BAINBRIDGE, Ohio — The Bainbridge Fire Department has acquired ballistic protection vests for its personnel and is formally establishing a Rescue Task Force, a specialized unit trained to provide emergency medical care in active-threat situations alongside law enforcement.
The vests were funded in part through a Public Entities Pool grant. Each vest is equipped with an Individual First Aid Kit designed for immediate trauma care, including hemorrhage control, before additional medical support arrives.
The Rescue Task Force model allows firefighters and EMS providers equipped with ballistic protection to enter what are designated as warm zones — areas near an active threat that are not yet fully secured — to treat and stabilize victims more quickly than was previously possible under standard protocols.
All three of the department’s ambulances will be outfitted with the new equipment, making it available across the department’s full service area.