British RAF Mountain Rescue Service develops new casualty warming system

The British Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue Service (RAF MRS) has developed a new and effective system to treat and prevent hypothermia while evacuating casualties.

The system is based on revolutionary Blizzard Survival products, designed and manufactured in the UK by a subsidiary of medical equipment specialists Performance Systems of Houston, Texas.

Flt Sgt Dave Wilcox, head of the Training and Standards Cell at the RAF MRS Headquarters at RAF Valley, North Wales, said: “Many casualties are wet to the skin when we reach them and it is not usually practical to strip them in the mountains.”

Instead of stripping wet clothes from casualties before taking steps to warm them up, all RAF Mountain Rescue Teams (MRTs) are now trained to wrap them immediately in an ultralight Blizzard Survival Bag or Blanket (left). They cover this with a conventional sleeping bag for more insulation, then add a second Blizzard Survival Bag or Blanket as an outer layer.

The new three-layer system, nicknamed CASWRAP, works because Blizzard Survival products are waterproof and windproof, as well as providing thermal insulation equivalent to 2-3 season sleeping bags. When a conventional bag is added as an intermediate layer, even casualties who are soaked warm up rapidly and are fully protected from wind and rain.

“Casualties may have to be kept warm for up to eight hours and our Blizzard-based CASWRAP system has proved to be an effective and efficient way to insulate them,” said . Flt Sgt Wilcox

“Some of our teams also use Blizzard Survival Bags and Tubes instead of a sleeping bag when spending the night on the hill and find them very warm.”

In addition to the Blizzard Survival Bag and Survival Blanket, teams regularly use the Survival Tube, which offers a thermal shelter for up to three people, and the Survival Jacket (left), which provides protection against hypothermia for walking casualties while enabling full movement.

The full range of Blizzard Survival products has been adopted as standard equipment and is carried by all RAF MRS personnel in England, Scotland and Wales.

Ofer Molad, CEO and President of Performance Systems Group, said: “Just as Goretex took over from non-breathable fabrics in the outdoors, Reflexcell-based products are proving far superior to single skinned bags and space blankets wherever thermal performance and light weight are essential.”