December 2016 Fire Notes

Our Lady of the Angles Fire 12-1-1958

• Open Stairway in a Type 3 Building & Transoms were Big Factors

• Big Push for School Fire Safety & Codes

• Fatalities- 92 Children & 3 Nuns

Don't Be Afraid To Try Old Things!

• If you See Something in the Firehouse or on the Rig you've Never Used or Only Read About, Pick it Up and Use it!

• This Tool is the Better Part of a Century Old but with a Little Understanding of Its Purpose it Still Works.

You Don't Necessarily Have To Be A Officer To Live By These

• Everything you do affects the mission!

• The way you stretch hose, the way you perform a search, your physical ability to get the job done.

• Your competence when delivering patient care, your commitment to training, everything.

• When you step through the doors you are either ready to support the mission of your organization or you aren't. If we aren't, we better be taking an active role in the betterment of ourselves and those around us.

• If not, you are letting people down.

Leadership Management

1. Find a confidant 2. Know your people 3. Be reasonable 4. Set high expectations 5. Reward the deserving 6. Relax

How To Identify A Toxic Person In Your Organization

1. They Blame Others for their Short Comings.

2. They are Always Involved in the Drama.3. They Constantly are Complaining about

Others and Spreading Negativity.4. They are Above Everyone Else.5. Lack Self Control.

Never Forgetting Means Never ForgettingWorcester 6 12-3-1999

• Lessons Learned:– Hazards of Abandoned Buildings– Importance of Pre-Planning– Need for Search Ropes & TICs– Constant Risk vs Gain Size-up– ETC……..

For The Week Of Nov. 20th-26th, 2016

45 Civilian Fire Fatalities 1,904 Civilian Fire Fatalities in 2016

• Fire Attack:

– When an Engine shows up first on-scene, Typically the Best Life Saving Tactic they can Employ is to ATTACK THE FIRE.

– We Should be Operating the Same on the First due Engine whether there are Reports of Victims or Not.

• The Goal is to Quickly get our Nozzle between the Fire and Any Victims and then use Water to Attack the Fire, Take Back the Building and Any Survivable Space in it.

• Fire Attack and Ventilation Benefit the Search.

For The Week Of Nov. 20th-26th, 2016

• The Additional Benefit is that by the Getting the Nozzle Interior Quickly we Occupy the Space where many Victims are Located.

18% are Located in the Family Room and Another 10% in the Hallway.

25% of the Overall Victims are Located by Fire Attack with a Survival Rate near 50%.

For The Week Of Nov. 20th-26th, 2016

• Set a Hook to aid in remaining Oriented during VES Operations.

• Place the Head of the Tool so that it is Hooked to the Bottom corner of the Window Sill or the Tip of the Ladder.

• The Tool Extends into the Room Allowing you to Easily Find your Point of Egress.

• In Addition, the Shaft of the Tool Acts as a Railing to Assist you into the Room as you Come off the Ladder Head First.

• Most K-12s will allow the blade to be mounted in the Inboard or outboard position.

• Although switching the position is time consuming and should be done prior to being needed, the blade position has its advantages depending on the application.

• For ventilation, mount the blade inboard, as this will minimize gyroscopic effect by centering the blade with the saw.

• For forcible entry, the outboard position is ideal. The outboard position will increase the gyroscopic effect, but will allow the blade to be inserted to areas with minimal space.

"Standpipe Systems are Like a Big Black Hole, you Put Water in One End and Hope

Water will Come out the Other End"

Andy Fredericks

"Expand your Knowledge, Surround Yourself with Smart People, and

Strive to Become a Life Long Student of the Fire Service"

Captain Bill Gustin

What's In Your Kit?

7 Or Below, You Should Be Walking

Nice Nugget to Carry for 1 Man Forcible Entry.

Taper the Point of a Railroad Spike and

Groove Notches in the Body.

Great for Tight Doors and for Leverage.

Can also be Used as a Chock.

