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April 2016
Volume 34, Issue 4
To subscribe, visit
www.firefighternation.com

e a tu r e s
F
58

48
48 A Small Line with a Big Punch
A look at the uses and benefits of 1¾-inch high-
performance hose and how it matches the 2½-inch
hose in every flow category tested.
By Paul Shapiro
62 Risk Management Models
How a real-life incident in a Wisconsin fire
department involved applying a risk management
model and ended up saving a life.
By David F. Peterson

52 Integration Nation 65 Finding a Common Thread

The author explains to a nontechnical audience
65
the fundamentals of linking data systems in the
fire department. If you think it may be too costly,
ask yourself: Can you afford not to integrate?
By Matt Hinds-Aldrich
The author, a seasoned fire academy instructor,
faced his most challenging class—15 Saudis who
had no command of the English language,
firefighting skills, or love of the job—and instilled
in them the soul of the firefighter.
By Schuyler “Sonny” Cudd

58 The Road to Resilience, Part 1

Along with the stories of courage and bravery,
there is a darker side to firefighting that needs
attention: helping the “helpers” to stay mentally fit
and healthy.
By Naomi L. Baum
68 68 50 Dos and Don’ts, Part 5
Tips cover family visits, profanity, ethical
purchasing, abusing the position for favors, misuse
of department vehicles, and being out of your
response area.
By Stan Tarnowski

2 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016 FireFighterNAtioN.com

1604FR_2 2 3/22/16 2:29 PM

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a r t me nts
Dep 32

8 From the Editor 38 Hump Day S.O.S.

The many paths firefighters travel in their careers 26 All firefighter injuries and deaths will never
and lives. be preventable.
By Erich Roden By David Rhodes

14 Nozzlehead 42 Distant Fires

Do your drills and training match your Fires of note from April 1916.
fire operations? By Paul Hashagen
By Billy Goldfeder
44 From the Chief’s Desk
20 Apparatus Ideas Is higher education necessary in the fire service?
Loveland-Symmes (OH) Fire Department receives By Ronny J. Coleman
two engines and a quint.
By Bob Vaccaro 46 Thermal Imaging
Using a camera during preflashover conditions.
26 Wildland Urban Interface By Carl Nix
The tactical benefits of working with aircraft.
By Todd McNeal 72 Company Officer Development
Providing training tips in the fire station bathroom.
32 Fire Attack By Stephen Marsar
Engine company operations in multiple dwellings.
By Mike Kirby and Tom Lakamp 74 Community Risk Reduction
Best practices in global risk reduction.
By Jim Crawford
COVER: The pilot of a wildland firefighting aircraft looks down on his drop area to determine his drop’s
76 New Deliveries
effectiveness during what is always a dangerous operation. Aircraft drops are often done near operating firefighters on
the ground, guiding the aircraft to its target. As the wildland urban interface season approaches, we are reminded of the 77 New Products
brave pilots who fly aging aircraft over some of the most dangerous firegrounds in the world. Working effectively with 78 Classifieds
aircraft requires more than just a professional relationship between pilot and firefighter; it requires a bond held together 79 Ad Index
by the realization that both are in harm’s way to accomplish the same mission. Working in conjunction with aircraft
also adds a tremendous layer of command responsibility to ensure that aircraft are used effectively and at the right time 80 The Backstep
during the operation. (Photo by Mike Meadows.) Guidelines on what is high risk/low frequency.
By Matthew Tobia

4 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016 FireFighterNAtioN.com

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M A G A Z I N E
VICE PRESIDENT/GROUP PUBLISHER
Eric Schlett - erics@pennwell.com
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
Bobby Halton - roberth@pennwell.com
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Erich Roden - erichr@pennwell.com
EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Diane Rothschild - dianer@pennwell.com
SENIOR EDITOR
Kindra Sclar - kindras@pennwell.com
ONLINE NEWS/BLOG MANAGER
Bill Carey - billc@pennwell.com
EDITORIAL ADVISORS AND CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS
Les Baker, Dwight Clark, Jim Crawford, Randy Frassetto,
Billy Goldfeder, Todd Harms, Angela Hughes,
Greg Jakubowski, Rhoda Mae Kerr, Steve Kidd,
Mike Kirby, Joseph Knitter, Tom Kuntz, Tom Lakamp,
Stephen Marsar, Bruce J. Moeller, Ph.D., Garret Olson,
Tom Pendley, Jordan Ponder, Forest Reeder,
Homer Robertson, Tiger Schmittendorf, Peter Silva Jr.,
Andy Speier, John Sullivan, Matt Tobia,
Bob Vaccaro, Tom Vines, Becki White
ART DIRECTOR
Josh Troutman - josht@pennwell.com
PRODUCTION COORDINATOR
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VICE PRESIDENT, PENNWELL MARKETING SERVICES
Paul Andrews
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FireRescue
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Phone 800-266-5367 or 973-251-5077
Fax 858-638-2601
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6 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_6 6
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Ted Billick; tedb@pennwell.com; 801-262-1871
MEDIA SALES CONSULTANT, WESTERN REGION
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MEDIA SALES CONSULTANT, SPECIAL ACCOUNTS
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FOR ASSISTANCE WITH MARKETING STRATEGY
OR AD CREATION, PLEASE CONTACT
PENNWELL MARKETING SOLUTIONS
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3/22/16 2:29 PM
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1604FR_7 7 3/22/16 2:29 PM

 From the Editor
A Road Most Traveled?
The many paths of the fire service
e travel down many roads to get where we
W are in our careers and lives. And with the
By Erich Roden
month of April upon us, I hope one of these
roads takes you to the Fire Department Instructors
Conference (FDIC) International 2016. But there are
other roads we must take, as well. When we look to the
basic service demand of our citizenry—fire attack—the
roads have many forks in them that we are forced to
take as we prepare ourselves to be ready for the next
fire. Preparing to attack the next fire should perhaps
take a renewed approach every year because we are
finding better ways to analyze our communities’ built
environment, socioeconomics, and population trends
while developing programs and deployment strategies
to meet these needs. We are also finding better ways to
incorporate established, proven tactics; handle emerg-
ing response-type demands; and, just as importantly,
take care of our own.
This month, we discuss several topics that make up
the key parts of planning, deployment, mitigation,
and recovery—principal parts of any fire attack plan.
We start with where it all should begin: planning and
risk reduction. Jim Crawford discusses best practices
from the United States and the United Kingdom
that will be juxtaposed during a panel discussion at
the upcoming Congressional Fire Services Institute
next month. Once we know what programs produce
the greatest outcomes, we need to dig deeper into
the makeup of our communities to begin targeting
hazards and the at-risk in our response areas. The best
way to do this is by conducting analysis of the metrics
accumulated by us and our governments—it is the
integration of Big Data into our fire service preven-
tion, planning, and operations. Matt Hinds-Aldrich
from the Atlanta (GA) Fire Department helps us
make sense of data systems’ fundamentals so that we
can start digging in.
We should also take a look to our past to see where
we’ve come from so that we can learn what to repeat
in the future. Paul Hashagen brings us another great
installment of Distant Fires from 100 years ago. I’d
Connect with Erich! say that’s a good number of historic years to analyze
Stay in touch with and a good sample size. And with a firm understand-
Erich Roden ing of history and contemporary challenges, we need
Facebook:
to be ready for them. That’s where training comes in,
www.facebook.com/ but where can we start when our days rapidly fill up
ErichRodenFRM with daily activities and incoming runs? Steve Marsar
8 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_8 8
from the FDNY thinks every day should start with
some potty training. Yes, bringing the daily training
message to a place where you’ll always have a captive
audience is a novel approach. Check out Steve’s article
to find out where and how to do it.
Once we’ve become more aware of our communi-
ties’ needs and are training accordingly, it’s time to
put it all to the test. Mike Kirby and Tom Lakamp
take the engine company to the multiple-dwelling
fire. Todd McNeal discusses the amazing impact
and efficiencies of wildland urban interface (WUI)
firefighting aircraft and how they need to effectively
work with the other 50 percent of the WUI equation:
ground forces. And Paul Shapiro shows us how new
developments in hose design can have a huge impact
for us on the fireground.
One of the roads we should all take is the road to
resilience. Resilience takes a constant beating in the
fire service as we, along with other related groups, suf-
fer from the maladies of burnout, compassion fatigue,
substance abuse, and the consequences of doing what
we do. This month, Naomi Baum sheds some light
on the dark side of the fire service that we always
know is there. Naomi goes in depth on this topic
and describes the unfortunate realities and responder
statistics in Part 1 of this article. We all have issues in
our lives and occasionally fall victim to the negative
aspects of these issues and end up not just potentially
losing our careers but our personal freedom as well.
David F. Peterson asks these leaders to develop
effective risk-management practices in the field with
a sanctioned risk-management model in policy form.
The emergencies we are required to respond to are
inherently dangerous because of their unsettled nature
and the dynamics involved with their development
and necessary abatement. David correlates this reality
by describing a real-life incident in which a risk-man-
agement model was effectively and capably applied
and subsequently a life was saved in the process.
This month’s FireRescue offers many roads for you
to travel down. And I’ll close with one of my favorite
Yogi Berra quotes to sum up the reality of which
roads we have to travel down during our careers and
profession: “If you come to a fork in the road, take
it!” No quote can be truer in this sense as the
emergencies and inherent hazards found in our work
make these the roads most traveled.
F ireF ighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:29 PM
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1604FR_10 10 3/22/16 2:29 PM
 firerescue.hotims.com

