Extended Emergency Rescue in Mining – First Aiders close the Gap between Accident and Emergency Services
In an emergency, minutes can make the difference between life and death. In the raw materials industry, however, it can take a long time for the public rescue service to arrive at locations that are difficult to access. There is a risk that injured people may remain without professional medical assistance for a long time.
This is where the concept of “extended trauma rescue by first responders” comes in. Tactical Medical Mining Rescue (TMR®) was developed specifically for mines and similar working environments. It trains mine rescue teams and company paramedics in standardised, medically didactically tested procedures to safely carry out life-saving measures without an emergency doctor – such as haemostasis, pain therapy, resuscitation or ventilation.
A documented case from the Zielitz potash mine shows how this training works in practice: After a serious accident at a depth of 800 metres, a miner was stabilised thanks to the quick and considered actions of the mine rescue team. The first aiders stopped the bleeding, alleviated the pain and kept the injured man in a stable condition until they were able to hand him over to the emergency doctor – around an hour after the accident.
In addition to the medical benefits, the legal and mining law framework conditions are also important: companies are obliged to provide appropriate first aid if the public rescue service is not available in time. By standardising and certifying the TMR® concept, companies, first aiders and doctors gain legal certainty.
There is a detailed specialist article on the topic and the accident in the potash mine outlined above entitled “Advanced trauma rescue by first aiders – standardised training and emergency competence – a legal classification using the example of the raw materials industry”. It is available on the BG RCI website: www.bgrci.de, page ID: #ATVR and under this link