"We have to DO things to get better at them"

Jim McCormack

• When attempting to force a "tight" outward opening door getting a gap can sometimes be difficult.

• Use your axe to assist you, as the axe blade is often thinner than the adz of the Halligan.

• Place the blade of the axe between the door and jamb approximately 6" above or below the locking mechanism.

• Drive the back of the axe with the Halligan to create an initial gap.

• Once a gap is started use your Halligan to capture your progress, increase the width of the gap, and force via conventional methods.

An Extra Piece of Reflective Tape for

Ladder Tips

Utilizing a Door to Cover a Hole in the

Floor is a Great Engineered Safety

Control.

Ensure the Division Chief, Crews & IC

are Advised.

"We Will Offensively Attack The Fire Until We Can't."

• The Key is Having Company Officers & Commanders Totally Understand When you can Offensively Fight!

• Many Don't want to be Fully Engaged and Fall Back on Defensive Approach

What Do You Have On Your Tip? Smooth Bore Or Fog?

Outward Opening Doors in Multiple Dwellings Tend to Lead Places Firefighters

don't want to go.

They usually Lead to Storage Rooms, Utility Closets, Trash Chutes, and Elevator Shafts.

In Smoky Conditions Firefighters often have to Force Doors in

Low Visibility.

If a Firefighter Blindly Forces a Door they may find

Themselves Crawling into one of These Hazards.

Ventilation or Vandalism?

• Do Your Job Right.. Someone Might Rely on it.

The True Measure of your Success as a

Leader will not be the Length of your

Resume, or Even your Position. Any Fool can

Climb the Ladder.

It will Lie in the Way you Value your

People and How Much of yourself you have Sacrificed for

their Success.

Reminder Of Why There

Should Be A Pipe Wrench

On The Engine

• The Kitchen Table. If the Brothers can't be found here at shift change, at lunch, at dinner, after a good/bad run or some good training you need to take a serious look at the culture of your crew and station, brew up some coffee and just start chatting people up.

• It's to important not too.

Find Them And Read Them!

Pop the Door, Get Low and

Take a Look for Life, Fire and Layout.

To Facilitate a Quicker Stretch, Pulling the Line Over a Banister is Advantageous, Once in Place, Reset

Line Around Stairs to Aid in an Exit

Can see a lot of Void Spaces at

this Fire that Could make for a

Tough Fight.

Know how Construction Effects your

Tactics.

Get in the Voids!

“Our Focus should be on how do we create Survivable Space on the Inside of the Building.

Survivable for the Unprotected Respiratory Tract of the Civilian. Often with Regards to Fire Attack,

Firefighters Focus on What's going to be Good for Themselves, when in fact the Equation Should be What's Going to be Good for the Unprotected. If I

Make it Good for the Civilian it's by Definition Good for Me, because I am Protected and they are Not. Focus on Taking Back the Space, Controlling

the Interior Space, Taking and Making!”

~Aaron Fields~

Quick Tip ~ Stay LowDuring our Search Inches

of Visibility are Worth Miles of Work.

Not Everyone has a TIC on the FG and they

DON’T Always Work.

Stay Low and Take Advantage of

Whatever Visibility we have Near the Floor.

The Majority of Victims are Found on the Floor and we may be Able to Locate Them by Sight Faster Than by Feel. LIFE, FIRE, LAYOUT

Quick Tip ~ Stay Low

• Using our Flashlight to Scan Open Areas of a Room can Allow us to Spend More Time on the Areas we may not be able to See due to Smoke Conditions – i.e. On Top of the Bed

or Couch.

Quick Tip ~ Stay LowStaying Low & Maximizing

Visibility can also Assist in Orientation to the

Room, Locating Beds, Doorways, Appliances, Along with the Type of

Flooring (Carpet, Linoleum, Tile,

Hardwood) to Indicate Not only What Type of

Room we are in but also Where we are in

the Structure.

