Arizona Center for Fire Science Excellence
Arizona Center For fire SERVICE Excellence
Rope Rescue Training Program
The Arizona Center for Fire Service Excellence (AzCFSE) has a clear mission. They administer state-of-the-art continuing professional education courses. Additionally, they conduct accredited certification testing and practical skills evaluations. These are all based on national fire service professional standards. Their programs meet the comprehensive training needs of fire and rescue personnel, emergency managers, and other responders. Ultimately, this enables them to better protect lives and property within their communities.
The Arizona Fire Training Committee is a volunteer group. It consists of dedicated fire service professionals from departments statewide. This committee coordinates and manages the Arizona Fire School, presented every September. Additionally, they handle other training classes throughout Arizona.
Technical Rope Rescue Skills Training
The Arizona Fire Training Committee provides technical rope rescue training. It offers this at the Arizona Fire School each September. Additionally, it delivers outreach training upon request to agencies across Arizona. Currently classes provided include Rope Rescue Skills—Operational Level and Rope Rescue Skills—Technician Level.
Rope Rescue Skills – Operational Level
The course is intended to meet basic rope rescue training requirements for Arizona technical rescue teams (TRT) and wildland Rapid Extraction Module Support (REMS) teams and is meant for statewide training, such as the Arizona Fire School, and can also be used for regional and local training programs.
This 20-hour course provides students with fundamental rope rescue skills. It meets requirements for low- and steep-angle environments. Specifically, it covers awareness and operational levels as outlined in NFPA 1006. Students can apply these skills to many technical rescue disciplines. For instance, they are useful in rope, confined space, and swift water situations. This applies to urban, rural, mountain, and wildland fire (REMS) settings.
Students will participate in intensive classroom sessions. Furthermore, they will engage in hands-on practical skills and scenario-based exercises. Instructions and skills will include pre-planning and size-up for operations, equipment and rope review, life safety knots, and anchor/mechanical advantage systems. We also cover patient packaging and carries, low- and steep-angle evacuation systems, high-angle rappelling, basic rigging/belay systems, and Twin Tension Rope Systems (TTRS).
Rope Rescue Skills – Technician Level
This 20-hour course meets rope rescue training requirements for Arizona Technical Rescue Teams (TRT) and wildland Rapid Extraction Module Support (REMS) teams. Additionally, it serves for statewide training, such as the Arizona Fire School. Similarly, it can also be used for regional and local training programs, much like the operational-level class.
Course Description
This course provides students with advanced rope rescue skills to meet requirements in the high-angle environment to meet the technician level as outlined in NFPA 1006. These skills can be applied to many disciplines of technical rescue, including rope, confined space, and swift water in the urban, rural, mountain, and wildland fire (REMS) settings with the use of lightweight equipment and rope. Students will participate in hands-on practical skills and scenario-based exercises. Instructions and skills will include incident command for technical operations, high-angle evacuation systems, high-angle rappelling, Twin Tension Rope Systems (TTRS), high-angle evacuation exercises, team-based supported and unsupported pickoffs, climbing rescues, and other skills.
This training is provided through a partnership between the Arizona Fire Training Committee and the Arizona Center for Fire Service Excellence. The Training Committee sponsors and provides the training, and the AzCFSE provides the certification for classes provided.
Next Training/Date
Rope Rescue Skill – Operational Level Class scheduled for March 6th– 8th, 2026 in Parker, AZ hosted by the Buckskin Fire District.
Contact
For more information or to host a class contact:
Tim Van Scoter
Arizona Fire Training Committee
Technical Rescue Coordinator
[email protected]
602-881-2733
Or visit – Arizona Center for Fire Service Excellence
https://azfiretraining.org/contact-us/
