Simulated rescue at Bathurst tests SES and NSW Fire Service

You hear footsteps, getting louder and coming towards you. Your heart starts beating faster.

Then you hear breathing, heavy breathing through a mask like a Star Wars movie from decades ago.

This was the situation facing Bathurst State Emergency Service (SES) volunteer Jane Talbot, who agreed to be a ‘victim’ in an emergency rescue simulation on Tuesday night.

Crews from Fire and Rescue NSW and the NSW Rural Fire Service were given the task of finding victims caught in a fire in a boarding house during the simulation.

Some victims were conscious and calling for help, while others lay on the floor unconscious.

It is a situation the dedicated men and women of Bathurst’s fire services could easily find themselves facing in real life.

The training scenario was held in the old Hargraves House on Leena Street, which is a rabbit warren of corridors, rooms, ramps and steps.

Each firefighter wore breathing gear on their face and a heavy oxygen cylinder on their back, as they would in a real smoke-filled building.

They searched in teams of two, winding their way through rooms and down corridors looking for victims to save from the emergency.

While Mrs Talbot was one of the victims who was conscious, she did have breathing problems because of the smoke.

“I couldn’t see anything,” she said.

“All you could hear was bang, bang, bang as they [firefighters] came down the corridor.

“They were crouched down and came banging into the room and then you could hear them breathing.”

Mrs Talbot said it would be a frightening situation to face in real life.

Fire and Rescue NSW inspector Tom Clarkstone oversaw the huge operation involving 62 personnel.

He said winter is the peak time for house fires across the state, making the training even more vital. 

“Visibility is poor to nothing. They have to crawl around to find where they’re going,” he said.

Inspector Clarkstone said the two fire services and SES will often work together at incidents and Tuesday night’s training was a good camaraderie boost.

A home fire safety audit and working smoke alarms are vital to ensure your family is kept safe, according to Inspector Clarkstone. 

For further details, go to www.homefiresafetyaudit.com.au.