The Back-Up Position

Would You Want You Backing You Up.

• Firefighters need to be Proficient at Deploying Ladders for Entry and Victim Rescue.

• Once you Arrive at the Target Objective, throw your 6' hook up against, and perpendicular to, the structure.

• Placing Tools in this Fashion does 2 things for us. – 1) It Keeps us from Losing our tools in Limited Visibility Conditions. – 2) It gives us a Rough Visual Approximation as to how far the Butt of the

Ladder needs to be away from the Structure to Attain the Proper Climbing Angle.

• The Exact Distance from the Building will Depend on the Height of your Objective, Building Construction, Terrain, and the Climbing Angle you wish to Achieve.

• Learn your District, as many Buildings require similar distances.

Box Store Fire Tactics

• 2½ MIN Handline

• Don’t Exceed Air Supply

• No Move than 250 Feet in the Store

• Cool Steel Beams

• Use Reach of Stream

• LIFE LINE!

• Here you see Boston Fire Commissioner Joseph Finn commanding a 6th alarm structure fire in sub zero temperatures. He is NOT Hiding in a Command Bus, NOT Back at the Command Centre or at Home Sipping Cups of tea to stay Warm.

• No he is NEXT TO HIS TROOPS on the Front Line Commanding a Fire, LEADING his People and Ensuring their Safety and a Good Outcome for the Job.

• PRD's aren't Exclusive to Highrise Buildings. If the Building has a Big Enough Footprint it may have a System that has a Large Enough Demand to Require a PRD/V.

• This was in a Very Large Single Story Commercial Building. Also we NEVER Hook up on the Fire Floor. That's What we Would be Doing in this Case and it Should be Avoided.

Always Be Stretching... Nothing Showing Means Nothing!

"An Ounce of Practice is

Generally Worth More than a Ton of

Theory."

~ Ernst F. Schumacher

Remember, Not Much Growth Takes Place Inside your Comfort

Zone.

Push Yourself Everyday!

Push Others Everyday!

Empathy

• A Good Officer Shows Empathy for HIS People.

• He Shows them they have Value to Him, and Above all HE WORKS FOR HIS PEOPLE.

• In Return his People Work for Him and Will do Anything for Him.

• Not Out of Fear, but Out of Respect, and When your People Respect you, you Won't even Have to Ask.

Constant Training Is The Life Blood Of A Successful Company

Firefighting is Circumstantial

~ Shupe

If there is Survivable Space Inside a Structure; it is our JOB, as Engine

Firefighters, to put a Hoseline Between that Space and the Fire until that

Space can be Searched.

We must Continue to Put Those We Swore to Protect ABOVE Ourselves Because that is What We Said We

Would Do! 

"Regardless of Strategic Dictates, the Safety of Human Life should Always be the Strongest Motivating Factor in the

Placement of a Hose Stream...Life Safety is the Dominating Feature which

Guides Tactical Operations“

"Get Hoselines to the Seat of the Fire. That is the Fundamental

Rule...Regardless of How Punishing the Fire may be...Get Lines into the Fire

Area. Do this and you will Rarely Fail to Establish Control of the Situation."

~ BC Emanuel Fried, FDNY (ret.)Fireground Tactics, 1972

At a Motor Vehicle Fire it's Always Good to have a Couple of Dry Chemical Extinguishers brought up

After the Line is Stretched Just in Case a Flammable Liquid is Involved.

• Conduct a Quick Search Before Pulling Ceilings. • See fire do not hit it, pull a large area see where it is going

and after the FFs move hit it.

Simple, Sexy Engine Work

• When we say “Flake" or “Layout," People's Minds tend to be Stuck on the

“Zig-Zag" Concept.

• In this Instance, a Simple Drag across the Blocked-off Street set

the Engine Company up for an Easy Pull Straight through the House with

Zero Kinks Outside.

