Experts behind the Poznan operation. The biggest problem

• According to Przemysław Rembielak, the difficulty faced by those conducting the search is the need to control emotions: or, as the expert puts it, “we need to realize that we are trying to rescue our colleagues, just like the miners in the collapsed mine.”
• – It has been more than ten hours since he went missing, and as time goes by, his chances of survival are decreasing, he added
• More such information can be found on the Onet homepage

Przemysław Rembielak, a long-time firefighter currently working for the Independent Association of Fire Experts, spoke with Ornet after local rescuers found the firefighter who had gone missing during a night operation following a fire and two explosions in an apartment building in Poznań. Unfortunately, both were found dead.

Behind the scenes of the rescue operation in Poznan. “First we have to try to stabilize the structure”

– You can’t let your emotions get the better of you here. Because a building after a fire or explosion is a threat in itself: If something is hanging from the second floor, or if the walls deflect, as was the case in Poznan, it could collapse, Lembirak told Ornette. It draws attention to two aspects.

– The fire that caused the collapse of the building during the search operation continues to “break out”. This means that there are places that are burning, no longer hot, but you have to put it out by adding water on one side and the other. This water flows somewhere, to the basement, that is, to where the missing firefighters went down to put out the “basic” fire.

When we asked if this was just to avoid pouring water from the hose on the missing firefighters, Lumbilak confirmed.

– In such unusual conditions it goes out, because you can’t pour water as you like, but skillfully and accurately. ——he replied.

The second aspect is time.

– More than ten hours have passed since the disappearance, and the chance of survival has also decreased with the passage of time. For example, even under hospital conditions, if there is bleeding in the body, doctors will rush to stop the bleeding. But in Poznan, for rescue purposes, it was first necessary to try to stabilize the structure so that the participants in the operation would not come into harm’s way.

Special search and rescue team arrives at the rescue site in Poznan

Another example of an emotional compliance strategy is the use of dogs. Lembirak, who is familiar with the current situation in Poznan, said those in charge of the operation summoned a special search and rescue team from Lodz to the fire scene.

– It was a neighboring group, since members of the Poznan group took part in the night operation and simply put out the fire, several of its members were injured, although not seriously – he said.

– A group of people from Łódź arrived, but they could not immediately introduce their dogs into the search operation. First, you need to put out the fire, so that it does not burn or smoke. Someone on the side may ask: why not bring in dogs right away? But you do not introduce a tool that can perish in an instant, and the building can collapse in an instant.