College Station-based startup ResponderX, Inc. has been selected to participate in the Under Fire Response Innovation Showdown hosted by the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) Product Development Center on Thursday and Friday of this week. Twenty teams were selected from the applicant pool to provide a six-minute pitch of their product to a panel of judges consisting of leaders in the technology and emergency response professions. The top 10 teams will advance to the second day of the competition, at which participants will have the opportunity to perform a 30-minute demonstration of their products at Brayton Fire Training Field and Disaster City to compete for a cash prize pool donated by event sponsors. Any winnings from the competition would be used by ResponderX to fund additional developmental milestones the company needs to achieve before the product can move to field testing.

RELATED: FDIC International 2017 Exhibitor Showcase: ResponderX | Bryan (TX) Startup to Unveil New Firefighter Accountability Technology | Tracking Firefighters Through the Fire

ResponderX's patented TaskForce Tracker system is comprised of a device the size of a deck of cards which is worn on a firefighter’s protective gear and communicates with system computers mounted on fire trucks. These two devices transmit data to a tablet managed by the incident commander or safety officer, which displays each individual firefighter’s exact location on an emergency incident scene. In the event that a responder needs help in a hazardous environment, rescue crews know exactly where to find the downed firefighter, rather than spending precious time searching for him or her. The passively-deployed system tracks firefighters both inside and outside of a structure and collects data on fire conditions to relay back to fire officers outside the hazard zone. There is currently no other device on the market available to emergency responders which is comparable to the TaskForce Tracker system. ResponderX currently has approximately 20 agencies around the country identified as pilot sites, including Bryan Fire Department.

Inspiration for the idea came to company founder and CEO Andrew Jarrett after the 2013 Knights of Columbus Hall fire in Bryan, Texas, which claimed the lives of Bryan Fire Department Lieutenants Eric Wallace and Greg Pickard and severely burned Rickey Mantey and Mitch Moran.

Interested parties may visit www.responderx.com for more information.

Addison (TX) 2017 Sutphen Monarch Model SPH 100 Quint

Truck 101 was placed into service with the Addison (TX) Fire Department on April 5, 2017. Both cab (10 inch raised roof) and chassis are the Monarch model. Cab seating for 4 is provided along with two rear facing EMS cabinets installed behind the driver and officer seats.

CMC, the California-based rescue and work -at-height company dedicated to helping save lives and keeping people safe, today announced its Spring/ Summer 2018 CMC School schedule of courses for rescue professional training.

The CMC School will be available at strategic locations around the country which allow for individuals to enroll in Confined Space Rescue, Rope Rescue Technician I/II and Trench Rescue classes. The Open Enrollment calendar for 2018 courses is now open for early registration here.

“For over 40 years, CMC has remained dedicated to manufacturing and distributing the industry’s most reliable and trusted life safety equipment and gear; however, we also understand that equipment, without the requisite education and hands-on training, can only take rescue and rope access professionals so far,” said John McKently, CMC School Director.

“Through extensive, hands-on courses led by our team of seasoned instructors, the CMC School provides our community of rescue and other work-at-height professionals with the knowledge and training to do their jobs safely, effectively, and confidently,” McKently continued.

In the early 1980s, CMC developed one of the first curriculums for teaching mountain rescue skills to public safety professionals. Their experience as a leader in the rescue equipment industry naturally led to the teaching of rescue techniques and the establishment of the CMC School.

Over the years, the CMC School has evolved to include open enrollment and contract classes on Rope Rescue, Confined Space Entry and Rescue, Trench Rescue, Structural Collapse Rescue, Tower Rescue, Tactical Rappelling, Rope Access, and other unique or difficult access or rescue situations.  

CMC School’s Open Enrollment for the Spring/ Summer 2018 season will run from April - June 2018 and will include the following rescue training courses:

Confined Space