AUSTIN, Texas – The summer heat of August is upon us, but for Austin firefighters, responding to calls in the frigid cold can be a challenge.
AFD Division Chief Eddie Martinez said the heat of the Texas summer means the heavy bunker gear creates even more dilemmas.
“The gear that you wear when you go into a fire is very effective at protecting you from the heat, but it's also very effective at keeping the heat in,” Fire Chief Martinez said.
Emergency workers warn of excessive heat
Monday, August 19, was the hottest day so far this year in Central Texas, and Travis County emergency personnel are warning residents about dangerous conditions, signs of heatstroke and how to prevent it.
A firefighter's core body temperature rises rapidly, increasing the risk of heat stroke.
“We've had three major fires in the last few weeks and three firefighters have been working so hard to put out the fires that they've become dehydrated and have had to be put on IV fluids,” Martinez said.
Last week's fire at West Campus on 21st Street is an example of how AFD is responding to high heat situations. Dispatch calls have been increased.
“We didn't need a third alarm for the fire suppression system, we didn't need to put more water on the fire, we just needed more rotation personnel to get a bigger work-rest cycle,” Martinez said.
West Campus Apartments Fire
The Austin Fire Department responded to an overnight fire in the 700 block of West 21st Street.
During the summer, AFD crews rotate to air-conditioned fire trucks as part of cool-down protocols, including during traffic incidents where they are more likely to be exposed to heat on paved roads, and CapMetro buses are sometimes deployed to provide additional relief during extended firefighting efforts.
New technology is also helping Austin firefighters deal with hot conditions: Air breathing systems now have built-in tracking and monitoring devices.
“It keeps me from being part of any incidents or emergencies,” Australian Fire Service firefighter Rachel Lewis said.
Austin Firefighters and Mental Health
The Austin Firefighters Association has proposed a mental health relief package for Austin firefighters.
Firefighters like Lewis no longer have to stop working the fire to check a standard gauge. The information is literally right in front of them. LED lights in the mask show airflow conditions in real time.
“Having a head-up display has changed my life. It allows me to work and know my capacity to work,” Lewis said.
Air supply information is also sent to a nearby laptop and monitored by the incident commander. Martinez demonstrated how air level information is displayed on a computer screen.
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“The PAK tracker not only allows us to see the firefighter's air consumption, but if a catastrophic event occurs, we have another tool next to them, like a detector,” Martinez said.
The handheld device is linked to a computer system that looks for a homing signal and displays a lighted bar graph that grows in size as it gets closer to the Air PAK, which is helpful to rescue teams.
The AirPac system was put to good use during a house fire in January when part of the building collapsed, briefly trapping four firefighters.
“This could have easily led to a loss of life, but with the pack tracker and the heads-up display, the firefighters know how much air they have left, how long they have left to operate. It brings calm and control. All of our fire chiefs have the sense of being able to find that person, know where they are, how much air they have left. That's huge. It's life-changing,” Lewis said.
The next step for the Air PAK system could be to expand use of its tracking technology, perhaps even eventually to coordinate rescue teams in wilderness or during wildfire rescue missions.
