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“Firefighter down!” It’s the call that fellow Firefighters never want to hear in the heat of battling a major fire. Yet, standard procedures call for a team of three or four Firefighters at every major fire to be at the ready to rescue a downed comrade.

They are designated as the RIT, short for Rapid Intervention Team. The team is solely responsible for rescuing downed, lost or injured firefighters.

To be sure the RIT has the gear they need, specialized equipment has been assembled and placed on units at each Fire Station. The equipment includes search rope packs, various forcible entry tools and breathing air adapters which allow rescuers to quickly change a victim’s breathing air supply without removing their mask.

Personnel are currently conducting training and practicing scenarios to become proficient with the new equipment packs.