Team Salcha
The volunteers of Salcha Fire and Rescue are dedicated to providing on-call, 24 hour professional emergency services to our residents and all visitors to the Salcha Service Area.
Facilities
Salcha is fortunate to have two stations to stage from. Station 1 is on the Richardson Highway near the Johnson Road intersection. Station 1 is the staging area for 911 calls in the northern section of Salcha, which extends to the Eielson AFB main gate exit on the Richardson Highway. Station 2 is on Harry Lucke Trail and is the staging area for 911 calls for the southern section of Salcha, which extends to the southern boundary of the Fairbanks North Star Borough at Richardson Highway milepost 294. The Salcha Service Area is a huge response area to cover!
Emergency Medical Service (EMS) Certification/Capability
Salcha's EMS program is under the medical direction of Dr Caroline Timmerman, MD Emergency Medicine Physician, Fairbanks Memorial Hospital.
Emergency Trauma Technician, or ETT's are the entry-level medic certification. They are trained in all trauma-related basic life support (BLS) tasks. Trauma includes EMS procedures needed to treat patients with injuries resulting from motor vehicle accidents, falls, slips, sprains, etc. They are key members of the emergency response team, typically conducting vehicle operations, ensuring documentation is complete and accurate, and assisting senior medics with trauma procedures within in their scope of practice, such as spinal immobilization, splinting, bleeding control, oxygen therapy and taking vital signs. ETT medical capabilities include assessing and treating patients with injuries, providing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and are certified to use an automated external defibrillator (AED) if needed.
Salcha Emergency Medical Technicians, or EMTs, undergo extensive training and are certified by the State of Alaska. There are three levels of EMT certification for our medics:
EMT 1s are fully trained and certified in all BLS trauma and medical tasks. In addition to trauma, CPR and AED tasks; EMT 1s are certified to assess and treat patients with basic medical problems. They are also trained to assist patients with certain prescribed medications and can administer blood glucose testing to patients. EMT 1 is the minimum certification required to lead an ambulance crew.
EMT 2s are the intermediate level certification for our medics. In addition to all EMT 1 capabilities, EMT 2s are trained in several advanced life support (ALS) techniques to include intravenous (IV) therapy and advanced airway management. EMT 2s are also trained to administer medications via IV and syringe.
EMT 3s are the senior level certification of our medics. In addition to all capabilities of the EMT 2s, EMT 3s are trained in advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) assessment and treatment. As the senior medic on-scene, EMT 3s are typically the most experienced and normally serve as the team leader of an ambulance crew.
Rescue Capability
In addition to a very robust EMS capability, Salcha volunteers are trained in the following specialized rescue skills:
Vehicle Extrication
Vehicle extrication involves specialized techniques and equipment needed to safely remove patients who are trapped or entangled in vehicle wreckage following a motor vehicle accident. For more information on our vehicle extrication capabilities click here.
Swiftwater Rescue
Swiftwater rescue involves specialized techniques and equipment needed to safely rescue a person in waters such as river rapids, storm-swollen streams, or flooded areas. For more information about our swiftwater rescue capabilities click here.
Rope Rescue
Rope rescue techniques are used in situations where a patient must be moved up or down sloping terrain (low angle) or steep/vertical terrain (high angle). Anchor systems and rope management with a focus on safety is the core competency of rope rescue. Once this is mastered, rope rescuers integrate caribiners (metal connectors) and pulleys to create mechanical advantage which makes the task of safely moving an injured patient up a steep slope much easier in even the most difficult terrain.
Wilderness Medic
Wilderness rescue techniques are used when the patient is located in remote areas unaccessable by road. The delayed response and transport in such situations require wilderness medics to have advanced training in performing medical interventions and stabilizing a patient to endure a very long and often bumpy extrication from the remote terrain. Typically rescuers will attempt to first use off road vehicles, such as ATVs, boats or snowmachines, to reach the patient. However, sometimes rescuers are forced to hike-in to reach the patient. Rescuers must often carry both medical gear and their own personal survival gear, since there is a good chance they will spend a night out in the wilderness. Wilderness rescuers use specialized, portable patient extraction devices such as the SKED, essentially a plastic sled, used to package the patient and safely drag them to a location where they can be transferred to an ambulance or helicopter.
Equipment
- Two Advanced Life Support Ambulances
- One Heavy Rescue and Mobile Command Center Vehicle
- One Light Rescue Vehicle
- One Airboat
- One Inflatable Raft with Outboard Jet-Drive
- Two Snowmachines with rescue sleds