ToddTheMechanic

I'm a mechanic and AEMT/rescueman for very large, specialized, sensitive industrial infrastructure. Mechanics for this equipment work in thick pressurized suits around toxic/flammable chemicals, high voltage, high pressure liquid, extremely large moving parts, in thermal extremes, in confined spaces, and (very rarely) in shallow dive conditions. It isn't saturation diving, but there are many similarities.

As rescueman our role is general health/safety screening, managing minor employee illnesses/injuries, fire suppression, flooding damage control, extraction of victims from the hazard, decontamination, instructing victims on self-treatment/rescue, providing direct medical care in designated safer ("yellow") spaces with the assistance of remote medical direction, and then evacuating the victim from the yellow space to the green space (which is totally outside & away from the equipment to an on-site normal health clinic).

Much of this is done in hyperbaric environment. Routinely we do general health assessments, see common minor illnesses, heat illness, minor side effects related to the hyperbaric conditions — it's much rarer but we absolutely do see entrapment, trauma, electrocution, burns, severe hyperbaric side effects like pneumothorax, etc.

Todd Lowder, AEMT
Industrial Rescueman