A rescue toboggan, also known as a rescue sled or emergency rescue sledge, or by the Finnish word ahkio (also

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akia, ackja, akija, and akja), is a carrier for transporting a person or goods on snowy or icy surfaces. It is used by mountain rescue or

ski patrol Ski patrols are organizations that provide medical, rescue, and hazard prevention services to the injured in ski area boundaries, or sometimes beyond into backcountry settings. Many have technical-medical certifications, such as Outdoor Emerge ...

teams to evacuate an injured skier or snowboarder. There are related designs for use on water to carry accident victims or emergency equipment. A rescue

toboggan A toboggan is a simple sled used in snowy winter recreation. It is also a traditional form of cargo transport used by the Innu, Cree and Ojibwe of North America, sometimes part of a dog train. It is used on snow to carry one or more people (o ...

takes the form of a ''

pulk A pulk (from , via ; ; ; ) is a Nordic countries, Nordic short, low-slung small sled used in sport or for transport, pulled by a dog or a skiing, skier, or in Sápmi pulled by reindeer.sled A sled, skid, sledge, or sleigh is a land vehicle that slides across a surface, usually of ice or snow. It is built with either a smooth underside or a separate body supported by two or more smooth, relatively narrow, longitudinal runners ...

shaped as an elongated boat-like pan, usually made of aluminum or fiberglass, with vaulted ends, each of which may be attached to forked extending handles. There are many variations and adaptations such as a brake, stability fins, and an integrated or removable

litter Litter consists of waste products that have been discarded incorrectly, without consent, at an unsuitable location. The waste is objects, often man-made, such as aluminum cans, paper cups, food wrappers, cardboard boxes or plastic bottles, but ...

. A particular variation may be preferred by various regions or individual

lers.

Design

Brake chain on bottom of toboggan The trough has a trapezoidal

cross section Cross section may refer to: * Cross section (geometry) ** Cross-sectional views in architecture and engineering 3D *Cross section (geology) * Cross section (electronics) * Radar cross section, measure of detectability * Cross section (physics) **A ...

and the edges of the lower surfaces have three central stiffening skids. The straight bars, often made of steel pipe, lower the contour of the lower space and end with large oval rings about twice hip width. The toboggan is directionally symmetrical so it can move either head first or foot first. When empty or with a light load, it can be handled by one person alone. With a full load or a well secured person in it, it requires two rescuers on skis who can take much of the weight of the load off the snow through two sets of handles to prevent passenger impacts from bumps for a smoother and safer ride with better control from four ski edges. A brake chain under the downhill end controls speed in steep terrain when pressure is applied to the front spars which proportionally affects the location and length of the chain to regulate the braking effect. A line attached to the toboggan secures it to a rescuer. There are one and two piece toboggans. The latter is divisible so it can be carried on a backpack. The bars can be removed to carry the basket in a vehicle or on ski lifts and snowcats. Previous models were made of wood.

Use

Secured toboggan A chairlift transporting a toboggan After first aid or other initial medical treatment, the patient is placed in the toboggan wrapped in a

vacuum mattress A vacuum mattress, or vacmat, is a medical device used for the immobilisation of patients, especially in case of a vertebra, pelvis or limb trauma (especially for femur trauma). It is also used for manual transportation of patients for short dis ...

or insulating pads, and wrapped with a windproof blanket. Heat reflective

emergency blanket A space blanket (also known as a Mylar blanket, emergency blanket, first aid blanket, safety blanket, thermal blanket, weather blanket, heat sheet, foil blanket, or shock blanket) is an especially low-weight, low-bulk blanket made of heat-refl ...

s reflect thermal radiation and heating packs,

hot water bottle A hot-water bottle is a bottle filled with hot water and sealed with a Bung, stopper, used to provide warmth, typically while in bed, but also for the application of heat to a specific part of the body. Early history Containers for warmth in b ...

s, or

electric blanket An electric blanket is a blanket that contains integrated electrical heating wires. Types include underblankets, overblankets, throws, and duvets. An electric ''underblanket'' is placed above the mattress and below the bottom bed sheet. This is ...

s might be used to warm the patient. If the patient has injuries to the lower extremities and must be transported over longer steep distances, they are additionally held in a rescue seat and drawn up to relieve the legs and protect them from body weight. After securing the injured person, she is transported to a point where evacuation by vehicle can occur. The rescue toboggan and patient can be carried by ambulance on roads or by a rescue helicopter. In summer, toboggans can be used as an alternative to stretchers when on rough terrain. For longer distances on trails or other grounds, a centrally-placed wheeled axle carries a large proportion of the patient's weight.

History

Akias were used by Finnish military at least from the 1930s, after that being adopted by ski patrollers and rescuers around the world, such as Mount Hood Ski Patrol to replace dogsleds.

References

{{reflist Sliding vehicles Finnish inventions Mountain rescue Snow Sledding Human-powered transport