August 20th, 2021: Our COO, Blake recently met with Michael Piccoli from Paterson Fire Department in Paterson, New Jersey to discuss the complexities of stuck ring removals in the fire sector, and how they combat this problem today.  

Michael Piccoli has been a firefighter with Paterson Fire Department for 4 years now and is assigned to Rescue Company 2. His role entails responding to all technical rescues in the city of Paterson. They are responsible for many things such as; car accidents, ring removals, people stuck in a trench, fires, and much more! Read on to learn how Michael Piccoli and his team are dealing with complex stuck ring removals in their department today and much more. 

We thought we would try and warm Michael up before we got started, so we asked him a few questions he wouldn't have expected…

Q: Batman vs. Superman? Who would win?

A: That’s a hard one. I would probably say superman. Then again, Batman’s got a lot of cool stuff too. It would be an interesting fight.

Q: Who would you rather be if you had to pick?

A: Oh that’s another hard one... I might say Batman because of the cool cars and motorcycles.

Now back to business….

Q: How often does your crew come across stuck rings?

A: The Paterson Fire Department sees about 10 - 15 stuck rings a year, about one a month. The ring removal cases are never the same, they are always unique whenever someone comes in with a stuck ring. 

Q: Is there any sort of consistency in the cases you see?

A: The most common cases are those that individual’s have jammed their finger in the door, had their ring stuck for a while due to weight gain, or sometimes people come in with no explanation and just ask for it to be removed. We are right next to the hospital, so they’ll call us on occasion to get a ring off a finger, because people tend to go there also. Another case we often get called to the hospital for is when an injury happens where they need to remove it, so they’ll call us to help.

Q: Did you receive training for ring removal?

A: In my volunteer department, I’ve been there for 11 years now, we did not have any real Man In Machine training or training on ring removals up until a couple years ago we did a class with Rescue Products International in New Jersey. They went over everything from ring removals and using the dremel tool to a simple ring cutter, to impalements, people’s hands stuck in machines and assembling stuff. That’s where we first got into the whole removing rings process and the different stuff that you might use. And then eventually we met up with you [Ring Rescue] on social media and tried your product and fell in love with it. Ever since then, the Ring Rescue Compression Device Kit has been a go to kit in our machine.

Q: Is it important to preserve sentimental property for individuals in your profession?

A: We are in the business of serving the public. Ideally the main goal of a fire service is to preserve life and property. It’s always nice to help people and they come expecting to have their ring cut off, and then we offer the compression device saying “oh let’s try and save this”. Their whole reaction changes, they always go from sad to happy. They have a smile on their face with the hope that we might be able to save their ring, or whatever is on their finger (keep reading for more on this…)

Q: What methods did you use before having the Ring Rescue Compression Device and non-hydrating lubricant? 

A: Typically we always resorted to the dremel with either a metal or diamond blade. Although there can be success with this method, the downside is that the ring is cut and the individual loses their sentimental ring. Occasionally they are able to get the ring repaired but other times there is too much damage to save it. It’s [the Ring Rescue Compression Device] that should always be everyone’s first go-to method. Our job is to protect life and property and we tend to try to remove things without destroying them first.

Q: We saw a couple weeks ago that you had a woman come in with a stuck ring. Can you tell us a little bit about that case?

A: It was a father and a daughter that came into their firehouse asking to help get a stuck ring off her finger. We told them we had something we could try to help get it off without cutting it. Even our Captain didn’t believe us when we told him, until he saw it with his own eyes. We sat her down at the table and she told us she had smashed her finger in a door. The ring got crushed a little bit so it was a little harder to get it off. We explained the device to them and she was happy to hear there was an option that wouldn’t result in cutting her ring off. We did one round of compression and that made it move a little bit. We pushed the ring back and put the cuff over the knuckle where the swelling was the worst and did that for another 5 minute round of compression. After that, it came right off. She was definitely happy, and glad the ring didn’t have to be cut off.

Q: You had mentioned to me before about a case where there was a jimmy proof lock stuck on a child’s finger and you got called into the emergency department to assist. Can you tell us about that case?

A: It was a younger kid, I think under 10. And you know how kids like to play with things and put things on their fingers. He stuck the lock part on his pinky finger and they weren’t able to get it off so the ambulance called us and we met at the hospital. We met them in the waiting room and we used the non-hydrating lubricant and were able to slide it right off. The nurses were shocked saying “we didn’t think you guys would be able to get it off” and we answered “oh yeah well the lubricant works pretty well”. It’s in a squeeze bottle which makes it pretty easy.

Q: Would you recommend the device to other departments?

A: 100% I'd recommend it. It’s very affordable. It’s something everybody should have in their kit. Everybody wants to make someone's day. People call the fire service when they can’t figure something out. Whether it’s a water leak in the house or a ring stuck on the finger. They call us because they expect us to be able to solve these problems and do it with the least amount of damage possible. It’s one thing that people get really happy afterwards when you save something, because usually rings are sentimental to people, they mean a lot. Whether it’s handed down through generations. To be able to help someone and make their day, that’s what we’re here for to help them. It’s 100% better than anything else I've seen out there

Q: If you could give one piece of advice to your fellow firefighters about stuck ring removals in general - what would it be?

A: Use the “try before you pry” method. Try, see if you can get it before you have to cut. It might take a little time but have patience, I know as a fireman, we don’t like to have patience. We like to resort to getting it done and moving on, but take your time, it can make a big difference.

Thanks to Michael for a great interview! Stay tuned for more interviews and insights into how other sectors are dealing with stuck ring problems, and how our solutions are helping professionals make a positive difference by preserving this property.

Some Key Takeaways: 

• Stuck rings cases are quite common in the fire industry

• Most common stuck ring cases that they see are from prior injury or weight gain

• It is not common to formally train firefighters in stuck ring removal and because of this, the dremel is the go-to method

• Piccoli would 100% recommend the Ring Rescue Compression Device Kit to all fire departments

• “Try before you pry” - Piccoli

After speaking with Michael, it is clear that our non-destructive solution for removing stuck rings is something that every firefighter should have in their kit. A firefighters main goal is to preserve life and property. Our Ring Rescue Compression Device’s main purpose is to preserve property. Is this alignment in industries too good to be true? Definitely not, click here to check out our compression device for yourself to see if it is something you and your department might benefit from!

Check out the full Q&A on our YouTube channel here