Tag Archives: wilderness first aid

WAFA with HRR: Springtime in the Grand Canyon –

WAFA- Wilderness Advanced First Aid  with the  HRR – Hualapai River Runners in Peach Springs, AZ

Abi and I drove the Sierra Rescue rig down through Nevada across the Colorado River at Hoover Dam and into Peach Springs, AZ for two weeks of wilderness advanced first aid (WAFA) and swiftwater rescue training with the Hualapai River Runners. We’ve been running trainings for the Hualapai for quite some time now, and its always good to get back to the big ditch.

HRR WAFA group shot

The group showing off their hypo wraps

WAFA: The group inside the warehouse, after arts and crafts with splints

The group inside the warehouse, after arts and crafts with splints

Wilderness first aid hypothermia wrap

All bundled up and warm in the hypo-wrap

WAFA skill: reducing a shoulder

That’s one way i wouldn’t advise reducing a shoulder

It was a great four days of WAFA (Wilderness Advanced First Aid Training). On the fourth day we finished the class with a big mass causality  incident involving a simulated train vs buss collision. Trauma! Moulage! Fun! Students had to triage and figure out some difficult extractions from the broken down bus where we staged the scenario. Weather was great, a gave us the first taste of spring.  Julie and Zach swapped places and Julie will join Abi along with a few flagstaff locals for the swiftwater rescue portion of the course which will involve 2 days of on-site  training and a downriver overnight from Diamond Creek to Pierce Ferry.  Load up those big blue pontoons and have a some fun!

Wilderness First Aid and Swiftwater Rescue with the Hoopa tribe

All 20 atop the raft

The USCG recommended passenger load may have been exceeded for this group shot! All 20 students atop the raft, on day two after a really fun day of swiftwater training. The Trinity River was flowing around 1100 CFS and made Hawkins Bar an ideal training site. Some fun features, and good challenging cross-river swims!

We had yet another great week of Wilderness First Aid and Swiftwater Rescue training up on the Trinity River with the TCCC of the Hoopa Tribe. We at Sierra Rescue have been doing a combination Wilderness First Aid / Survival and Swiftwater Rescue Course up in Hoopa for over 10 years now. Day one was all first-aid focused and the wounds lab and splinting lab were highlights as usual. Fun to see the students improvising in the wilderness setting. We spent the evening of the first day building survival shelters and running hands on wilderness first aid scenarios.  It was great to watch the students thinking  through the variety of problems we threw at them.

wilderness first aid; upper extremity splint

Wilderness First Aid Arts and Crafts: splint building. Building a splint in the wilderness environment takes a little practice. Remember  to make your splint, functional, and comfortable. 

Some much needed springtime rain fell on our second day and boosted the river flows on the Trinity, contributing to 3 great days of swiftwater rescue training. It took a little encouragement to get everyone in the water, but all rose to the occasion and demonstrated some great rescue skills. This was a high energy group who learned a lot and had fun doing it. Highlights were running the rapid at Hawkins Bar and shallow water crossing the entire Trinity River using the 10 person wedge technique.

Entrapments, swiftwater rescue

Student prepares a stabilization line for entrapped victim. Willow Creek provided an excellent training site for entrapments

It was great to get back up to the Trinity River and spend some time training with the Hoopa TCCC. They have a great program going up there and we at Sierra Rescue are happy to continue working with the members of the Hoopa Tribe and TCCC. I’m bound for Arizona next  to teach a Wilderness Advanced First Aid class in Peach Springs, Arizona. –ZB 2.29.14

Always Be Prepared; Boys Scouts in Wilderness First Aid training

So says the boy scout motto:

Always be prepared.

The ten scouts and parents who took our 2-day wilderness first aid training this past weekend in Coloma are hopefully now more prepared than before. These guys are off for a week-long excursion to Mt. Fillmore area later this summer.

Hopefully they won’t have to put their skills to the test, but it never hurts to “be prepared” -ZB 4.29.13

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wilderness First Aid Training with CCC

Thank you to the California Conservation Corps. We had a great two days teaching the new backcountry crews wilderness first aid and CPR. A special thanks to the administrators and leaders that made this training possible. For the first time ever, the backcountry crews received a wilderness component to their training.

This group will spend the next 6 months in California’s parks, working on trail crews all over the state. In class we found both literally and figuratively, that a little fake blood goes a long way. In two days students got lots of hands on practice with backcountry first aid skills and participated in staged scenarios.

Great work out there and have an awesome season!

wilderness first aid training course with California conservation corps.

Reviewing wilderness first aid skills

wilderness first aid training course with CCC

Successful skill scenario complete

wilderness first aid training course with CCC

California conservation backcountry crew

practicing wilderness first aid training skill

Practicing new wilderness first aid skill

scenario practice during wilderness first aid training course

Practicing new wilderness first aid skill