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 FIND IT @

Turbo Fire Trucks

By Bob Vaccaro
The winter months are usually slow in announcements
of any new fire apparatus ideas. The apparatus
manufacturers usually wait until FDIC to make any major
unveilings. So Bob Vaccaro decided to look at some
past technological designs that we have seen in the fire
apparatus industry going back over the past couple of
decades. Some have been good and some not so good.
www.firefighternation.com/author/bob-vaccaro

Photo of the Month Lost in the Fog of the Fireground

A former Marine who fought in World
MyFFN member Brian
War II used the term “lost in the fog
Gettemeier posted this
of war.” According to this author, the
photo of a custom shield
expression describes both the literal
that was built by one of his
fog created by the dust, smoke,
friends for his father as he
and debris of the battlefield and,
enters his 40th year as a
more importantly, the mental fog of
career firefighter. Do you
confusion and uncertainty created
have a shot of a special
by lack of knowledge of the enemy.
object that you or someone
In an effort to improve his work on
else created to commemo-
and off the fireground, Joe Pronesti,
rate fire service, courage,
a 26-year veteran of the Elyria (OH)
etc.? Remember, Firefight-
Fire Department and a lead instruc-
erNation.com is the place
tor at the Cuyahoga Community Col-
to share your fire service photos and videos with more than
lege Fire Academy, studies fires, both
60,000 members!
his own and others from around the country. While doing so,
he continues to review the lessons from one fire in particular
under his command where he personally became “lost in the
fireground.” Getting sidetracked on arrival is a serious prob-
lem for incident commanders. Learn from an officer’s example
of being sidetracked by the scene:
www.firefighternation.com/author/joe-pronesti.

Featured Blog: A Firefighters Own Worst Enemy

Are you looking to improve your situational awareness, size-up,
firefighting operations, training, and more? Then take a look at A
Firefighters Own Worst Enemy, a blog created by Jason Hoevelmann,
a deputy chief/fire marshal with the Sullivan Fire Protection District
in North St. Louis County (MO). This blog examines everything from
promotions and interactions with leadership to hose stretches and
bailout kits. It focuses on the topics that are important in the fire
service and provides guidance and advice to help keep firefighters
safe. Check it out at: www.firefightersenemy.com.
It’s Easy to Share!
Did you know that all FireRescue
articles are available online? You can
access the complete issue each month
online. Bookmark your favorite authors,
share articles with your firefighters, or
enjoy reading on your smartphone or tablet. Scan the QR
code to visit the FireRescue magazine pages today!

Like us on Facebook: Follow us on Twitter: Get connected: linkedin.com/ Get the latest from our
facebook.com/firefighternation twitter.com/firenation groups?about=&gid=111539 Bloggers: FireEMSBlogs.com

12 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016 FireFighterNAtioN.com

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Drills, Training, and Renting Our Behavior
Do your drills and training
really match your fire operations?
By Billy Goldfeder
Dear PO’d,
whiner. Congratulations, you failed miserably. You
are whining, but in this rare case it may be valid.
It’s refreshing to not hear you whine about having
to:
Got a fire service
question or complaint?
Let Nozzlehead hear all about it.
He’ll answer you with 2,000 psi
of free-flowing opinion.
Send your letters to:
Nozzlehead, c/o FireRescue
PennWell Corp.
21-00 Route 208 South
Fair Lawn, NJ 07410
Attn: Diane Rothschild
(dianer@pennwell.com)
14 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_14 14
Nozzlehead
• Preplan your first due for no surprises (“oh
Dear Nozzlehead damn, I didn’t realize Acme Dynamite had a
to sound like such
I will do my best not
I am really annoye
d factory in our district”).
a whiner; however,
fire depart me nt dri lls • Train every shift (or weekly for the volun-
about the way our e
tra ins com par ed to the way we operat teers) for at least a couple of hours; that’s
and
mp le is tha t we have meaningful, hands-on training with goals,
on the scene. An exa zone
d in a new hazard objectives, and drills that are result based.
recently been traine
nd progra m wh ere
management comma • Be nice and don’t act like a jerk to the
e onl ine tra inin g and then we have public.
we hav
oom simulator training.
“hands-on” classr So, before we go further, lets cover the be
g, our leaders have
Based on the trainin y nice/don’t be a jerk part.
size up a certain wa
decided to arrive and I was recently made aware of two company
n wa y bas ed on the
and operate a certai it officers in two completely different parts of
uld be wonderful if
training ... which wo
ately, our per son nel (an d the United States who made similar remarks
mattered. Unfortun
atic first ala rm aut o on fire/EMS runs. Both essentially told the
those on our autom k
tua l aid ass ign me nts) revert right bac patient (or his family) to stop wasting the
mu
wa ys wh en the tones are fire/EMS department’s time calling them for
to our “cowboy” in-
we never had the tra “nonsense” calls. These are both true stories.
dropped. It is as if
s to beg in wit h.
ing or the new policie In one case, the company officer actu-
ughts because I am
I welcome your tho s
ally said to the family member that it was
attitude about all thi
really having a bad es ridiculous for fire/EMS to be called for that
ng to make hea dlin
and am afraid it’s goi ult specific situation. Really. In the other case,
ething bad is the res
some day when som the officer made a similar remark to the
ope rat ion s.
of these crazy fire retirement community staff about wasting
— Pissed Off in PA
the fire department’s time. Really.
The good news is that both of these offi-
cers are former officers and kudos for those
fire/EMS department leaders for “formering” those
two clowns. The bad news is that there are people
Thanks for trying so hard to not sound like a in our business who feel that way and speak that
way. The other bad news is that one of the above
patients actually died following the run.
Let’s wrap this “behavior” discussion up really
quickly so we can get onto the other points you
• Actually do company drills. were whining about.
• Respond on EMS runs. Simply put, career, volunteer, part-time paid,
• Turn out in seconds, not minutes. poorly paid, or whatever, when you are on duty,
• Turn out at 0300 hours to help Grandma responding, etc., the department you are a member
because no one else can help her. of (and the community served) is RENTING
• Do proper, thorough truck and equipment YOUR BEHAVIOR. You are either compensated
checks. by pay or your desire to volunteer—whatever
• Do things without your officer asking your motivated YOU to apply (no one forced you)
opinion every time. in exchange for certain types of behavior. It is
• Stop at red lights and stop signs. the department’s responsibility from the start to
• Drive the equipment as if your family is driving educate and train you to fully and unequivocally
in front of you. understand what acceptable and unacceptable
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:29 PM
 firerescue.hotims.com

