It was February when Bob Wallis, a Gibson County, Ind., farmer, was saved from a grain bin with a red aluminum rescue tube. A farmer's daughter, farmer's wife and farmer's mother, Joyce Yeiser, saw the newscast and started it all.
She called the Daviess County Fire Department. They didn't have one, so she approached FFA advisers from Daviess County, Apollo and Owensboro Catholic high schools to see if they would help.
Their students collected donations for two months to afford one rescue tube -- usually about $4,000 -- when Midwest Ag Systems agreed to sell the device at a discount and give the teens another tube for free.
The fire department utilized the pair at a demonstration Wednesday at their east station on Kentucky 54 where Chief Dwane Smeathers said they'll be partnering soon with local farmers and volunteer fire stations county-wide to train emergency responders on how to use the lightweight, aluminum device.
Fire Inspector Harvey Henderson, with help from an instructional video, told onlookers it takes 325 pounds of pressure to remove a victim weighing about 165 pounds from grain submerged up to his or her waste.
"You can get sucked under in seconds," Henderson said. "Grain acts like a boa constrictor. Every time you breathe out, the grain compacts tighter around you, and you have less space to take your next breath."
Firefighters assembled the lightweight, four-paneled tube around 17-year-old Sarah Murphy, just submerging her head, as Midwest Ag Systems' Jeff Harris explained a hypothetical rescue.
"The first piece goes over the victim's front to keep them calm," he said. "And keep in mind, you're talking 15 to 20 guys to perform a rescue like this. It takes lots of ropes and lots of working together."
In a rescue situation, handles on each panel help workers drive the tube deep into the grain or corn, he said, surrounding the victim on all sides. Clamps at the top and middle give a stronger seal, but they aren't required.
Pointing to one of two mid-sized shop vacuums on either side of the display, Henderson added, "The purpose of the device is to remove the grain from the person rather than removing the person from the grain."
Farmers, agencies and local businesses also donated the vacuums and a few 100-foot extension cords, said Jason Smith, FFA advisor at DCHS.
The two rescue devices will be housed with the fire department, one at the east station and the other at their airport location. Community members interested in training should contact the fire department in the coming weeks.
"Early 911 activation is key," Henderson said. "The longer it takes us to get there, the higher the chance we'll be performing a body recovery, not a rescue. Grain bin rescues take time and people. We might never use this equipment, but if we do, we'll be ready."
Copyright 2012 - Messenger-Inquirer, Owensboro, Ky.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
