MASSENA – Earlier this year, the Massena Fire Department was awarded a $1,500 grant from the Northern New York Community Foundation to assist the department in increasing its emergency medical response capabilities.

The grant award was able to purchase MFD two important and lifesaving pieces of equipment for use on EMS and rescue calls, according to a post published online by Massena Permanent Firefighters.

First, the department was able to purchase a powered portable suction unit. This unit replaces its much smaller, hand operated vacuum pump.

The suction unit is used to remove fluid from a patient's airway during cardiac arrests or other emergencies where an airway needs to be kept clear and secure. Previously, the departments operated with very small hand operated units that often filled quickly or became cumbersome to operate.

With this new unit, the battery operated pump will perform suction for responders and allow Massena EMTs to better and more efficiently clear a patient’s airway.

The fire department was also to purchase a Reeves stretcher to better assist our members in carrying and removing patients from a difficult area to a waiting stretcher. 

Previously, the department had relied on blankets, tarps, backboards or plastic carrying devices to move patients to a stretcher - but ran into issues doing so.

The soft carrying devices were not able to provide enough back support to keep a patient straight and would often bend while the rigid carrying devices would become difficult to maneuver down staircases or tight turns.

The department said its solution to this was to seek out a device that was pliable and rigid at the same time. The Reeves fits that description perfectly and will better enable MFD members to more safely and efficiently move patients to an awaiting ambulance stretcher.

The Reeves is a vinyl shell with rigid slats in the center, it has straps to secure the patient, handles to better grab and is weight rated for over 700lbs.

The fire department thanked the Northern New York Community Foundation immensely for their support in its endeavor to make responders jobs easier, the community safer and the chance to more readily save a life.