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Kore Kooler Rehab Chair |
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KORE KOOLER REHAB CHAIR Since the introduction of turnout gear, today’s firefighter is totally encapsulated. This allows firefighters to be shielded from the extreme temperatures of today’s fire.
The downfall to being so protected is the condition of heat stress, which is the imbalance of heat gain to heat loss within the human body. This problem plagues every fire department and is a serious concern in the summer months. That is why rehabilitation (“Rehab”) on the fire scene is becoming more of a factor in firefighter health and safety. “Rehabilitation is a post work or rest period management of the individuals environment, activity, condition, and clothing to limit the effects of heat accumulation from work in hot environments.” Windsor Fire & Rescue Services has added a piece of equipment to its arsenal to increase firefighter health and safety. This is the KORE KOOLER REHAB CHAIR made by Morning Pride Manufacturing, who is also a leading manufacturer of firefighter protective ensembles.
The rehab chair uses the practice of “passive cooling” (removal of SCBA, coat, helmet and gloves) for fire ground rehab but goes one step further and introduces forearm cooling. The chair relies on direct contact of the skin with a large volume of water through immersion. Heat is transferred from the hotter arms of the firefighter to the cooler water in the troughs and the cooled blood flows back to the body core picking up additional core heat for subsequent removal.
Specifications:
Construction: The chair is essentially a modified folding chair with arm reservoirs that contain plastic bags filled with ambient temperature water. Features wide rail design to accommodate the bulk of bunker gear The general public may not see the Kore Kooler Rehab Chair as a piece of safety equipment due to the perception that the firefighters on the scene are sitting down and are not actively engaged in firefighting activities but the reality is that the rehab chair has proven beneficial in increasing firefighter safety and allows the firefighters to be more productive on the fire scene. It is a general practice within the Windsor Fire & Rescue Services that the Rehab chairs be used at any working structure fire or any other emergency incident when feasible.
Submitted by: Firefighter Justin Carson REFERENCE: Information and photo referenced from www.morningpride.com |
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