they can easily reach the connecting carabiner and open it to disconnect the belay line.
I prefer to attach the belay line to an upper connection point in the front of the harness, as opposed to the rear dorsal connection, for a few reasons:
- It’s easy to disconnect once the rescuer reaches the bottom of the shaft;
- If there’s a mainline failure (i.e., tripod tips over, cammed pulley is released), the rescuer ends up hanging upright and is able to move freely. If the belay is attached to the dorsal connection, it’s difficult to move and/or self-rescue.
- Hanging from the dorsal connection is very uncomfortable and can create medical issues. Note: For more on this topic, see Tom Pendley’s November 2005 Rescue Training column, “Industrial Strength: Fall protection and rescue techniques for the industrial setting,” p. 88, on harness pathology.
Another consideration: Is the rescuer descending a ladder or being lowered into the shaft or vertical space?
- Descending a ladder: Fall protection can simply be a single Prusik loop wrapped around the rescuer’s umbilicus. In the event that the rescuer loses their balance or grip, they end up with their weight on the dorsal connection of their harness, but only for as long as it takes them to grab the ladder and reestablish their footing. A separate belay line can be used as well and removed when they reach the bottom.
- Being lowered: In the event of a failure of the lowering system or operator, the rescuer will be hanging by the secondary attachment that has been rigged. This would be an appropriate use of a belay line. In this scenario, I prefer to attach the belay to the front upper D-ring of my harness.
Note: The belay line should not be routed to a change-of-direction pulley on a tripod or any other object that’s not bombproof. (A steel I-beam above the entry point is bombproof.) A tripod can topple over or fail due to improper setup; therefore, we must reduce the possibility of the belay line experiencing a failure as well. As in rope-rescue rigging, the belay line should have a direct route from the anchor to the load. Additionally, where the belay line goes over an edge canvas, rollers, ice cube trays or other types of edge, use padding to prevent rope abrasion.
So what about the tag line? The OSHA standard requires all personnel entering a permitted space to wear a harness–specifically, a Class III harness with a lifeline or tag line. This line is attached to the dorsal connection of the harness. In the event that the rescuer becomes unable to remove themself from the space, they can be hauled out. This only works if the rescuer is directly in-line with the exit and there are no obstacles to get hung up on. The standard also states that if the use of these tag lines will entangle or endanger the rescuer, then they can do without it or disconnect it.
As you can imagine, if there’s an atmospheric hazard in the confined space, rescuers must enter the space with the following: a tag line for each rescuer and one for the victim if one is not already in use, and an air line for each rescuer and one for the victim if one is not already in use.
Cleaning the Entrance
We usually enter a confined space with two rescuers. This means sending a total of three tag lines, three air lines and two hardwired communications lines into the space–that’s eight ropes, hoses and wires. (Note: We know from past experiences that the only way to ensure constant communication is with a hardwire system. A system that will allow the rescuer to have hands-free communications works best, as it allows them to continue with their task instead of trying to find a speaker mic or transmit button. The drawback to a hardwire system is that it too must follow you into the space and be managed from the outside.)
One way to manage all these lines: Use an umbilicus, which covers the air line, tag line and hardwire communications with a length of 2″ tubular webbing.
When the umbilicus is properly attached to the rescuer and an attendant pulls on the umbilicus with a hand or Prusik, the air line and communications line are not pulled, as the rope inside performs the strain relief. The umbilicus attachment is on the dorsal connection of the harness. I would be lying if I said it’s easy to “slide” that 2″ tubular webbing over the air line, tag line cord and communications line; however, there are now commercially made, zippered umbilicus covers that do “slip on” in minutes. There’s also an expanding sheath that goes on a bit easier than the webbing and dries faster.
We set up our umbilicus in 150′ lengths and use 8- or 9-mm cord as the tag line inside, with a 150′ breathing air line and 150 feet of hardwire communications cable. Often we end up using a 100′ air line and a 50′ air line. To reduce the profile of the air line connection, the quick connect is unscrewed and the two air lines are simply screwed together. The expandable sheath is rolled back so it’s shorter than the three lines inside. If the dorsal connection on the harness doesn’t have a runner attached to it, then we attach a piece of webbing or a Prusik so the rescuer can reach back and disconnect the umbilicus if needed.
