Ms [last name removed],

Thank you for your request for Information. It will be considered under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. I will provide a response promptly and in any case within 20 working days.

Regards

Richard Foreman
Information Access Officer
London Fire Brigade
169 Union Street, London SE1 0LL
T: 020 8555 1200 ext 30401
E: [email address]
 
Visit our website at www.london-fire.gov.uk

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Dear Ms [last name removed]

I am writing in  response to your request for information which we
received on 26 October 2011. Your request was considered under the
provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) and I can confirm
that we do hold information that meets the parameters of your request. The
information you have requested is contained within a document, entitled:
FRS Manual, Volume 2, Operations, incidents Involving Rescue from Road
Vehicles which is available to order from the TSO, please refer to the
internet for TSO contact details. As such the requested information is
exempt from disclosure by virtue of S21(a)^1 of the FOIA – information
accessible to applicant by other means. S21 FOIA is an absolute exemption
and does not require for us to consider the public interest test.

I have provided some generic information (each incident has the potential
to create its own unique circumstances) in turn below:

Firefighters are often faced with hazardous situations. Each situation
will be different, with changing hazards and risks, some of which may not
have been faced before. There is a need for a process that recognises the
rapidly changing circumstances of an operational incident. This is the
dynamic risk assessment (DRA) process. DRA involves the continuous
assessment and control of risks in the rapidly changing circumstances of
an operational incident. The overall responsibility for this process
remains with the incident commander (IC). However, every firefighter has
the responsibility and the authority to take immediate action in the
interest of safety and all operational personnel must be capable of
performing the process to ensure the safety of themselves, their
colleagues, the public and the environment.

“What methods do you use to help an injured person out of a car?”

There are many methods including the creation of space, glass management,
vehicle stabilisation, casualty stabilisation, use of cutting lifting
spreading  tools etc.

“What policy do you have on moving and handling for getting a person out
of a vehicle?”

London Fire Brigade policy 540 – Manual handling operations procedure,
sets out the actions to be taken within the Authority to control manual
handling activities and applies to all (LFB) Establishments and other
sites where LFB personnel are working, including scenes of fire and rescue
operations.

“Do you get back-up paramedic or ambulance or doctor or nurse to assist?”

We always take the advice of medically trained personnel on medical
issues. However any need for assistance would be subject to, and result
of, an on going dynamic risk assessment.

“Do you immobilise the person with a splint and use a board to get the
person out of the car?”

No the LFB do not carry this type of equipment.

“What equipment do you deploy?”

A wide range of equipment that is carried on appliances such as, cutting
lifting spreading equipment.

I trust this concludes your request. However, if you wish to obtain
information on a specific scenario, please give as much detail as possible
and address your query to me.

You have the right to ask the Authority to review this response. If you
wish to do so, please set out in writing your reasons for asking and
address them to David Wyatt - Head of Information Management at
[1][email address]

You also have the right to ask the Information Commissioner for a decision
as to whether the Authority has dealt with your request in accordance with
the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and/or Data Protection
Act. If you wish to do this, you must first ask the Authority to review
its decision; and then you must apply promptly to the Information
Commissioner at; The Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House,
Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.

Thank you for your interest in the London Fire Brigade.

Kind regards

Aidan Bartley

Information Management

Strategy & Performance Department

London Fire Brigade

Direct T: 020 8555 1200 ext 30086

Direct F: 020 7960 3617

E: [2][email address]

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^121 Information accessible to applicant by other means

(1) Information which is reasonably accessible to the applicant otherwise
than under section 1 is exempt information.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1)—

(a)information may be reasonably accessible to the applicant even though
it is accessible only on payment, and

(b)information is to be taken to be reasonably accessible to the applicant
if it is information which the public authority or any other person is
obliged by or under any enactment to communicate (otherwise than by making
the information available for inspection) to members of the public on
request, whether free of charge or on payment.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (1), information which is held by a
public authority and does not fall within subsection (2)(b) is not to be
regarded as reasonably accessible to the applicant merely because the
information is available from the public authority itself on request,
unless the information is made available in accordance with the
authority’s publication scheme and any payment required is specified in,
or determined in accordance with, the scheme.

