Gas rescue: the profession

Gas rescue teams are specialised emergency responders who work where the air itself is the hazard. Their job is to reach people in atmospheres that are toxic, oxygen-deficient or explosive, to bring them out alive, and to bring the situation under control without adding new victims.

The profession grew out of mine rescue at the turn of the twentieth century, when the first reliable breathing apparatus made it possible to enter workings filled with afterdamp and firedamp. As the chemical, oil and gas, and metallurgical industries expanded, the same skills were needed in plants, tank farms, sewers and ships. Today gas rescue services operate at industrial sites, in municipal utilities and as part of national emergency systems.

Where gas rescuers work

• Chemical and petrochemical plants — leaks of process gases, work inside vessels and columns.
• Oil and gas production — wells, pumping stations and gathering networks with hydrogen sulfide.
• Metallurgy — blast-furnace and converter gas, rich in carbon monoxide.
• Utilities — sewers, wells, pumping stations and underground vaults.
• Storage and transport — tanks, rail cars, ship holds and cargo spaces.
• Mines and tunnels — the historical origin of the profession.

What makes the job different

Firefighters, paramedics and industrial safety officers all deal with gas hazards from time to time. For a gas rescue team it is the core of the work. Every member is trained to:

1. recognise an atmosphere that cannot be breathed;
2. measure it with instruments rather than trust the senses;
3. work for long periods in respiratory protection;
4. carry out rescue, isolation and ventilation as a coordinated team;
5. keep a reserve: no entry without a standby team ready to go in after them.

The team

A typical shift team consists of a team leader and three to five rescuers, with a driver-operator who also runs the vehicle-mounted equipment. Teams train together and enter together; nobody works alone in a hazardous atmosphere. Larger incidents are handled by several teams under a single incident commander, with one team always held in reserve.

Training and fitness

Rescuers pass a medical examination and regular physical tests, because working in heavy respiratory protection raises heart rate and body temperature. Initial training covers gas properties, instruments, breathing apparatus, first aid, rope and confined-space techniques. After that, practical drills in smoke and heat chambers, on training grounds and at the actual facilities they protect continue for the rest of a rescuer's career.

About this site

This is an independent, non-commercial reference about the gas rescue profession. It is written for students, new team members and anyone who wants to understand how this kind of work is organised. It is not a manual: procedures always follow the regulations and the instructions of the facility and the service you work for.

Continue with Typical tasks, Equipment, Safety or the Glossary.