1604FR_15 15 3/22/16 2:29 PM


Nozzlehead
behavior is. And while it must be policy driven, the “golden rule”
applies here, such as treating people the way you wish (or you
wish your mom, dad, spouse, kids, whoever is important to you)
to be treated.
Still confused? OK, try this. Imagine your mom is sitting on
one shoulder and your chief is on your other shoulder. Now go
ahead and do your job. Makes it pretty clear on how we should
and should not behave.
As far as your operations not mirroring your training, there is
a very simple solution: Have your bosses grow some guts to lead.
Now for you folks who believe in group hugs, quality circles,
retreats, getting input from everyone on everything, and clicking
your heels twice, that’s fine; hurry up and do that—we’ll wait.
You done yet? Lovely.
The reality is that there are circumstances where personnel
input is critical. Ask those on the nozzle about new nozzles? Ask
those driving about spec’ing new rigs? Ask the troops about new
SCBAs? Ask dispatchers about new CAD systems and console
ergonomics? Ask training officers and instructors about training
props? Ask crews about new apparatus design? Ask commanders
about command related systems? Yes. Absolutely. Yes!
Ask and USE that input for YOUR final decisions (chief )
but remember, sometimes a fire department (and especially the
fireground) is not a democracy. It cannot work that way and be
successful. It’s time proven.
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1604FR_16 16
In your department’s case, the leadership of you and your area
departments has decided to follow some common, proven, and
time-tested practices specific to improved command, control, and
accountability. That’s actually very cool; good for them. But, once
they do, you should do the following:
• Review it with the troops.
• Get applicable input from the troops.
• Develop the final training for the new policy and standards.
• Deliver classroom training.
• Deliver practical hands on training.
• Include all departments that respond together on runs.
• Test and verify the training of all those involved so it is clear
everyone is undeniably trained.
It is now time to institute the policies with ZERO tolerance for
any nonsense or fireground playing. It’s now time for no-non-
sense and competent leadership to ensure that all personnel are
doing what they have been trained on.
Hopefully, in a fairly disciplined department, the officers won’t
be forced to enforce because the members do what they were
trained on and behave as expected. Unfortunately, there are cases
such as what you wrote me about where some members fail to
follow what is agreed on. And perhaps even worse, the officers
shy away because they don’t want any trouble, wanna be loved,
don’t wanna rock the boat, have to get along with these people,
and all the other sentiments that belongs on a pretty greeting card
but not coming out of the mouth of a fire officer.
What’s missing in your department is the understanding of
what behaviors are and are not acceptable. Essentially, as soon as
one company or firefighter is allowed to “play” on the fireground
without consequences, that behavior now
becomes the new standard, and it goes
(Patent Pending)
downhill from there.
In the case where your department is
doing well but some of the mutual-aid
departments aren’t, it’s incumbent on your
leaders to have a face-to-face with the others
and find out what’s going on and why. If for
whatever reasons the answers are acceptable,
restart the training and move forward. If
the reasons are clear that those chiefs aren’t
“chiefing” their own personnel and it will
not change (hopefully that’s not the case;
with some determination, they will fall into
line since everyone benefits), it is time to
reconsider who responds to what because
you and your department may end up
owning the unacceptable behaviors in the
form of poor fireground command, control,
accountability and operations, playtime on
the fireground, injuries, unneeded properly
loss, and unnecessary loss of life (including
those operating on the scene).
Show me a football team without
on tanks and discipline, without respect for playbook,
salvage covers! and without respect for the coaches, and
I’ll show you how to win a bet every time.
It’s kinda the same here, only it’s a much
more serious gamble.
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3/22/16 2:29 PM
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 Apparatus Ideas
Loveland-Symmes Triple Threat
Smeal/Spartan delivers two engines
and a quint to Ohio fire department
he Loveland-Symmes (OH) Fire Depart-
T ment (LSFD) is one of the most progressive
By Bob Vaccaro
fire departments in Ohio. The fire district is
comprised of the cities of Loveland and Symmes
and was created as a joint fire district in 1989,
when the Loveland Community Fire Department
took over fire protection for Symmes Township
and became known as the Loveland-Symmes Fire
Department.
It currently operates as a private fire company
governed by the LSFD Board of Directors that
contracts fire and EMS services to Loveland and
Symmes Township. The department operates four
fire stations (two in Loveland and two in Symmes
Township) that are staffed with firefighter/para-
medics 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days
a year.
The fire district is located approximately 25 miles
north of Cincinnati and has been growing at a fast
rate. It is a suburban area with strip malls, light
industrial, restaurants, and two major interstates
running through the area as well as newly con-
structed four- and five-story apartment buildings
LSFD’s new fleet, with two Spartan/Smeal engines and a Spartan/Smeal 75-foot quint. (Photos by LSFD.)
20 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_20 20
being built, as well as some 4,000- to 5,000-square-
foot homes. The population is 29,000 and grows to
40,000 during the daytime.
REPLACEMENT SCHEDULE
According to Deputy Chief Josh Blum, the
department tries to follow a regular replacement
schedule for its apparatus. Engines are replaced
every 12 years and aerials every 15 years if feasible.
While this might seem early for some departments
to replace their vehicles, Blum states that they are
actually saving money by early replacement. “The
department gets more money for the sale of the
vehicles because they are newer and maintenance
costs are lower—they are replaced before any
major work or overhaul has to be performed on the
vehicles,” Blum says. “The vehicles being replaced
are 17 and 21 years old.”
The planning for the replacement of the two
engines and the quint began in 2014. “We were
looking at various manufacturers and wanted to
upgrade features on these vehicles that we didn’t
have on the older rigs,” Blum says. “We went
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1604FR_21 21 3/22/16 2:29 PM

 Apparatus Ideas
COME SEE PMI AT FDIC—BOOTH #3217
through the Ohio state bid process and eventually chose Smeal/
Spartan for the manufacturer to build all three trucks.”

VEHICLE STRATEGIES
Some of the ideas the department wanted to incorporate in the
new vehicles were bigger and lower hosebeds; sealing the chassis
with a corrosionproof paint to prevent corrosion and rust; disc
brakes all around; air bags on the front, rear, and sides of all cabs;
and the ability for a single firefighter to operate the aerial and
pump from the pedestal of the quint’s turntable.
The department also wanted all three vehicles to be built on
Spartan chassis for ease of operation, safety, and maintenance.

The beauty of The roominess of the Spartan cab was also a deciding factor.
“Our committee actually traveled to the Spartan chassis fac-
tory in Michigan to see the completed chassis and cabs and then
our new rope traveled to Nebraska to the Smeal factory to see the completion
of the vehicle bodies,” Blum says. “Both were great to deal with,
may only be answered all our concerns, and were receptive to all our ideas.
After the visit, we also came back with some other ideas that

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1604FR_22 22 3/22/16 2:29 PM

 we incorporated. We really were pleased with the
outcome of all three apparatus.”