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Data Protection Act 1998

Your personal information will be processed by the London Fire and
Emergency Planning Authority for the purpose of fire service
administration. We will keep your details secure and will not disclose
them to other organisations or third parties (except contractors or
suppliers working on our behalf) without your permission unless we are
legally required to do so. For more information about how we use your
personal information, see our notification entry (Z7122455) at:
[3]www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk

Copyright

All LFEPA produced material is the copyright of the London Fire and
Emergency Planning Authority unless stated otherwise, and usual copyright
restrictions apply. Any information we provide to you in responding to a
request for information, is still the copyright of the London Fire and
Emergency Planning Authority unless stated otherwise. If you wish to copy
any information we have provided, you may do so in any format for any
non-commercial purpose provided that:

•  it is reproduced accurately;

•  it is not used in a misleading context;

•  the source and copyright status of the material are acknowledged; and

•  the material you produce is published or distributed without charge.

Material produced by any other organisation is the copyright of the
organisation which produced it, unless stated otherwise.

Applications for permission to reproduce material for any commercial
purpose may be made to David Wyatt, Head of Information Management, LFEPA,
169 Union Street, London SE1 0LL. Permission is normally granted free of
charge to educational organisations.

Re-use of Public Sector Information

You have a right to ask us if you can re-use information for which we hold
the copyright. Your request must be in writing. If we agree in principle
to the request, we would communicate to you the conditions for re-use and
other licence terms within 20 working days. We issue licenses, which
include the conditions for re-use, on a case by case basis. To request a
licence to re-use our information, contact the Information Access Manager
at the above address. This does not affect our copyright.

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References

Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. mailto:[email address]
3. http://www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk/
4. http://www.london-fire.gov.uk/YourSafety...
5. http://www.london-fire.gov.uk/EmailDiscl...

Ms [first name removed] [last name removed]

I am writing to acknowledge receipt of your email of 6 February, asking
that I review Mr Bartley’s response to your FOIA request (reference
FOIA1076.1) of 26 October 2011. 

Please note, I intend to focus my review on the following:

Does the London Fire Brigade have a policy document on manual handling at
vehicle accidents.
If so, please advise whether you are able to disclose it.

If I have misunderstood your review request, please contact me to let me
know.

I will provide you with my review response promptly and in any case within
20 working days.

I note your suggestion about the provision of training in the removal of
casualties from vehicles. The Brigade does not provide such training and
has no plans to provide such training. We would always recommend that the
emergency services are called to vehicle accidents and that casualties are
removed by trained fire and rescue service or ambulance personnel.

David Wyatt
Head of Information Management & Performance
Strategy & Performance Department
London Fire Brigade
169 Union Street, London SE1 0LL
T: 020 8555 1200 ext 30352
M: 07775 826 404
E: [1][email address]

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Thanks for your email and your further clarifications. Of course, the London Fire Brigade has training for its staff in the removal of casualties from vehicles and we also have policies. As I said, we don't currently provide any advice for members of the public in casualty removal. I will deal with both points as part of my internal review.

David Wyatt
Head of Information Management & Performance
Strategy & Performance Department
London Fire Brigade
169 Union Street, London SE1 0LL
T: 020 8555 1200 ext 30352
M: 07775 826 404
E: [email address]

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Dear Ms [last name removed]

I am writing in response to your email on 6 February 2012 requesting a
review of our response to your request for information (our ref:
FOIA1076.1) originally received on 26 October 2011.

I have reviewed our response dated 22 November 2011 and I am satisfied
that you were provided with full response. You originally asked for “an
actual policy document on manual handling and transfer of getting people
out of a car” and you were advised about the Brigade’s manual handling
policy (no 540) and other information. I therefore consider the matter
closed.

You then wrote to us on 6 February 2012 requesting an internal review
asking “what methods do you use to get an injured passenger out of a
car?”. You also asked “if you have an actual policy document on manual
handling and transfer of getting people out of a car and whether it can be
made available…”. For simplicity I have treated this part of your
correspondence as a separate request for information which we have
considered under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000
(FOIA). I can confirm that we do not have a specific policy on removal of
casualties from a car, etc. in a road traffic accident. There is the
general policy (no 540) about Manual Handling which was mentioned in Mr
Bartley original response and which is now attached. 

However, in addition to Policy 540, I am pleased to provide the following
information specific information about the handling of casualties in road
traffic collisions:

·         Manual Handling Note 4 Casualty Handling at Special Service
Incidents*

·         Firefighter Development Programme – Stage 1 Module: 4 Session
code: M4.41 Title: Road traffic collisions – casualty care.

