Smith descends with the help of other firefighters, simulating how a rescue can be made from a cramped space.

On Wednesday, Lawrence-Douglas County firefighter Jason Smith hung upside down from a rope as his fellow firefighters lowered him into an underground hole on Vermont.

The rappelling pulley and block-and-tackle system used for the maneuver resembled mountain climbing equipment, something not typically needed in downtown Lawrence.

But an incident last spring – during which someone had to be rescued from a hole in West Lawrence – opened the department’s eyes to using a pulley system to aid in many types of rescues, said Capt. Pat Karlin of Lawrence-Douglas County Fire & Medical.

Firefighters work on their rappelling skills.

“It’s more of the priority that we are ready for any type of situation,” Karlin said. “If it saves a life, that’s all that we can try to do. Because otherwise, it’s too high of a price to pay.”

Each station specializes in a certain type of rescue, and those at Station No. 1 received a training course in rope rescue on Wednesday. During the course, they tried out a newly purchased pulley system, Karlin said.

Jason Smith is lowered into a hole on Vermont Street near Station No. 1 on Wednesday as Lawrence-Douglas County firefighters receive rope and pulley training.

A rescuer wears a harness and can be lowered and lifted with less effort thanks to the pulley system.

“We want to make sure that we have a system that is set up that can be used in a number of different scenarios,” Karlin said, noting high-building or underground rescues as possibilities.

The most common situation that requires rope work is when a utility worker falls from a high platform and either becomes stuck or trapped in a confined space, Karlin said.

While firefighters from Station No. 1 worked with ropes on Wednesday, those from Station No. 2, which specializes in confined-space rescue, went through a session with department trainer Brian Trigg.