APPARATUS FEATURES
The engines have low large hosebeds that carry
a great deal more hose than the pumpers that they
replaced. The front bumpers are extended with a
swivel six-inch intake on one side and a gate wye
with 200 feet of 1¾-inch attack lines on the other
side. The crosslays have two 200 feet of 1¾-inch
attack lines with a side-mounted dead load of
400 feet of 1¾-inch attack line. The rear hosebed
has 1,050 feet of five-inch, large-diameter hose
(LDH); 600 feet of 2½-inch attack line; 600 feet
of three-inch attack line; a three-way valve; and a
blitz line.
The quint has a 75-foot piped-in waterway on
The LSFD 75-foot quint also has large side compartments.
the aerial with a 2½-inch discharge. It also has
six-inch LDH intakes on both sides. Ground lad-
ders consist of a 35-foot, a 28-foot, a 24-foot, two The engines have 6-kW hydraulic generators and
16-foot, one 10-foot, and a 16-foot roof ladder. It the quint has a 10-kW.
features an electric remote control Akron nozzle at “You can see all three of the vehicles are well
the tip that can be operated at the pump panel and stocked with hose and ladders as well as having
at the pedestal by a single operator if needed. The thought out larger compartments carrying a great
rear hosebed mirrors the engines but has 750 feet of deal more equipment than our previous units,”
five-foot LDH instead of 1,050. All vehicles have Blum says.
a FoamPRO system installed with 30-gallon foam Also incorporated was a Fire Research PumpBoss
cells on the engines and 20-gallon on the quint. with governor and throttle controls and Omni

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1604FR_23 23 3/22/16 2:29 PM


Apparatus
Ideas
The rear of one engine with reflective striping and a low hosebed.
pump control valves. “While some departments are
shying away from all the computer-operated elec-
tronics, we haven’t had any issues so far,” says Blum.
PLAN AHEAD
As you can see, the LSFD has planned well for
this large purchase. It had firefighter safety in
mind with choosing the larger cab with air bags
all around as well as lower hosebeds. All three
vehicles carry a great deal of hose, especially the
quint, for long stretches at the newer apartment
buildings and dwellings being constructed in the
response district.
As I’ve written in past columns, when you
are writing specs for a new apparatus, don’t just
spec a replacement. You have to look into the
future and try to imagine what your response
area might be like 10 years from now. I know
that might sound crazy to some, but it’s better
to plan with larger compartments and bigger
hosebeds so you can expand without worrying
about outgrowing your big investment too early.
Replacing your vehicles earlier if you can afford
it is also another option.
In any case, be proactive like the LSFD is, and
with a little preplanning you will have purchased a
vehicle or, in this case, vehicles that will be
functional for your fire district.
Bob Vaccaro has more than 40 years of fire service experience.
He is a former chief of the Deer Park (NY) Fire Department.
Vaccaro has also worked for the Insurance Services Office, the
New York Fire Patrol, and several major commercial insurance
companies as a senior loss-control consultant. He is a life
member of the IAFC.
To read more from Bob Vaccaro, visit www.firefighterna-
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 Wildland Urban Interface
Working with Aircraft
The application and tactical benefits
of rotor-wing and fixed-wing aircraft
Fixed-wing aircraft
is responsible for the
most impact on large,
fast-moving fire fronts.
(Photo by John Cetrino.)
A
s the wildland fire conditions continue to
increase in intensity each year throughout the
By Todd McNeal
West, wildland firefighters have to react with
improved tactics and a rapid response with both
ground and air assets. As I watched the 2015 fire
season unfold, it became apparent that air resources
were vital in the combat of the rapid fire growth
and the most problematic result of extreme fire
behavior—long-range spotting. All wildland fire-
fighters responding to an expanding incident need
to be knowledgeable of aerial firefighting tactics
and proficient at working with the air resources to
maximize their effectiveness. Like most technol-
ogy in our modern word, the aerial firefighting
resources of this country are becoming more diverse
and constantly improving. Their ability to maneu-
ver, drop precisely, provide remote intelligence,
and deliver more suppression agent has never been
greater. However, despite all of these and numer-
ous other technological advancements, the need to
work in conjunction with ground resources has not
and will never change.
As our world witnessed this past fire season, the
resultant fire behavior produced by the drought-
stricken West was staggering. The loss of life and
property was record setting and the statistics of
26 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_26 26
acres consumed and dollars spent were also. When
fire conditions reach such an aggressive and danger-
ous state, the ability to attack solely on the ground
is ineffective and hazardous. The only way to help
slow progress and defend values at risk is the fleet of
aircraft. Both rotor-wing and fixed-wing have their
advantages and disadvantages under certain condi-
tions, and both aircraft type require different tacti-
cal application and response from ground resources.
Wildland firefighters in any sort of command func-
tion on a rapidly expanding wildland fire must have
a strong working knowledge of the application and
tactical benefits of each aircraft class and type.
ROTOR-WING AIRCRAFT
This class of aircraft is the most versatile used in
wildland incident management. Helicopters are
the backbone of suppression and logistical missions
and support ground resources in many ways. From
troop shuttles to gear hauling to water dropping,
these are used successfully every summer flying
thousands of hours. For the sake of brevity, I will
not list all of the advantages or disadvantages in
every possible situation, but I would like to touch
on the fundamental considerations when working
with helicopters.
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1604FR_27 27 3/22/16 2:25 PM

 First and foremost: Always request use of
Wildland helicopters through the air tactical group supervi-
Urban sor (ATGS) or helicopter coordinator (HLCO).
Interface These individuals are the aerial supervisors over
the incident and directly manage the airspace
and maintain vigilant accountability for all the
aircraft working over the fire. These supervisors
are juggling all of the mission requests from the
incident management team but also the daily
suppression resources and need to be notified of
the request to track and ensure all objectives for
that operational period are being addressed. This
request may be routed through the division/group
supervisor (DIVS) you are working for or may
come directly from you to ATGS depending on the
DIVS management preference. Regardless, this has
to be done over the air tactics frequency assigned
to the incident and is now more commonly done
over the air-to-ground command channel because
Rotor-wing aircraft are the most versatile used in wildland
incident management. (Photo by Tod Sudmeier.)
28 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_28 28
of the complexity of the incidents and the volume
of radio traffic related to working with the various
aircraft over the fire.
When requesting helicopter resources, please
make sure that you have a specific location for
the helicopter to report to; this could be a global
positioning system (GPS) coordinate or a general
location identified on the daily fire map like a drop
point or topographic feature identified within a
division. If you choose to use GPS, please ensure
that the coordinates are given in the format of
degrees and decimal minutes. This display format is
the default used by aircraft working over wildland
incidents and is how their GPS is set. An example
of this format reads like this: 38 2.335’ N by 120
13.675’ W.
In addition to having a concise location of
the mission, one must have prepared a clear and
concise mission objective or target and a ground
contact who the inbound helicopter can hail when
approaching the target area. The radio traffic
between the assigned helicopter and the ground
contact must be conducted on the appropriate
assigned air-to-ground tactical frequency that you
made the request for aircraft on. The single most
frequent oversight I have witnessed while work-
ing aircraft on wildland incidents is the identified
ground contact does not respond promptly to the
inbound helicopter. This is frustrating for all parties
and ultimately dangerous for the pilot with expo-
sure to the unnecessary flying in circles trying to
raise a contact on the radio. If you are the ground
contact, please take your radio off “scan” and be on
the correct channel.
Once you have established contact with an
inbound helicopter, ensure that the pilot has a
clear understanding of your location and the target
location in reference to your position. This verbal
description can most easily be accomplished by talk-
ing in terms of clock dial direction from the pilot’s
position (not yours). You would absolutely not use
your clock directions because the pilot doesn’t yet
know where you are; you should also not use vague
descriptions like: “I am the person with a yellow
helmet next to the large pine tree.”
Protocol suggests that you give a clock direction
from the pilot’s perspective to your location and
then add an adjective of high, level, or low. This is
critical information for the pilot to be able to look
in a specific direction and wait for additional visual
clues to your location. The additional clues from
you should most typically be in the form of a mirror
flash or a bright panel you have placed near you or
the target.
Once the pilot has a reference location for you,
the next transmission should be to describe the
target location and desired action of the helicopter
in terms of a unit of measure that they are inti-
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1604FR_29 29 3/22/16 2:26 PM

 Wildland mately familiar with: rotor widths. Once the target
has been described and the mission completed,
Urban give feedback to the pilot, especially if you have
Interface additional needs or, for example, want to correct
the placement of the water drop that just was com-
pleted. If you have no additional needs, make sure
the pilot understands that you have released that
ship back to the ATGS for reassignment.
Another very important safety issue to remember
around the larger helicopters is the significant rotor
wash that comes down out of their rotor and the
subsequent impact on the fire behavior and the
vegetation. Please ensure as the ground contact
working with a type one helicopter that you can
positively confirm with the pilot that all ground
resources are out of the target area.

