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Since 1992, NASA Ames Research Center has offered a six-day 60+ hour collapsed structure rescue class. This annual class is sponsored by Ames Research Center's Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (DART) and is designed for firefighters and Urban Search And Rescue specialists. The class can accommodate 24 students and is filled on a first come, first serve basis. The purpose of the class is to present a comprehensive look at the hazards, techniques, and practices associated with collapsed structure rescue. In California, the greatest likelihood of building collapse would be due to an earthquake. This class focuses primarily on collapsed structure rescue from an earthquake perspective; however, collapsed structures rescue resulting from bombings is also covered in detail.
The NASA Collapsed Structure Rescue course began as a way to keep the NASA Team upgrading and perfecting their skills in urban search and rescue (US&R) when they were already certified to Rescue Systems 1 and no more advanced courses were available. Chief Robert Dolci developed this course after personal experience assisting homeowners in putting their homes back on the foundations in the Santa Cruz Mountains after the Loma Prieta earthquake and doing extensive research into the patterns of collapse experienced during the Mexico City, Armenian, and other major earthquakes. Collaborating with structural and civil engineers at NASA and FEMA, he developed shoring systems based on the standard FEMA-approved systems and, in some cases, "beefed up" to fully protect rescue specialists who may be burrowing into a collapsed structure to rescue victims during after shocks.
The course is dynamic and changes each year, typically as a result of knowledge gained from the participation in response to disasters such as Northridge Earthquake, and the Oklahoma City Bombing.
Emphasis is placed on those potential situations where the rescue team does not know the victim's location, and the victim is "heavily trapped" in a very unstable building. The collapsed structure props that are used in the class represent a combination concrete pored in place and concrete prefab structure presenting a physically and mentally demanding scenario. During this six-day long course, 20-25 volunteer instructors and support personnel assist with the class. Many of the instructors represent urban search and rescue teams from all over the country. None of the instructors are paid for their effort.
Although the many of attendees have been from California fire departments, other participants have come from as far away as North Carolina, Florida, and British Columbia Canada. Participants of this class have found it to be very practical and comprehensive. The class is tuition free. DART ask only that each participant's department provide some of the consumable supplies used during the class. Additionally, each student is asked to pay a nominal fee to cover drinks and snacks for the week.
To help keep the costs down, DART attempts to arrange for out-of-town students to stay at the Ames Exchange Lodge at Ames Moffett Field. If space is available, the cost is approximately $30 per night. Students are responsible for their own meals and transportation. A cafeteria, deli, and McDonalds are located on the facility and other restaurants are readily available within a few miles. In the event billeting is not available there are numerous hotels/motels in the area.
All the required course materials are provided, including textbook and class handouts. The students are required to furnish their own personal protective clothing.
This class is not intended for the beginner. It is an advanced class for the serious Urban Search And Rescue professional. Participants are required to be Rescue Systems 1 certified, preferably certified to the level of Rescue Systems II. Participants that are also certified in trench rescue and confined space rescue have a distinct advantage.
The class is physically demanding and the days are long. The first day of class is held on a Sunday. The class is approximately 60 hours long. It starts at 0800 and raps up each day (except Friday) around 1700 hours. The final scenario starts Friday evening and continues through Saturday. The final exercise is a realistic collapsed structure scenario that runs for 12 hours or more, followed by a critique and debriefing
The following equipment is required for all fieldwork:
It is strongly recommended that all participants have kneepads and a respirator (dust masks will be provided but they have their limitations)
NASA
Ames has an extensive emergency services response and recovery training and
testing facility that has grown and evolved over the last 10 years. Recently
significant upgrades have been made to the collapsed structured facility. The
facility is frequently used by local, state, and federal emergency service organizations.
Major exercises have been conducted on this site that have included well over
200 emergency responders. The major elements of the facility include the following:
The existing Collapsed Structure Rescue Training Site has four major elements: a large concrete rubble pile with built in voids and rooms, a simulated concrete collapsed structure, a 30-foot long twin-engine aircraft "crashed" into a portion of the collapsed structure, and large concrete loads for lifting and moving.
The simulated concrete collapsed structure is modular in construction. Elements of the structure can be repositioned to simulate various types of collapse patterns.
Walls and ceilings can be placed in collapsed or partially collapsed offset configurations. This provides realistic shoring, bracing, load lifting and supporting opportunities. Many of the six-inch thick concrete floors and walls are replaceable. This affords the trainee the opportunity to breech walls and floors in a simulated collapsed structure environment. A significant portion of the facility is setup as a confined space with limited overhead.
The structure includes both above grade and basement rooms. The basement can be flooded to simulate working in flooded or partially flooded environment. The basement can also be filled with theatrical smoke to simulate dust, fire, or hazardous material fumes. The facility can be set up to provide for 24 hours or more of collapsed structure operations for a 24-person search and rescue team.
The rubble pile provides an opportunity to train with breaching equipment in a somewhat unstable offset environment. The rubble pile also provides an opportunity for training rescue specialists in the techniques required to support unstable loads in a dynamic environment. Another important feature of the rubble pile is its unique capacity to support the various elements of search training.
The existing rescue cache for training has all the tools, equipment and materials necessary to support any collapsed structure search and rescue operation that can be simulated at the site. This includes cranes, backhoes, large forklifts and other heavy equipment.
The props in the simulated collapsed structure were developed based on experience gained and situations encountered in responding to disasters such as the Loma Prieta and Northridge Earthquakes, the Oklahoma City bombing and the collapse of the World Trade Center buildings.
The following 2001 schedule provides a basic outline of the course. Each year the class changes significantly.
Pre-class Student Assignment (Homework) - Read pages 1-27 and 32-36 of the Collapse Structure Rescue text
Pre-class Student Assignment - Read pages 28-32, 69-73 of text
Pre-class Student Assignment - Read pages 32-65 of Text
Pre-class Student Assignment - Read remainder of Text
