Jie Jianfeng, who joined the army at the age of 18 and is only 29 this year, is a prominent figure in the "special fire truck driving circle." He can drive all types of fire special vehicles, including aerial spray trucks, ladder trucks, detection vehicles, and four-wheel motorcycles.
Today marks the 21st 119 Fire Prevention Promotion Day. Yesterday, reporters visited Wangjing Fire Station and had an up-close encounter with the highest ladder truck currently in service in the city - a 90-meter high one.
### Parking "Positioning" Must Be Accurate
"Driving this vehicle is no easy task, especially when parking during rescue operations; it must be done in one go! This vehicle has 'three no-stops,'" Jie Jianfeng explained. The minimum working radius for extending the arm is 7 meters, so it cannot park where the building spacing is insufficient. It also cannot park under obstacles such as power lines or tree branches, nor above underground garages or wells, as the road surface might not bear the weight of the vehicle. Therefore, upon arriving at the scene of an incident, firefighters must first understand the underground conditions and try to park the vehicle more than 1 meter away from underground garages. "Based on the direction of the fire or trapped individuals, we need to choose whether to park horizontally, vertically, or diagonally to allow the ladder to extend within the shortest distance possible, thereby shortening rescue time." After explaining, Jie Jianfeng opened the door and got into the vehicle.
### Outdoor Operations: Controlling the Ladder
#### Conquering the Highest Ladder Truck in 3 Days
Assume that a fire broke out on the south side of the third floor of the fire station office building, with someone trapped. Jie Jianfeng drove the vehicle to the south side of the building and pointed to a residential building over 40 meters high to the east: "This building will affect the rotation space of the ladder after it rises, so there needs to be at least a 10-meter distance between them." There were also some training equipment pretending to be obstacles on the south side of the building. Under Jie Jianfeng's control, the long ladder truck skillfully maneuvered through the obstacles and eventually parked horizontally about 5 meters away from the office building.
"The joystick controls the extension arm, and once it starts rising, there will be an indication on the display screen," he explained. The buttons in the middle are relatively complex, displaying the number of people in the rescue cabin and reporting sensor data. "Generally, the rescue cabin is the 'main control,' and here is the 'sub-control,' but the 'sub-control' is often more stressful." Jie Jianfeng said that when the ladder reaches a height beyond visibility, the 'sub-control' must completely rely on the data and images on the display screen to adjust the height of the ladder and its distance from the building. Especially at the scene of an accident, the environment is relatively noisy, and there may be sparks falling. The operator must remain calm and not be distracted in any way.
After parking the vehicle, the next step was to raise the ladder for rescue. However, Jie Jianfeng jumped out of the car. Originally, operating the ladder is not inside the cab but on the control panel at the base of the ladder at the back of the vehicle. In addition, there is a similar control panel in the rescue cabin that can switch operations based on actual needs.
Jie Jianfeng told reporters that the rescue cabin is also called the work bucket, and the "hanging bucket" process must achieve "steady, accurate, light" to meet safety, speed, and rescue convenience standards. He conducts simulation training at least once a week. It is reported that the rescue cabin can carry up to 400 kilograms, which means it can transport 4 to 5 people and 80 kilograms of equipment simultaneously.
The 90-meter ladder truck is indeed a large machine, measuring 15.8 meters long, 2.5 meters wide, and 4 meters high. With a red cab and white extension arm, it looks very much like a "Transformer." "This vehicle comes from the renowned Finnish company Bronto," Jie Jianfeng said, patting the cab.
### Wind Speed Exceeding Six Levels Will Automatically Lock
Upon entering the rescue cabin, reporters saw a wind speed meter on the top. "The safe height of the ladder truck depends on the wind speed. If the wind speed exceeds 12.5 meters per second (about six levels), the ladder will automatically lock and will not rise further." After explaining, Jie Jianfeng began to concentrate on operating the ladder. He first raised his left-hand joystick to lift the "big arm," then moved the right-hand joystick upwards, and the "second arm" slowly extended from the "big arm." The height of the rescue cabin gradually exceeded the third floor by a person's height. "If you need to rescue people trapped on higher floors, you must first raise the rescue cabin a little higher," Jie Jianfeng explained. First, leave room for the rescue cabin to rotate, and second, prevent trapped individuals from jumping directly onto the rescue cabin due to fear.
"Beijing fire department's ladder trucks have gradually increased in height, from 30 meters to 40 meters, 50 meters, and suddenly jumped to 90 meters." Recalling the first time he reached a height of 90 meters, Jie Jianfeng repeatedly admitted, "I was scared." "There's just a bowl-thick lifting arm supporting the work bucket, and the higher it goes, the more it sways, making everything on the ground unclear." Although scared, Jie Jianfeng conquered this "large machine" in just three days, earning praise from Finnish experts of Bronto.
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▲ Wangjing Fire Station is equipped with a 90-meter articulated ladder truck.
Photographed by Sun Wei.
After speaking, Jie Jianfeng continued to operate the joysticks with both hands — rotating the rescue cabin 90 degrees to face the office building, then slowly approaching the building until it was about half a meter away. He then lowered the rescue cabin, aligning it with the third-floor window, lowered the safety frame, placed it on the windowsill, and finally opened the cabin door.
Written by Gao Jian
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