Vincent Dunn On Highrise Fires

“…the single most important action at a high rise fire is to get water in the first attack

hose line and extinguish the fire. Occupants have the best chance of

survival if they stay in their apartment and not go out into the smoke filled halls and

stairs.”

Another Example of why Getting OUT of the Firehouse

and IN Buildings Pays Off.

• They say Being a Leader is “Lonely at the

Top".

• When you Surround yourself with those who

Share your Passion, You've Helped Create a

Culture of Leaders.

• "Lonely" no Longer has a Place at the Top.

Using Building Structure's & Features To Your Advantage To Create A More Stable Operating

Platform & Transition Onto The Roof• We use the Right Angles as a

Stability Point & to Allow for an Easier Transition.

• Ladder Placement (on this building and entirely dependent on location of the fire) Conveniently sets us up to Start our Roof Work in a Good Position; allowing us to Cut an Inspection Hole, Travel Load Bearing Walls, and Travel While Sounding from Uninvolved to Involved.

What are you Promoting in your Departments

and in your Firehouses?

Do you Stand by Your Core Values or do they just remain on

Wasted Printer Paper with Hollow Meaning

on your Walls?

Let's Keep Moving OUR Fire Service in the

Right Direction.

“Being Responsible Sometimes Means Pissing People Off”

Colin L. Powell

• As Company Officers, or Aspiring Company Officers we have to Invest in Ourselves First! We can't go into a Leadership Position Blind and Lacking Tools to Lead Others.

• What are you Doing now to Prepare to Serve Others? What are you Doing now to be Able to Teach and Mentor Others?

• Once you have the Position what will you Continue to do. Your Men will not be able to drink from an Empty Well. Get Ready to Truly be their Leader. Be a Credible Officer.

The Effectiveness of our Fire Streams is an Important Component when Considering not only the Distance

to the Seat of the Fire but also it's Strength to Pentatrate Thermal Columns.

Thoughts From A Prolific ‘Trainer' Of Firemen, Capt John Vigiano

• The Captain was known to hold extrication drills in the early hours of the morning on burned out or abandoned cars that his company came upon in Brooklyn. 'The opportunity was there and so we did it. The time didn't matter.'

• 'Training is not a chore, it's the method that sharpens the edge of your 'tool.'

• 'Anything you can learn about your job is worth it'• 'Train over and over again until it becomes routine.'• 'Training doesn't have to be elaborate. Just do

something.'• During building inspection, his company would

train. He often carried a piece of chalk along so he could use it to aid the training. For example, he commented that they would discuss roof cuts - where, when, why, how - using the chalk.

• You're not a statistician, you're a firefighter. Statisticians figure out odds, your job is to save lives, not make judgments from outside.

• It's not neighbor joe's job, who just told you the house is empty. It's not the cop that gave you an all clear... it's YOUR JOB to go inside. The building isn't clear until we say it's clear.

• Every call you should assume people are inside, and you are coming to pull them out.

• We took an oath to protect those we serve from fire. So fire showing, or bystander "all clear" SHOULD NOT deter you from making an aggressive search. There is survivable space inside. It is our job to find that space.

For Week of Dec. 18th-24th, 201690 Civilian Fire Fatalities

2,240 Civilian Fire Fatalities in 2016• Are we as Firemen ok with the idea that the

mask up that should've taken under 15 seconds took us 60 seconds? Are we ok with getting water out of the end of the hoseline in 2 minutes when we could've done it in 1 min? Are we ok with getting an all clear on a primary search in 10 minutes rather than 4 minutes because we don't study building layouts or because we search in a way that values firefighter safety over civilian safety?

• How much of another persons life are we as fireman willing to exchange for our own lack of preparedness??? THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS HAVING NOTHING TO TRAIN ON.

Gospel From Gary Lane On Why An Officer's Expectations Are Important To

Have..

" PREPARATION and ANTICIPATION keep us sharp.

An officer that has clear EXPECTATIONS allows that

sharpness to start cutting shit and slaying bodies. "