FIXED-WING AIRCRAFT
This class of aircraft is responsible for the most
impact on large, fast-moving fire fronts. They can
be used in an offensive or direct suppression mode
or in an indirect mode. Fire behavior explodes
when conditions are in alignment, and when that
occurs there is little ground or air resources can do
to stop perimeter growth and spotting.
Point-protection of certain values at risk can
be accomplished but often the greater perimeter
continues to grow until conditions producing the
extreme behavior abate. These conditions are when
the fixed-wing aircraft are exceptionally beneficial
Never underestimate the length of the retardant drop or you may
return to your vehicle with a new paint job. (Photo by author.)
to assist in dropping out in front of the fire front
to slow its progress, giving ground resources time
to construct an indirect containment line. Once
the line has been built, it is once again the fixed-
wing aircraft that are often used to pretreat the
“green side” of the containment line in anticipa-
tion of firing operations.
One difference between the requesting paths for
fixed-wing vs. rotor-wing aircraft is that mission

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 requests for fixed wing or “air tankers” are not Never underestimate the length of the retardant
typically generated by the field personnel. These drop or you may return to your vehicle with a new
resources are usually coordinated at the opera- paint job.
tion section chief (OSC) and air operation branch
director (AOBD) level. The AOBD works directly Todd McNeal is a 24-year veteran of the fire service and chief of
with the incident commander and the operations Twain Harte Fire in Tuolumne County, California. He has a diverse
section and through the ATGS to prioritize the background in wildland and structural fire management and
targets and missions for the large fixed wing. An suppression and has been serving as a division/group supervisor
exception to this might be during the initial attack on a Federal Type II Incident Management Team for 10 years.
phase or when division-level resources are using the McNeal has been an instructor in the fire service for 15 years,
smallest fixed-wing aircraft, called single engine air holds numerous ICS qualifications in wildland operations, is a
tankers or SEATs. registered instructor with California State Fire Training and a
Despite the fact that requests and coordina- California fire officer, and has a bachelor’s degree in natural
tion are handled at higher levels in the incident resource management.
management organization, the ground
level personnel must be aware and
mindful of the activities of the large
aircraft, especially if they are working
in your assigned area. These machines
are dumping enormous amounts
of retardant that weighs close to 10
pounds per gallon and comes in drops
at times of more than 10,000 gallons.
This fact means the path of retar-
dant must be clear of personnel and
equipment and must be confirmed by
the pilots of both the delivery aircraft
and the lead plane. The lead plane is
responsible for communication verbally
and by demonstration to the Type 1
tankers and the very large air tankers
(VLATs—those carrying more than
8,000 gallons) the line to fly and when
to drop the product. Ground personnel
supervisors would be well advised to
listen to the air-to-ground command
channel and watch for the lead plane
making its first pass with a tanker in
tow. This is the called the dry run and
the next pass will be live—you do not
want to be under it. Remember that if
you or you crew are not able to get out
of the drop zone, lay flat on the ground
away from aerial hazards with your
head toward the approaching drop with
one hand holding your helmet and the
other outstretched and firmly grasping
your hand tool.

AIR AND GROUND

Aerial resources are quite effective in
suppressing the advancement of
wildland fire, but it is the boots on the
ground that will ultimately stop the fire
by securing the edge. One last thought:
If you park your vehicle and are out on
foot for any reason, be mindful of
aircraft of any type working overhead.

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1604FR_31 31 3/22/16 2:26 PM

 Fire Attack
Engine Operations in Multiple Dwellings
Strategies for conducting safe and effective operations
By Mike Kirby
and Tom Lakamp
Assessment is essential in
tenements with long hall-
ways, ordinary constructed
dwellings with multiple
entrances, and single-family
dwellings converted into
multiple families with various
entry points. (Photos by CFD.)
O
ther than single-family residences, the
multiple dwelling is the second most likely
occupancy at which we are likely to respond
to a fire. Both are considered residential occupan-
cies, and yearly we lose more lives because of fire or
smoke in residences than in any other occupancy
type. To meet our “mission” of protecting life,
we must know our buildings, practice to become
proficient in deployment and advancement of
hoselines, and execute efficiently and effectively on
the fireground.
TYPES OF MULTIPLE DWELLINGS
There are several types of multiple dwellings all
across the communities we serve. They range from
Type 1 buildings that are built like a fortress with
alarm and protection systems to lightweight wood-
frame boxes of matches without any protection or
early warning systems. Sadly, there are some mul-
tiple dwellings we don’t even know exist, such as the
illegally subdivided single-family dwelling.
Type 1: Protected multiple dwellings. Typically, these
are high-rise buildings with alarms, stairwells, eleva-
tors, and standpipe risers and may or may not have
full sprinkler protection. The construction features
32 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_32 32
of these buildings generally limit fire spread, with
the exception of utility passages that aren’t protected
or are poorly installed. The doors are usually self-
closing metal with metal frames, which help limit fire
spread. Smoke spread is common both horizontally
and vertically and sometimes hard to control. Fires
in these dwellings are generally contained to the
single residential unit and can spread into the public
hallway and stairwell if the interior door is left open
or outer windows fail and wind is a factor.
Type 2: Unprotected multiple dwellings. These
are generally large multiple dwelling units that are
either standard tenements or older garden-style
apartments. These units often do not have fire sup-
pression systems and sometimes, depending on size,
do not have monitored fire alarms. These are very
common buildings with construction of unpro-
tected steel bar joist and poured concrete floors,
and they may have metal doors with metal frames
or wood doors with metal frames. Fire spread is
generally not a huge concern in these types of apart-
ments, unless it spreads via utility passages, window
to upper windows, or a door is left open or fails.
Just as in any building, smoke spread is an issue in
these types of multiple dwellings.
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3/22/16 2:29 PM
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Type 3: Ordinary constructed multiple dwellings. These are
also very common across the country. Often they are found in
urban areas and towns in the “main street” type setting. These
buildings are brick and wood construction, and extension via
the void spaces between floors and walls is the biggest fire spread
concern. These buildings generally aren’t really tall; however,
they can be cut up and subdivided oddly, depending on the size
and shape of the building. It’s often hard to tell from the outside
of these buildings how many units there are per floor, layouts,
and which windows access a particular apartment. This makes
paying attention to layouts on other types of runs and condi-
tions on arrival important!
Type 5: Wood-frame multiple dwellings. These are the most
common form of multiple dwellings and can either be tradi-
tional construction or newer, lightweight construction. It’s in
this construction type where we see entire floors or the roof
structure burned off an entire building because of rapid fire
spread. These buildings are generally garden-style apartments;
however, newer buildings with limited fire protection systems
and alarms have grown to cover city blocks with lightweight
structural members throughout. A fire in the dwelling compart-
ment that doesn’t extend out of the unit isn’t a big deal in these
buildings. However, when it extends vertically in utility open-
ings or via exterior combustible coverings (siding), we can end
up having a major fire fairly rapidly.
INITIAL ENGINE COMPANY OPERATIONS
The most important response priority is getting a line into
service to the fire area to stop the growth and spread of the fire.
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FireFighterNatioN .com a pril 2016 F ire r escue M agazine 33

