Cass County EMA Hosts Man Vs. Machine Course for area responders

Last Updated on July 26, 2025 by Cass County Communication Network

LOGANSPORT, IN – Saturday a Man Vs. Machine course was held at the Cass County Emergency Management Agency. Nearly 30 participants from 9 of Cass County’s 11 fire departments spent the day working together to learn how to rescue victims from a variety of complex situations.

During the training, instructed by PL Vulcan Fire Training Concepts of New York, students are instructed on methods they can use to disentangle victims from a variety of situations. Basic techniques for removing rings are addressed. Evolutions progress in complexity to include auger entrapments, impalements (fencing/inside vehicles), persons trapped under vehicles, as well as other “tips & tricks” learned from real-world experiences. The Classroom and Practical Skills portion of the program focus on finding the least complicated method of performing such rescues rather than “overthinking” the given situation.

Participating agencies included:

Cass County Emergency Management Agency
Cass County Fire District 1
Galveston Fire Department
Georgetown Fire Department
Harrison Township Fire Department – Lucerne
Logansport Fire Department
New Waverly Fire Department
Royal Center Fire Department
Twelve Mile Fire Department
Walton Community Fire Department

The course was sponsored thru a grant from the Duke Energy Foundation. Cass County Emergency Management Agency expresses its appreciation for other organizations that provided resources or support to make the program possible including:

Cass County Emergency Medical Services
Cass County Fire District 1
Cass County Highway Department
Discount Towing
Home Depot
Eric’s Recycling
Logansport Fire Department
New Waverly Fire Department
Paul’s Auto Yard

SOURCE: News release from Cass County Emergency Management Agency