Emergency responders put wheels in motion
Ten members of the Siloam Springs Fire Department met with their instructor on the campus of John Brown University, taking turns riding bikes down a set of stairs. The firefighters, EMTs and paramedics are the first of what is planned to be many classes of rescue personnel training to use the bicycles that were delivered to the city after Simmons Foods Inc. agreed to give the city a grant last month.
The new additions are meant to serve a pair of purposes. Fire Chief Jeremey Criner said the bikes will be used to serve the expanding network of mountain bike trails in Siloam Springs in addition to events that draw substantial amounts of foot traffic.
Between training on the mountain bikes and training on a utility vehicle, which was also purchased with a Simmons grant, Criner said the new services will be ready in the next month.
Once emergency responders have been trained on the new mountain bikes, they will be
used to stabilize patients who are injured, but are in hard to reach areas. The bikes will be outfitted with AEDs and basic medical supplies.
“It’s stuff that we can get in there and begin to stabilize the patient and begin treating for those first five to ten minutes,” said Criner. “In reality, we’ll have paramedics that are operating on these things, paramedics and EMTs, that will give us the ability to provide those advanced life-support skills while we’re waiting for the transport ambulance.”
The need for mountain bikes for the department was identified after the trail system in Siloam Springs began growing.
“We’ve been able to manage the few incidents that we’ve had,” said Criner.
But with increased use of the trails near John Brown University and the development of new trails near City Lake, Criner said he expects incidents in hard to reach areas to increase in coming years.
Rob Collett, who taught the mountain bike training course, said participants learned mostly slow-speed skills. In addition to learning to select appropriate clothing and perform bike maintenance, riders were taught how to ride along with vehicles, use hand signals, navigate crowds and negotiate stairs. Riders also had to focus on keeping their bikes and equipment in good condition while performing maneuvers.
The first responders could also get the chance to ride the mountain bike trails, depending on how they progressed, Collett said.
The class was taught through the International Police Mountain Bike Association, of which Collett is a member. Collett has taught the course for several years, based out of Ft. Collins, Colo., where he serves in the UC Health EMS.
“I just can’t thank Simmons enough for what they did,” Criner said. “It was very appreciated.”