1604FR_33 33 3/22/16 2:29 PM

 On arrival, determine the
extent and location of the fire.
If it’s not obvious, someone has
to investigate; this should be
the company officer.
This action alone will save more lives and
property than any other action. When the
engine arrives on the scene, a quick assess-
ment of conditions and the extent and
location of the fire are important to start
an appropriate attack. The initial attack
will usually be a 1¾-inch hoseline; how-
ever, advanced fire conditions involving
multiple units and extending into the attic
space may require a quick knockdown
with a 2½-inch line or master stream as
handlines are being placed.
On arrival, determine the extent and
location of the fire. If it’s not obvious,
someone has to investigate; this should
be the company officer. The remainder
of the crew should stay at the apparatus
and await orders to stretch. This ensures
there is no delay in having people run
back to the apparatus and also ensures the
line is placed appropriately the first time.
In some large multiple dwellings, fire or
smoke might not be visible on arrival and
an assessment of the right entrance point
will be required to get to the fire quickly
with your hoseline. Assessment is essential
in tenements with long hallways, ordinary
constructed dwellings with multiple
entrances (front, side, or rear), and single-
family dwellings converted into multiple
families with various entry points.
GETTING THE LINE IN SERVICE
To speed the stretch, deploy and flake
your line to the point of service. This is
going to be where you encounter products
of combustion and can retreat to a safe
location if something fails or goes wrong.
In a garden apartment with the door
intact, this will involve having the nozzle
and first coupling at the apartment door. If
the door isn’t intact, this will be the land-
firerescue.hotims.com
1604FR_34 34
ing one floor below the fire apartment. In
a tenement, this will be the fire apartment
door if the hallway is tenable. If the hall-
way isn’t tenable, it’s the stairwell landing
opposite the fire door with additional hose
staged in the hallway on the floor below.
In some multiple dwellings, you need to
make sure you have enough hose before
ever arriving to make a stretch to the fire
area. There are several factors to consider
when determining hose loads and layouts
to best serve your response area. Just
because another fire department loads or
uses certain types of loads doesn’t mean it
will work for you!
Courtyards and limited access: This is an
issue where you can’t get the apparatus
close enough to the building to use precon-
nected lines that typically would be used on
single-family dwellings set back 50-75 feet
from the road. We have some of these that
require 400-500 feet of hose just to make it
to the apartment from the closest point of
apparatus access. To show up at a fire and
try to make your 200-foot crosslay a 550-
foot hoseline will make you look bad and
not serve our mission as a fire department.
Tall buildings: These can be three- to
six-story multiple dwellings with long hall-
ways or old, ordinary type apartments with
access to apartments from the stairwell.
The presence of a well hole in the stairwell
will allow for a quicker deployment of
your line; however, a standard return
stair without a well hole requires a large
amount of hose. Take a five-story building
with 150-foot hallways and no well hole.
You could need eight to 10 sections of
hose just to make it to an apartment and
cover the fire area. There are unique build-
ings that have weird interior courtyards,
wraparound stairwells (around an elevator
FireFighterNatioN .com
3/22/16 2:29 PM
 Fire Attack

In some multiple dwellings, you need to make

sure you have enough hose before ever arriving
to make a stretch to the fire area.

shaft), or other configurations that can take

even more hose to make it to the fire area.
Again, it’s best to figure this out before the firerescue.hotims.com

fire through training and preplanning than

try to make a 200-foot preconnected crosslay
work and failing in our mission.
Standpipe-equipped buildings: These
require a stretch from the riser and the
right hose configurations, equipment, and
knowledge to operate effectively from the
riser. Ensuring your proficiency in these
operations is paramount for success as the
time to get water on the fire increases dras-
tically because of the system, distance from
the apparatus, and having to connect and
create an attack line from a modular system
you carried to the floor below.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS
Number of fire lines and staffing: Just like
any other fire, you will need an attack line,
a backup line, and an exposure line (floor
above) to fully cover fire operations. You may
need additional lines depending on exten-
sion, but planning for three lines will get you
started. Sometimes, in difficult stretches, the
first-due engine may need assistance with
its line to stretch to the seat of the fire. It is
difficult for an officer and a single firefighter
to deploy a 1¾-inch hoseline up five stories
and down a 150-foot hallway. To speed the

FireFighterNatioN .com firerescue.hotims.com

1604FR_35 35 3/22/16 2:29 PM

 
  
   


  



 
 


  

 
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1604FR_36 36 3/22/16 2:30 PM

 Fire Attack

evolution, ensure kinks are managed and assist with advancement

(especially if starting from the stairwell in a long hallway with an
open apartment door). A second engine assisting is vital for success.
Your Legacy
of Safety
If the second engine works with the first engine, then you need
additional engines or personnel to stretch the backup lines and
vertical extension lines.
Controlling doors: Many firefighters are afraid to chock doors

Begins with
after getting glimpses or inappropriately interpreting recent

L
scientific studies. In multiple dwellings, there are often several
doors to go through to get to the fire area. In a large tenement-
type building, you can encounter several doors, all of which need
to be chocked to keep the hose moving and avoid a pinch, kink,
or total loss of water. Take into consideration that there is often an
entrance door to a lobby, door to a hallway on the first floor, door
to the stairwell, door leaving the stairwell, and apartment door,
which all have to be navigated. This requires five door chocks, and
companies should be prepared to manage these obstacles.
Alternative means of hose deployment: Sometimes additional
lines may need to be stretched via an alternative means by using
a ladder or rope stretch. If you have a well-involved fire in a
large multiple dwelling with exposure issues on multiple floors,
don’t overcrowd the stairwells with multiple lines. Once you put
more than a couple lines in a stairwell, it becomes nearly impos-
sible to move up or down effectively, the hoses get intertwined,
and advancing a line on the bottom of the pile becomes nearly If you are responsible
ibl for
f fre
f and d life
lif
impossible. There are some multiple dwellings where, because of safety and your jurisdiction protects
layouts or stair configurations, a stretch via a ladder or using a mid-rises, high-rises or other complex
rope might be your first plan of attack to speed the stretch and structures, you should review and
get water on the fire in a more timely fashion. consider adopting the International
Fire Code (IFC) Appendix L (2015
Edition) in your next code cycle.
PLAN AHEAD
Appendix L covers Firefghter Air
As you can see, there are many considerations during engine Replenishment Systems (FARS), the
operations at multiple dwellings. These structures pose the greatest latest technology in life-saving air
concentrated life hazard for residences, and the need for profi- management in IDLH environments.
ciency and speed in operations is paramount to meet the main
mission of the fire department. To ensure proficiency, master the FARS is a standpipe for air, delivering a safe, reliable,
basic engine skills of line selection, deployment, flaking, advance- constant supply of breathing air when and where frefghters
ment, and operation of the hoseline. Ensure proficiency in your need it most. Firefghters can refll their air bottles in less than
self-contained breathing apparatus and donning at the location a minute at stations located throughout a structure and have
the ability for an SCBA quick-connect feature, making ground
where you put water in your line (point of service).
air management achievable in mid- and high-rise structures.
Get into your response areas, pay attention on other runs, and FARS works with standard equipment used in almost every
practice in buildings and complexes that you think will be difficult. jurisdiction, and because it is a building-installed system, it
If you don’t know how much hose you will need, stretch and figure has no negative impact on department budgets.
it out before the fire. If you don’t have these fires often, practice for
them frequently so you don’t revert to the 50- to 75-foot front yard More than 400 buildings throughout the U.S. are already
stretch you use all the time at a single-family residence. Do it right equipped with FARS. To fnd out more about IFC Appendix L
before the fire so you can be effective and safe at the fire! and why FARS is relevant in your jurisdiction, visit our website
or contact us.
Mike Kirby is a captain with the Cincinnati (OH) Fire Department (CFD), assigned
to Engine Company 12. He is a 22-year veteran of the fire service with experience
in paid and volunteer fire departments.

