When Jeff Farquharson rappelled down the 70-foot, dripping rock wall at Dynamic Earth’s Vale Chasm to rescue Perry Simon on the morning of Aug. 25, he wasn’t nervous.
“We’re going to take you down. You’re in good hands, buddy,” he said as he attached Simon’s harness to his own.
It could be that the rescue was just a simulation, or, it could be that Farquharson is trained to deal with these situations, and knows how to stay calm and collected.
“I don’t get nerves,” said Farquharson. “It’s just knowing the next step and communication with the team. You’ve got to help that individual out.”
Farquharson was competing in the International Mine Rescue Competition (IMRC) as part of Sudbury’s Vale West Mines team. Perry was standing – or rather, hanging – in as the victim in the rope rescue scenario.
The Vale team was joined by 27 others, from 13 countries, for the 10th anniversary of the competition, which spanned a week. The competition was hosted by Workplace Safety North and Ontario Mine Rescue.
The winners were announced on Aug. 26, with Canada’s Kirkland Lake Gold taking home first place, Ireland’s Boliden Tara Mines second, and Poland’s KGHM White Eagles in third.
The real winners though, according to organizers, were the challenges themselves.
“These simulations have blown other ones out of the water,” said Workplace Safety North’s marketing and communications specialist, Gabrielle MacFarlane.
Angie Robson, Vale’s manager of corporate and Aboriginal affairs, was at the rope rescue event to cheer on her team, and echoed MacFarlane’s sentiment.
“We know how much prep is involved, and there’s a lot of pride,” said Robson, whose Vale West Mines team was joined by a Vale Manitoba Operations Team. “When the teams come together there is so much camaraderie.”
Along with the rope rescue event, competitors face first aid, firefighting, underground, and technician challenges, along with a less thrilling, but still essential, written theory test.
Competitors can choose between being judged for first aid or the rope rescue challenge, although many will still complete both just for the experience.
Jon Gate is an emergency response and safety coordinator for De Beers in the Northwest Territories, and came to the competition as a judge for the rope rescue event.
He said he has first-hand experience in emergencies like those simulated, and was impressed by their accuracy. The rope rescue event was so real, many opted out.
“A lot of them have never done it, and some teams really know their stuff, they walk in and rock it,” said Gate. “Some walk in and say ‘nope’.”
Simon said the 70-foot drop daunts a lot of competitors.
“The first leap is the toughest, that first leaning over the edge,” said Simon. “That’s where your stomach wants to get ready to go.”
For his part, Simon said he loves participating in the event, and thought Farquharson did a great job rescuing him. Vale West Mines’ performance on the ropes won them third in that category, along with third in the theory category.
