From Rescue Magazine
Hanging On to Life- Confined Space Retrieval System
by Mike Reimer and Russ Accardi
You respond to a report of an injured worker at an industrial complex. On scene, you find your patient at the bottom of a vertical utility vault, conscious and moaning. You determine the scenario meets the criteria of a confined space and switch in to rescue mode. After assessing the hazards and implementing lockout/tagout and other pre-entry procedures, your rescue squad begins to set up a fall-arrest and retrieval system to overcome the 15 foot drop to the patient and ensure the safety of the rescuers who enter the space.
The Delray Beach (Fla.) Fire Department Special Operations Team put the Uni-Hoist through it's paces during realistic scenarios in the confined space rescue training program at South Tech Fire Academy in Palm Beach County, Fla. Some of the rescue training evolutions included retrieving victims form inside rail cars and 10,000-gallon steel storage tanks.
Up and Out
The Uni-Hoist Confined Space Entry/Retrieval system is an integrated man rated unit with a positive breaking winch that can hold up to 150 feet of galvanized aircraft steel cable. The unit can be adapted to fit a variety of rescue applications with a selection of attachment components.
The five-piece system consists of a three-piece base that can adjust from 36" to 52" wide, and a two-piece 78" mast with an 18" horizontal reach. The unit will allow a six foot person to be lifted clear of an opening. The winch itself can be mounted to the front or rear of the mast, and can achieve retrieval speeds of up to 30 ft. per minute. The mast has a range of 220 to 360 degrees that allows the operator to lower the entrant away from the opening. Most extensions are also available in various heights up to 156". The Uni-Hoist's best feature is it's adjustable legs, which come in handy when operating on uneven terrain or over large rounded tanks. The entire system disassembles into 4'-long pieces for storage in a vehicle compartment. The manufacturer does offer a four-wheeled cart to carry the components of the Uni-Hoist; however, the cart will not fit on all rescue vehicles, so rescuers will have to hand carry the individual pieces of the unit from the rescue scene.
The Uni-Hoist is unique because of it's Uni-Sleeve attachments that allow rescuers to customize the unit for unusual entry situations. The Barrel Mount sleeve is portable and fits over the edges of steel casings. It is designed for shafts that are too high for the standard base legs that might be found at industrial settings, such as a utility lift station can or a boiler stack. The Hitch mount sleeve is built to hook onto a standard vehicle trailer hitch, and could be used in manhole settings where a vehicle could be positioned near the entry point.
Other alternatives include the Floor Mount, which is attached to a flat surface when there isn't room for as standard base, and the Wall Mount, which is attached vertically near the opening. The Floor and Wall Mount are fixed systems that must be bolted to a solid object, so while they could be useful if installed by on-site industrial teams at spaces where workers enter on a regular basis for maintenance or inspection, these attachments will not be applicable for fire department teams responding to confined space emergencies.
Another accessory to aid rescuers in climbing in and out of a hole is the Uni-Ladder. The ladder attaches to the mast and comes in 4' and 6' sizes. If you need the mast farther out over the hole, the manufacturer offers offsets that add and additional 4' of reach.
For Uni-Que Spaces
The Uni-Hoist's ease of operation, quick set-up time and durability give rescuers another option in a variety of specialized settings, including aggregate hoppers, ships, railroad tank cars, dry bulk tractor-trailers and underground storm sewers.
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