Firefighter Rehabilitation -- Rehab 41
Firefighter rehabilitation on the fireground is a vital component in ensuring the health and safety of firefighters and addressing immediate medical concerns such as exhaustion, heat-related injuries, dehydration, smoke inhalation, and even heart attacks.
Moraga Orinda Fire District has outfitted a retired but still serviceable ambulance as a combination incident rehabilitation medical support unit. The vehicle carries canteen supplies, easy-ups for shade, misters to cool the immediate area, and seating for responders during long and/or hot incidents. It also carries a limited set of medical supplies to supplement the supplies on ambulances at complex incident scenes where large numbers of casualties may need to be treated.
The deployment of the vehicle and the rehabilitation capabilities is the responsibility of the District's Communications and Logistics Volunteer team (CS245 Team). The medical functions are performed by Volunteer and District EMTs and Paramedics as required.
CS245 Volunteers have been trained in operation of the vehicle and the steps to properly deploy and return the unit to its storage area. Rehab41 is available for other training events and drills where conditions indicate the need for its capabilities for the health and welfare of public safety and community participants.