There’s been a lot of extra training for tower crews lately and the Otsego County EMS Rescue crew was no different this week in Michigan. The men and women who maintain and repair the communications towers in Michigan are known as “steeplejacks.” Last week, a full-scale simulation of the rescue of a steeplejack took place 100 feet up a 530-foot tower. The purpose of this exercise was to evaluate the region’s response to a tower climber at risk. During the simulation, the steeplejack was supposedly unconscious and unable to assist in his rescue. Specially trained City of Lansing and East Lansing Fire Department steeplejacks brought the unconscious worker to the ground. The exercise was coordinated by Michigan’s Public Safety Communication System (MPSCS). Otsego County EMS/Rescue, under the direction of EMS Chief Jon Deming, was designated the “authority having jurisdiction” (AHJ) for the training exercise. “The training exercise worked out very well,” Deming said. “We were glad to be included. The interaction with the state and the Lansing and East Lansing Fire Department was good. Our equipment was compatible with theirs and that was very important.”
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