Tom Lakamp is a 28-year veteran of the CFD and the special operations chief.
Lakamp is also an adjunct instructor at the University of Cincinnati Fire Science BUILD A LEGACY OF SAFETY.
Program and has a bachelor’s degree in fire science. Lakamp is a graduate of the
National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program. rescueair.com

T: (650) 654-6000
email: info@rescueair.com
FireFighterNatioN .com
firerescue.hotims.com

1604FR_37 37 3/22/16 2:30 PM

 Hump Day S.O.S.
Not Everyone Makes It Home
And some get thrown away in the pursuit
I
t has been a decade now since the 16 Life
Safety Initiatives were developed and dispersed
By David Rhodes
throughout the fire service. Undoubtedly, there
has been change as a result as departments, officers,
and individual firefighters reexamined a host of
cultural, policy, training, design, and other factors
contributing to line-of-duty deaths (LODDs).
Some say that these efforts didn’t go far enough
while others argue that they have gone too far and
the safety movement is out of control.
The thought of everyone going home in our
profession strikes an emotional reaction in each of
us, because we truly want that. No one wants to see
a member, or the family of a member, suffer and
certainly, barring the few psychotic case studies, no
one wants to be injured or killed themselves. So where
are we a decade later?
PREVENTABLE LODDs
According to the National Fire Protection Associa-
tion Web site, from 1997-1984 the average number
of LODDs was 137, 1985-1994 it was 110, 1995-
2004 was 100 (excluding 9/11 deaths), and 2005-
2014 was 82. What do these numbers really tell us?
Are we looking at the right things when it comes to
risks? Those who worked (and are still working) on
educating and challenging us are to be commended
for the holistic approach. I certainly want to see the
decline in numbers continue, and I want to ensure
that we remain focused on understanding that the
16 Life Safety Initiatives were developed to eliminate
“preventable” deaths.
I recently heard someone using the “Everyone Goes
Home” slogan, then making the comment that all
firefighter deaths and injuries are preventable. This is
not the first time I have heard someone say that but
the frequency of hearing it is increasing. Caution: All
firefighter injuries and deaths will never be prevent-
able unless we shut the fire service down.
In our admirable course to reduce LODDs, we have
to be careful not to create unrealistic expectations or
become obsessed with the numbers game. There is no
way to know that a person has stored a propane cylin-
der in a house on fire that will explode and kill one of
our members. There is no way to know that some-
one may lose his footing and fall off a ladder. Risk
management is a process to reduce and help eliminate
these possibilities—but it is not a guarantee.
38 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_38 38
HINDSIGHT BIAS
If we create a belief that all injuries and deaths are
preventable in our profession, then we also create
the culture of hindsight bias that immediately places
blame on the individual, the officer, or the incident
commander. Hindsight bias is the tendency people
have to view past events as more predictable than
they really were before the events took place. After
an event occurs, people often believe they could
have predicted the outcome of the event before it
actually happened.1 The belief that all are prevent-
able translates to blaming individuals for actions or
inactions when we are looking retrospectively with
all the information, information that in many cases
our member, officer, or incident commander did
not have or did not understand in the full context
of its importance.
When this type of culture (hindsight bias) emerges,
many of our best and brightness will be thrown away
and shunned as if they have committed some great
crime against humanity, when in fact whoever was
working that day would have made the same deci-
sions and had no impact on the outcome. As that
happens, the culture of inaction will emerge because
any decision to engage in anything will be a risk that
most won’t be willing to take. Internal investigations
will take on a new mission to seek and destroy any-
one who has anything bad happen on their watch so
the “cover your butt” culture can thrive. Your people
will stop using common sense and wait for you to tell
them everything to do.
SITUATIONAL REACTION
Let’s look at how we react to and perceive an LODD
as a result of a cardiac arrest. Think about it: You
are in a leadership role in your department and one
of your members dies while on an emergency scene
after climbing the stairs in a building to check on a
fire alarm. The individual has been with the depart-
ment for 20 years and is overweight and smoked his
entire career. Does your organization blame itself for
this LODD? Is an investigation launched to see who
was responsible for hiring the individual or allowing a
high-risk candidate for heart attack to operate on an
emergency scene? No, most don’t. Do we change our
policy so that no one in the department is allowed to
climb stairs? We basically grieve for our loss, we don’t
place blame on anyone or even look to find fault, and
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1604FR_39 39 3/22/16 2:30 PM

 we return to the same hiring practices and lack of
Hump Day preventative actions without much thought. This is
S.O.S. deemed an unfortunate incident.
Now let’s up the emotion! You have a 25-year-old fire-
fighter who is making a push in a hallway. It’s 2:00 a.m.
and you are operating at a two-story frame residence as
the incident commander. There are cars in the driveway
and, based on your experience, the fire conditions are
such that a fire attack with 150-175 gpm will allow you
to knock down the fire and complete search. The young
firefighter collapses and receives burns that he doesn’t
recover from. Other units move into place, knock the
fire down, and complete the search, and no one was
found. Your decisions are immediately scrutinized, and
your judgment is questioned. “Why were you allowing
crews to operate in that structure?” Were you supposed
to be able to predict that the young man would collapse
from some unknown medical condition possibly as
simple as dehydration? Is the investigation going to ask
how many energy drinks the guy had that day or what
he did the night before?
You train and drill your battalion, stay up on the lat-
est information on strategy and tactics, are not afraid
to take action, and have always sized up the situation
and made good decisions. Sometimes, even at the
grumblings of your crews, you have held them back
when your internal risk management formula told
you “no go!” Because of your constant training, your
ANSWER YOUR
CALLING
WITH COURAGE
Scott Boyd
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TE CSU Graduate, Captain, Savannahh Fire &
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INCLUDED Emergency Services, Savannah,
ah, Ga.
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ColumbiaSouthern.edu/FR or call 877.314.2814
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1604FR_40 40
people have experienced some sprained ankles and
pulled muscles, which puts you on the watch list of
the “risk manager.” But now you are under investiga-
tion and transferred, people turn away when they see
you coming, and you don’t get many phone calls ask-
ing for advice or to check on you to see how you are
doing. The risk manager proclaims, “I knew it was just
a matter of time.” Your organization has just personi-
fied you as a second victim.
Meanwhile, others who do nothing for their mem-
bers or the organization hang out at the fire station
and collect a check. They finished their training the
day recruit school was over, but they continue on
unfazed by the events because their people all went
home and their members went injury free all year.
BEYOND OUTCOME
In the book Behind Human Error, the point is made
that outcome cannot be the sole indicator of success.
Fireground operations are extremely complex, and
when something bad happens an investigation must
focus not only on the practitioners at the sharp end
of the process. The sharp end of a complex system is
characterized by how practitioners adapt to cope with
complexity. “We should be extremely sensitive to the
limitation of known remedies. While good manage-
ment and organizational design may reduce accidents
in certain systems, they can never prevent them.”2
FESHE
RECOGNIZED
3/22/16 2:30 PM
 In the book The Second Victim, author Sidney Dekker
asks, “How do people cope with having ‘caused’ a
terrible accident? How do they cope when they survive
and have to live with the consequences ever after?
We tend to blame and forget professionals who cause
incidents and accidents, but they are victims too. They
are second victims whose experiences of an incident
or adverse event can be as traumatic as that of the first
victims. Yet information on second victimhood and its
relationship to safety, about what is known and what
organizations might need to do, is difficult to find.”3 If
we are truly the brotherhood we say we are, the best job
in the world as we say, is our mission to destroy anyone
involved directly or by proxy or is our responsibility to
find out what we need do in these situations to protect
our investment and learn from the situation? Can we
be cultivating mental health problems within
our members by establishing unrealistic
expectations?
David Rhodes is a 30-year fire service veteran and a battalion
chief in an urban fire department in Georgia. He is a chief
elder for the Georgia Smoke Diver Program, a member of the
Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) Executive
Advisory Board, a hands-on training coordinator for FDIC, an
editorial advisor for Fire Engineering and the UL Fire Safety
Research Institute, and an adjunct instructor for the Georgia
Fire Academy. He is a Type III incident commander for the
Georgia Emergency Managements-Metro Atlanta All Hazards
Incident Management Team and is a task force leader for the
Georgia Search and Rescue Team. He is president of Rhodes
Consultants, Inc., which provides public safety training,
consulting, and promotional assessment centers.

