We know a guy that needed a semi tractor cut up. He just happened to know we would cut it up for him. So, that’s what we did. A quick-hitter class of sorts, but its not everyday you get to cut up a semi tractor. We had a good mix of seasoned and rookie firefighters that worked hard and learned.
Corey Temple from Fire Service Inc brought a bunch of TNT hydraulics and a new Paratech Gen3 Pak40 chisel. We also had a couple of sawzals and a heavy wrecker at our disposal. Below are a couple pictures from the training and a teaching point or two. Many of these things you can talk about with your crew while checking out a semi around town. Talk with your local heavy wrecker operators as they have a wealth of knowledge about big vehicle contruction, chains, lifting, brakes, suspensions, etc.
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Heavy wrecker operator John Miller explaining how to hook chains to capture the suspension. Remember: if chain hooks are going to break it will typically be on the small side. Hook the chain so it drops down and does not fly upward.
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The cab was pretty tore up by this point, however, lifting the roof can be done easily by cutting both A posts and extending a ram.
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Set-up for steering column displacement with hydraulics. Realize cribbing will be needed as the fiberglass hood will crumple.
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