When initially setting this up, ensure you have the appropriate amount of tag line cord out in relation to the air line and communication line. To verify that the lengths are correct, pull on the umbilicus. If the rescuer feels the pull on their dorsal connection, then it’s appropriate. If they feel a pull on their air line or communications line, then it needs to be readjusted.
Even with the umbilicus helping clean up the site, with two rescuers in a space with an air line and retrieval line for the patient, line management can become an issue. Tip: Use a large knot-passing pulley and a runner or strap to get the lines elevated and out of the way. This will make it easier to get personnel in and out of the space when doing vertical entries; it also cleans up the edge. Also, color-coded umbilicus covers simplify line management.
Raising & Lowering
When an overhead anchor is not available, a tripod or davit arm is often used to create an overhead anchor. It’s best to rig this anchor as high as possible. Why? When extracting a victim in a Sked or other device with a bridle, it’s easy to run out of vertical space. This results in an awkward manual raise by several team members.
A pre-rigged 4:1 haul system is often used with a double-cammed pulley on the top. This allows the haul team to haul, and when they stop, the cam functions as the progress capture device. Double-cammed pulley systems have a cam release. It’s best to “haul slightly” on the haul line and then gently pull on the release. The release cord is held open and the haul line can be slowly lowered. This function should be done by two different people so two hands can be used to lower and, in the event of a problem, the release cam can be “let go,” which will set the brake. It’s possible (but not recommended) to release the cam without hauling slightly on the haul line. The problem: There may not be someone to manually lower the load. Always have someone haul slightly to ensure the line is managed. Tip: When setting up a 4:1 pre-rigged haul system, look for 3″ rather than 2″ pulleys. There is a noticeable difference in the reduction in friction in 3″ pulleys (i.e., it will be easier to haul).
If you’re making a 4:1 haul system from double-heaved pulleys without a cam, then you’ll need to have a brake on the system. A Prusik used in conjunction with a Prusik-minding pulley works well.
Tripods
A tripod is often used to create an artificial high change of direction. It could be an industrial or rescue model (industrial models are shorter). After watching several near-miss incidents involving tripods, my first piece of advice is to always secure the legs. Tripod legs are limited as to how far they can spread apart by their connection at the top or head. If the legs are not secured by a rope, chain or cable, they can spread farther than intended, cracking the head or cap; this can cause catastrophic failure of the high change-of-direction anchor. (Aren’t you glad you didn’t rig your belay line through that?)
When using an Arizona Vortex, there’s no stop built into the head. This is one of the features that makes it such a useful tool. It will also allow the head to drop to the floor when the legs splay out in the blink of an eye.
If you don’t have enough manpower on scene to hold each leg, try to secure the legs using pickets, stakes or by tying them to distant anchors. It’s important to note that when using a tripod, the direction of pull on the haul system must be in-line with one of the legs. If this cannot be done, then a change-of-direction pulley should be anchored directly below the tripod.
What Happened?
So what happened to the guy with the broken leg who was trapped in the vault? The rescue captain did a risk-vs.-benefit analysis based on many factors: 1) the patient was awake and talking; 2) the injury was caused by falling from the ladder (no overhead fall hazards); 3) the victim was in a vault (no fear of a wall cave in); and 4) there were other workers in the space with no respiratory problems. Taking all this into consideration, the rescue captain allowed his personnel to enter the space prior to the arrival of an air monitor and ventilation equipment.
A firefighter/paramedic and a firefighter/rescue tech climbed down the ladder with tag lines secured to them with a bowline around their waists. They splinted the victim’s leg.
Upon the arrival of engine companies and the TRT unit, atmospheric monitoring was performed, ventilation started and the victim was packaged in an LSP Halfback extrication harness. A tripod was set up overhead and the patient was raised with a pre-rigged 4:1 haul system and belayed with a Munter hitch belay. The patient was then placed in a Stokes basket and carried to the initial-arriving medic unit and transported to a local hospital.
Final Thoughts
Confined-space entry rigging can be very detail-oriented, as there are many things that can go wrong once the rescuers have entered the space. We rely on a lot of technical equipment, but in the end, it comes down to having anticipated the technical needs and resources and having them present. Prior practice and use of all of the tools in your tool box will prepare you to have a successful outcome.
