Chock that Door!

Recently, NIOSH released the report on the LODD of Allan Roberts (BCFD) that occurred on 10/10/06 in Greek town neighborhood of Baltimore City. FF Roberts died at a fire in the middle of the group row home in which, due to numerous factors, he and his crew became trapped inside the dwelling. The report is an excellent training document for you to review with your members because the conditions faced that day are re-created everyday all across the Country. Here is a link to the report:

The fortunate aspect of our occupation, the associated LODD’s, and subsequent comprehensive reports that follow is that they validate what we train on and why we train on these particular skills. The contributing factor and recommendations in the report that each and every firefighter should review, and is the focus of this posting, is surrounding the chocking of doors. FF Roberts and his crew became trapped inside the dwelling when they fell back into the front metal door which caused the 1 3/4″ hoseline to became jammed under the door. Aside from this obstacle that was limiting their egress, they also had to deal with the fact that the three of them were piled up behind the door in high heat / zero visibility conditions. Essentially, no one could get in or get out because the hoseline was jammed under the door. If this scenario sounded unrealistic before, now we know it is not, and can happen to anyone. So what do we learn to take this factor out of the equation? Chock every door we go through.

“Inductive Loops” – Forcing Entry Through Electric Gates

In many areas, gated communities are becoming more common.  We frequently encounter mechanized gates that are chain-operated or work off a swing-arm, preventing us from accessing whatever it is we need to access.  When presented with these, we have a couple options…

1. Have the key.  If we’re pro-active about our box alarm district, the manager might give us a key to keep in the map book or the rig so we don’t break his gate (see step 2).
2. Cut the chain.  If it’s chain driven… But which chain?  There are two: short & long.  If you look, you’ll notice the shorter chain is under tension – cut that one.  Cutting the long one will do nothing for you.
3. “Inductive Loops”.  Dave Pylar, a good friend from Tower 3 in DC and a part time TT instructor, shared with me this quick & simple way of opening these gates in a non-destructive manner.  Check out the PDF below for more information on how to look like an all-star the next time you encounter one of these….

FE: Sledgehammer vs. Flat-Axe

In the truckman’s world the debate between the sledgehammer an the flathead-axe has become equivalent to the age old smoothbore/fog nozzle debate.  Over the past few years, the sledgehammer seems to have gained popularity – buy why?  Personally, I had a brief affair with the sledgehammer (admittedly, because it was the “in” thing) but after some experimentation and experiences, I’m back to the flathead-axe.

  

Hopefully it’ll spark some good discussion, but here are a few of my reasons to choose the axe over the sledge for your next forcible entry operation.

“First-In” Company Operations: West Bradford, PA

This past weekend TT Instructors Nick Martin (DCFD E-11), Chris Birch (DCFD R-1), and Danny Doyle (PBF T-8) traveled to West Chester, PA to train with the West Bradford Fire Company.  

The topic of this 16-hour class was “First-In Company Operations”.  The course is designed for those departments whose initial operations may have limited equipment and manpower – yet still must accomplish essential fireground operations.

  

Open-Enrollment Class 1/17/09: Downingtown, PA

We will be presenting our Fighting Fires in Residential Buildings curriculum on Saturday 1/17/09 in Downingtown, PA (30 miles west of Philadelphia).  For more information & registration please click here.

So far, we have over 100+ attendees attending.  There is still plenty of room and registration will be open until the day of the class.

Elevator Operations at High Rise Part II

Fire Department Operations Using Elevators:  Part II

 Battalion Chief Al Mullins

High Rise Operations:

 You are the first due company at a fire in a high rise and because the fire is on an upper floor you make a critical decision to take the elevator.  Good choice, but you need to insure things are working properly.

Fire Department Operations Using Elevators

Fire Department Operations Using Elevators

Part One:

Battalion Chief Al Mullins 

Every day we respond to calls in high-rise buildings where we need and choose to use building elevators.  Of course, if you run a fire alarm or GOD forbid an actual fire in a high-rise building using elevators will make our job much easier.  The use of elevators in high-rise buildings during fire conditions is also a risky operation and should be done very carefully.  I am going to review some of the basic things we need to know if we are going to use elevators.

Two Fires Worth Looking At & Thinking About…

Tech. Kyle Wilson - LODD 4/16/07

On April 16, 2007, 24 year-old Kyle Wilson was killed in the line of duty while operating at a house fire in Prince William County, Virginia – just south of Washington, DC.  Just over a year later, on May 25, 2008, seven firefighters in Loudoun County, VA  (just northwest of DC) were injured, two critically, in a fire that bears a lot of similarities.  The Fire Departments of both Prince William and Loudoun Counties have released not only comprehensive written reports, but some pretty informative videos.  

Instead of watching that 6th episode of “Family Guy” today, take some time and at least watch these videos. Take some time to think about what you see and don’t see, what you hear, and how you could prevent this from happening to you or your crew at your next fire.

 

Link to Meadowood Court Video

Link to Kyle Wilson LODD Video

Make the window a door…

Most firefighters really enjoy breaking things (productively, of course), so this has always been a phenomenon I can’t understand:

Of course the issue I’m talking about is ladders/windows/ventilation/egress.  This has always been one of my biggest pet peeves, but more than that its a safety issue (egress) and an operational issue (reduced ventilation…  Read on for more discussion & videos…

We place ladders for OUR access & egress – clear the sash.

We don’t place ladders for civilians to climb in and out.  We place ladders because we anticipate the need for firefighters to go in our out of that window.  Even the skinniest firefighter will have difficulty going in our out a window that still has the crossbar (sash) across the center of the window.  CLEAR THE GLASS, THEN CLEAR THE SASH.  A few well placed blows inward & downward in the center of the sash with a sturdy tool will work nicely.

   

At a window, there is only one place the tip of a ladder belongs.

Forget windward, leeward, upper corner of the window, etc…  The tip of the ladder belongs AT the window sill.  Be careful – ladder left inside the window can create difficulty for a firefighter trying to exit.  

One man ladder throws & ventilation

Thrown properly, the ladder itself can be used for ventilation and save time.  Every firefighter should be capable of and skilled in placing a 24′ extension ladder by themselves.  Venting the window with the tip of the ladder before ascending has its advantages – you aren’t face to face with whatever comes out.

After the ladder is up against the building, bring the butt out about 2-3′.  With the ladder extended so the tip is just below the top of the window, bring the tip out from the building and drop it back through the glass.  As you do this, be sure to look down and take your hands off the rails to avoid falling glass.  When I do this, I prefer to keep one foot in the center of the bottom run, with the rung against my shin to hold the ladder.

I think these two photos sum it up best.  This first is a flyer found on the bulletin board at the Burtonsville VFD in Montgomery County, MD.  The second is a creative shot that someone took… Sure it’s a shot at one of the trucks in my city, but the creator is dead right.

 

 Stay safe…

 

Building Construction and Basement Fires

Quite often, we find websites to share with you that have some great info, which is the case with UL University. They have conducted a study on fires in Single Family Dwellings, in particular “Structural Stability of Engineered Lumber in Fire Conditions”.  I recommend that you log in and view this presentation with your shift, on your duty crew night, or just for your own knowledge. 

Basement Fires and Collapse:

One of the most compelling items I pulled from the presentation is the T.I.C. portion. If we asked 100 FF’s what they view as the most dangerous fires that they could encounter in a SFD, I would venture to say a majority would say “basement fires”. They are hard to find, they are hot, they create zero visibility, and if not put out quickly they turn into a FF’s nightmare.