Update On Lancaster County Rescue Task Force Response

As most of you are aware, last year the Lancaster County Rescue Task Force was formed and went into service in January 2009. The task force is made up of the following three organizations: Millersville Fire Company Columbia No. 1 Fire Company and the Lancaster County Hazmat Team. When the county rescue task force went into service, the former collapse rescue team from Millersville went out of service for a standalone resource.

Since the rescue task force has been in service, there have been several incidents where the task force has been requested and some confusion arose as to why more than just Millersville Fire Company was dispatched. We hope to try and clear up any confusion with this letter and answer any questions you may have.

It is important to understand that this new entity is a rescue “task force” which is made up of several separate organizations that all depend on each other. If the rescue task force is requested to your incident, and the incident commander recalls one or two of the organizations that make up the task force, the task force may not be able to provide the services that are requested or needed at the scene.

We understand that initially it may not be clear as to why the hazmat team and a second fire department are dispatched to a building collapse or a confined space rescue, but from the task force concept it is imperative that the team be dispatched and respond as a whole.

The hazmat team not only provides important air monitoring and other sampling capabilities on the scene of these rescue incidents, but the team is also the vehicle in which the members at large that are not members of Millersville or Columbia No. 1 can respond to task force deployments.

Columbia No 1 brings additional manpower and equipment that neither of the other two organizations have. When you think of the Lancaster County Rescue Task Force, it should be thought of as the three organizations that make up the task force. It is also important that you are aware of the different types of response available from the rescue task force.

The Levels Of Response Are:

Rapid Assessment Team - This is a small number of team members that will respond to the scene and or communicate with the incident commander to determine the appropriate level of response. They can respond to the scene just to provide guidance or to determine what level response from the task force is needed.

Partial Task Force Deployment - this is the deployment of only the assets that are needed and can only be determined by the rapid assessment team from the rescue task force.

Full Task Force Deployment - This is the dispatch and employment of all organizations in units that make up the task force. When an incident commander at the scene request the task force, this is what will be dispatched. The incident commander may request the rapid assessment team if they do not feel the whole task force is needed or just need some additional guidance. It is important to remember that the different organizations that make up the rescue task force should not be thought of in their traditional roles.

For example, hazmat team members will be doing more than air monitoring and sampling. Columbia No. 1 members will be doing other jobs that are not related to water rescue. All the members of the task force have been or are in the process of being trained in all of the technical rescue disciplines in accordance to NFPA 1006 and 1670.

The Lancaster County Rescue Task Force has grown out of need in our fast growing county. It is inevitable that the future more organizations will be added to the task force as needed to increase the capability to meet the demands.

We hope that this letter has answered some of the questions that may exist, or clear up any confusion as to why more than just one organization is dispatched. Should you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact either myself or Keith Eshleman at the information below.

Philip A. Colvin, Deputy Director, Lancaster County Emergency Management
P.O. Box 219, Manheim, PA 17545, 717-664-1203
pcolvin@lema.co.lancaster.pa.us

Keith Eshleman, Task Force Leader,
Millersville Fire Company, P.O. Box 52, 26 East Charlotte St.
bkeith.eshleman@Verizon.net