Trending Topics

Rescue Cablelight shines for first responders

The Rescue Cablelight not only provides visibility in a dark room, but can also be used to light a clear path to safety

1122-rescue-cablelight-12.jpg

Photo Rescue Cablelight
The Rescue Cablelight illuminates a canal.

As first responders, your ability to locate victims and get out of perilous situations is deeply dependent on your ability to see your way into — and out of — a crisis. The Rescue Cablelight by Lumiflex helps you do just that.

Essentially a long, luminescent cable that emits a continuous stream of green light, the Rescue Cablelight not only provides visibility in a dark room, but can also be used to light a clear path to safety.

“It provides an illuminated pathway, allowing rescuers to get people out so they can do the job they need to do,” Alex Parr, owner and president of Lumiflex, the maker of the Rescue Cablelight, said. “It’s all about giving rescuers input and a pathway out to safety.”

Heat resistive up to 385 degrees (heat is the bane of electronics, Parr said) and capable of holding up to 480 pounds, this ain’t your grandpa’s rescue light. Or rope. Actually, it’s both.

The Rescue Cablelight consists of a 200-foot-long stainless steel airline cable covered in a web of wire conductors that run the full length of the cable. Each conductor is coated in a special mixture of luminescent, phosphor-based chemicals (Parr says the actual chemical makeup is a secret) that light up when hit with an electric current.


Photo Rescue Cablelight
The Rescue Cablelight guides a civilian on a path.

The whole thing is wrapped in heat resistive, clear, Teflon fabric and powered by a lithium-ion-powered battery pack, which also serves as the cable’s anchor. Users carry the Cablelight into their rescue situation on a sturdy reel, allowing them to smoothly pay out the light.

For situations where verbal communication has been severed, the cable has a flashing feature that allows workers outside the crisis to wordlessly signal rescuers inside—at the flick of a switch. Each unit is also distinctly marked every 20 and 100 feet so rescuers can determine how far into a building they’ve travelled.

And though it’s designed to illuminate — not to carry — the sturdy cable is capable of hauling up to 480 pounds: “Worst-case scenario, you can pull someone out with this thing,” Parr said.


Photo Rescue Cablelight
The Rescue Cablelight is seen close up.

For $3,600 you get the 200-foot cable, reel, battery pack, and recharger cord. The cable can also be plugged into a wall outlet.

Parr, said he’s tested the Rescue Cablelight at various RIC training sessions and received positive feedback from rescue workers. “With an illuminated line established, rescuers were able to send teams further and further into the building” as they were able to clearly see where previous teams had gone, he said.

First responders well know that, in crisis situations, even a few feet of extra distance can mean the difference between life and death.

Drew Johnson’s contributions to the FireRescue1 editorial lineup focuses on new fire products, services, and technologies. A native of Oklahoma, Drew has previously written for both print and online media outlets on a wide range of topics, including finance, education, real estate, and politics. Contact Drew at drew.johnson@praetoriangroup.com.

RECOMMENDED FOR YOU