First responders from Sharpsburg VFD practice ASL during a basic American Sign Language and gestures for emergency responders class on Wednesday at the Allegheny County Fire Academy in Allison Park.
Nate Smallwood | Tribune-Review
Sarah Deitz, of Sewickley Fire Department, practices ASL during a basic American Sign Language and gestures for emergency responders class held at the Allegheny County Fire Academy in Allison Park on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020.
Nate Smallwood | Tribune-Review
Nick Catalano teaches ASL during a basic American Sign Language and gestures for emergency responders class held at the Allegheny County Fire Academy in Allison Park on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020.
Nate Smallwood | Tribune-Review
First responders practice ASL during a basic American Sign Language and gestures for emergency responders class held at the Allegheny County Fire Academy in Allison Park on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020.
Nate Smallwood | Tribune-Review
Nick Catalano teaches ASL during a basic American Sign Language and gestures for emergency responders class held at the Allegheny County Fire Academy in Allison Park on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020.
Nate Smallwood | Tribune-Review
Nick Catalano teaches ASL during a basic American Sign Language and gestures for emergency responders class held at the Allegheny County Fire Academy in Allison Park on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020.
Nate Smallwood | Tribune-Review
Nick Catalano signs ASL with Mark Kite, Chief of Yukon VFD, during a basic ASL class for first responders held at the Allegheny County Fire Academy in Allison Park on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020.
Nate Smallwood | Tribune-Review
First responders practice ASL during a basic American Sign Language and gestures for emergency responders class held at the Allegheny County Fire Academy in Allison Park on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020.
Nate Smallwood | Tribune-Review
First responders from Sharpsburg VFD practice ASL during a basic American Sign Language and gestures for emergency responders class held at the Allegheny County Fire Academy in Allison Park on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020.
On Wednesday, more than 30 first responders packed into a classroom at the Allegheny County Fire Academy to take their first steps in learning how to better communicate with deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals they may need to serve in emergency situations.
Nick Catalano, a math teacher at the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf, led the class with the basics of American Sign Language. First with the alphabet, then numerals 1-10. The class proceeded to learn various other terms that might be useful in emergency situations.
Catalano stressed that learning and using the sign for “deaf” in an emergency situation, “even if you don’t know any other sign — establishing communication — it’s a huge impact.”
The class, one of a two-part class, is put on by the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf and hosted at the Allegheny County Fire Academy in Allison Park.
Participants came from over 14 departments and were instructed on signs and techniques for communicating emergency information to users of American Sign Language.
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