When something goes wrong while firefighters are putting out a fire, that’s when the Rapid Intervention Team steps in. The RIT is trained and ready to do one major thing: rescue a downed firefighter in need of help. In Bridgeport, that team is prepared with additional air tanks and some medical supplies. The team handles any firefighter emergency that happens on scene. Often, these teams are made up of at least four firefighters. The Connecticut Fire Police Association said the teams are established at the beginning of all building fires to ensure the department’s firefighters are protected.
The team is a necessity, since firefighters on scene extinguishing flames don’t necessarily have a chance to stop what they’re doing to help get an injured or unconscious firefighter out of a burning building. Instead, the RIT does that.