VIDEO: Multiple fire departments and districts came together to train for palm tree rescues at Reid Park in Tucson.
Firefighters use a lot of gear including shoes with spikes to rescue people stuck in palm trees.
But now they’re working on a faster, safer way, where those spikes are no longer necessary.
“When someone’s stuck in a tree, you know, time is life,” said Roger Thompson, a firefighter with the Tucson Fire Department. Technical rescue technicians from across southern Arizona have been meeting for years, learning and practicing how to rescue people who’ve gotten stuck in palm trees.
Thompson told 13 News they see one to two rescues each year.
And he’s come up with a new way to execute their rescues. “Implements a lot of the same techniques, but also somewhat streamlined,” Thompson said. “As far as equipment goes, it takes less equipment.”