·         Firefighter Development Programme – Stage 1 Module: 4 Session
code: M4.42 Title: Road traffic collisions – procedures.

You should note that information contained in the Guidance Note 4 relating
to manual handling of casualties is consistent with that contained in the
Development Programme documents. As with all guidance, timely revision
will be required – e.g., changes to legal references, terminology,
improvements in technology, etc., which are addressed through the
Brigade’s publishing schedules and manually relayed in the interim, during
skills acquisition and station based training where required.

On 7 February 2012 you wrote to me again, quoting from my acknowledgement
sent to you on that date in which I said: "I note your suggestion about
the provision of training in the removal of casualties from vehicles. The
Brigade does not provide such training and has no plans to provide such
training. We would always recommend that the emergency services are called
to vehicle accidents and that casualties are removed by trained fire and
rescue service or ambulance personnel." You then asked; “I wish to request
an internal review that includes this as well as a policy that can be
disclosed to the public via this charity website”.

I consider there is no review to be undertaken under information rights
law in respect of a simple factual statement. We do not hold information
on the subject and, as a matter of policy, I have provided you with the
Brigade’s view that we have no plans to create the training you suggest. I
note your view that we “… must have automatically an emergency app to show
how to get people out of a car and not have to wait for other services…”
but there is no proposal to create or provide such an “app” at the present
time. I can only reiterate that we would always recommend that the
emergency services are called to vehicle accidents and that casualties are
removed by trained fire and rescue service or ambulance personnel.

I consider that my response to you dated 8 February 2012 and the
information in this response addresses the issues you raised. You then
wrote to me again on 8 February 2012; “…petitioning for your excellence to
be disseminated for everyone to copy and learn from “video masterclass
apps” so that we can all be trained and through “Wii type of training
simulators” so that we can all learn vital life saving skills in a
emergency situation”.

I can only refer you to my response above. I would also add that whilst
the London Fire Brigade has a duty, under the Fire and Rescue Services Act
2004 (S8), to rescue people in the event of road traffic accidents, we are
not the lead agency in London for road safety which rests with Transport
for London and the London borough councils. We do not believe that we have
a lead role in providing road safety advice or advice about the removal of
casualties, but are happy to work as partners with other agencies.

I remind you of Mr Bartley’s initial response to your request for
information where it was explained to you that you can find guidance
within the  FRS Manual, volume 2, Operations, incidents Involving Rescue
from Road Vehicles, which is available to order from the TSO. In a spirit
of helpfulness, I have enclosed below the contact details for your
convenience:

TSO information

The ISBN for this volume of the Fire and Rescue Service Manual is
0-11-341305-X and you can

Order online: www.tsoshop.co.uk

Mail, telephone, Fax and E Mail:

TSO, PO Box 29, Norwich, NR3 1GN

Telephone orders/General enquiries 0870 600 5522

Fax orders; 0870 600 5533

E Mail; [email address]

Telephone 0870 2400 3701

TSO Shops

123 Kingsway,London,WC2B 6PQ

0207 242 6393; Fax 0207 242 6394

16 Arthur Street, Belfast, BT14 4GD

0289 023 8451;Fax 0289 023 5401

71 Lothian Road,Edinburgh,EH3 9AZ

0870 606 5566; Fax 0870 606 5588

You may, should you wish to, make an appointment to view the said document
at the LFB library, please contact our Library Manager who is happy to
allow access to our library’s resources by appointment. The Library
Manager is Michelle McHugh and she can be contacted on 020 8555 1200
x30427 or by email [1][email address] .

You have the right to ask the Information Commissioner for a decision as
to whether the Authority has dealt with your request in accordance with
the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and/or Data Protection
Act. If you wish to do this you must apply promptly to the Information
Commissioner at Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.

David Wyatt
Head of Information Management & Performance
Strategy & Performance Department
London Fire Brigade
169 Union Street, London SE1 0LL
T: 020 8555 1200 ext 30352
M: 07775 826 404
E: [2][email address]

show quoted sections

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. mailto:[email address]
mailto:[email address]
3. http://www.london-fire.gov.uk/YourSafety...
4. http://www.london-fire.gov.uk/EmailDiscl...