DON’T PLAY IT SAFE

We must continue to embrace the 16 Life
Safety Initiatives and work hard to understand
and reduce risk, but we should never get to
a point where we create a culture that fails to
act and believes that risk management equals
no action and playing it “safe.” We should
never shun and throw away our resources
even if they make a mistake. If you want to
have the greatest impact on LODDs, start by
making sure your health and wellness pro-
gram is funded and functioning, your health
screenings prevent high-risk members from
operating in high-risk environments, and your
members are adequately trained to drive and
operate large apparatus.
Focus on creating members who are
competent in all the skills of firefighting,
return to common sense, and don’t focus so
much on creating rules that obstruct
learning or prevent members from entering,
searching, and extinguishing fires in
structures.

ENDNOTES
1. Yarnell Hill Fire: Serious Accident Investigation,
September 2013, www.iawfonline.org/Yarnell_Hill_
Fire_report.pdf . (Authors note: The team assembled
for the State of Arizona approached this investiga-
tion and report on one of the most professional and
meaningful context and provided us a guide into
how we should approach any investigation to avoid
hindsight bias.)
2. Dekker, Sidney, David D. Woods Richard Cook,
Behind Human Error, Ashgate Publishing Limited, 2nd
edition (August 1, 2010).
3. Dekker, Sidney, Second Victim: Error, Guilt, Trauma
and Resilience, CRC Press, (March 26, 2013).

FireFighterNatioN .com firerescue.hotims.com

1604FR_41 41 3/22/16 2:30 PM


April 1916 Fires
By Paul Hashagen
To read more
from Paul Hashagen,
visit www.firefighternation.
com/author/paul-hashagen.
42 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_42 42
Distant Fires
A look at fires that made history
I
n this month’s column, I present historic
fires or significant events in the fire service
from April 1916. A reminder: Readers are
encouraged to share information from their
departments.
April 3, 1916: New York, New York: It was
almost 2:00 on a Monday afternoon. The
weather was a pleasant 50 degrees as police offi-
cer Frank Bye rocked on his heels at the corner
of Beekman and Nassau Streets watching the
downtown Manhattan crowds rush along the
sidewalk. From up the block, shouting voices
caught his attention. Moving toward the
sounds, he noticed flames coming from the
third-floor window of 16 Beekman Street. He
broke into a run, heading toward the old six-story
building to warn the occupants. Arriving at the
door, he met people fleeing the structure, alerted by
the shouts of the huge crowd outside. Bye pulled
the alarm box handle. Moments later, Fire Depart-
ment of New York (FDNY) units were rolling to
the scene.
Within three minutes every window was filled
with flames. The first-arriving unit was Engine 32,
a high-pressure hose wagon. (High-pressure compa-
nies relied on the high-pressure water system spread
throughout lower Manhattan. The system allowed
individual hoses to be stretched and regulated
directly from special hydrants, eliminating the need
for steam pumpers.) The company traveled only
three blocks from their quarters on John Street,
then ran into a wall of flames. Firefighter William
Plender, the chauffeur of Engine 32, ducked his
head and drove the rig through the fire. The flames
scorched him and four other firefighters on the
rig. He stopped the wagon at the corner of Nassau
Street and took a high-pressure hydrant. Firefighters
stretched and operated several hoselines only to be
driven back, their streams falling short. Flames 20
and 30 feet high poured from the windows, ignit-
ing the building next door, another old six-story
paper warehouse. Three additional alarms were
immediately transmitted as flames rolled up the
outside of the adjacent 16-story structure known
as the Beekman-Nassau Building. Inside the tower,
elevator operators were extremely busy shouting
Photo courtesy of the
Paul Hashagen collec
tion.
the alarm and shuttling tenants from the
upper floors.
Chief John Kenlon arrived and had lines placed
at strategic locations on the roofs and fire escapes
of nearby buildings. Water towers were erected
and supplied. The number of streams being used
overtaxed the water supply, and the least effective
streams were shut down, improving the overall pres-
sure. Construction officials and fire chiefs also kept
a close eye on the runoff water that was filling the
subway excavation. Sandbags were used to divert
the rivers of water cascading down the street.
The editorial department of The Sun newspa-
per, the rear of which adjoined the rear of the fire
building, was able to cover the front-page story
without leaving the building. The wall of flames
was knocked down. A long, drawn-out battle went
on into the night to extinguish the remaining
deep-seated pockets of fire within the mountains of
rolled paper.
April 7, 1916: Bayonne, New Jersey: Shortly
after 4:00 in the afternoon, a fire broke out in the
plant of the Texas Oil Company. The two-story,
wood and corrugated iron structure was located
on a 600-foot-long pier at the foot of East First
Street. Filled with large quantities of lubricating oil,
gasoline, kerosene, asphalt glue, and tar products,
the fire was soon blazing, fed by the exploding
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:30 PM
 containers of flammables. A barge moored nearby, private home. Their efficient work saved the two
filled with 45,000 gallons of kerosene, was ignited structures and also limited the damages to nearby
by radiant heat. The flames then spread to another railway tracks and equipment.
nearby pier. Arriving units under the command of
Chief Alfred Davis were faced with a highly flam- Paul Hashagen is a 40-year veteran of the fire service. He retired
mable situation. Deploying a motor engine and from the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) after 25 years of
four steamers, the chief soon had five streams in service, with 20 of those years in Rescue Company 1. Hashagen
operation. On the waterside, oil company and New is a former chief of the Freeport (NY) Fire Department and is still
York City fireboats moved in, pressing five streams a member of Truck Company 1. He has written several books and
into the fire. numerous stories on the history of the fire service including Fire
Mutual aid from Jersey City helped hold the Department City of New York: The Bravest; An Illustrated History
flames despite the numerous reverberating explo- 1865-2002; and One Hundred Years of Valor: Rescue Company
sions. A deluge set was also set up in an attempt 1 New York City Fire Department Rescue 1915-2015. Visit his
to hold the expanding mass of flames. Firefighters Facebook page at Paul Hashagen-author.
braved the wall of heat and the dangerous
explosions, hoping to prevent the fire from
reaching six huge oil tanks only 300 feet
away. See us at
On the waterside, sections of the pier
collapsed, setting adrift flaming tins and
FDIC Booth
barrels. Fireboats scrambled to control #4942
these floating hazards. Two hours into
the battle the wind shifted, helping the
70 exhausted firefighters. The aggressive
positioning and dogged maintenance of the
hose streams held and extinguished the fire.
The firefighters’ brave and effective work
checked the spreading flames and saved the
remaining plant and its stored flammable
liquids.
April 15, 1916: Kingstree, South Caro-
lina: It was about 10:00 in the evening
when the delivery person for the Gulf Oil
Refining Company entered the plant’s stor-
age building to fill tanks for the following
day’s deliveries. Somehow, the lantern he
was using ignited a fire among the 100
iron drums of gasoline and a large store
of kerosene. Within seconds, the fire was
spreading, fueled by the flammable liquids.
The fire alarm was transmitted, bringing
the local fire department quickly to the
scene. On their arrival, it was clear the
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drums hundreds of feet from the blazing Put a Power Roller on your crew
building creating an extreme exposure
hazard. The fire reached the nearby
Southern Cotton Oil Company buildings,
setting fire to the ginnery and offices.
(Cotton gins removed the seeds from
cotton; these seeds were stored and the oil
was later extracted.) Flames raced through
the machinery and stored cotton. Firefight-
ers concentrated on keeping the flames from
spreading to a nearby seed house and a 262.363.2030
262 363 2030 email:
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1604FR_43 43 3/22/16 2:30 PM

 From the Chief’s Desk
Is There a Doctor in the House?
A discussion of higher education in the fire service
I
n the days of vaudeville, there was a scene that
By Ronny J. Coleman
often occurred that had a classic ring to it. Some-
one would collapse from a medical emergency
and the master of ceremonies would cry out, “Is
there a doctor in the house?” Chances were that
there would be one because of the limited entertain-
ment options of the era. In a modern context, I have
personally been on aircraft where the flight crew has
uttered the same request. In this case, the answer
was usually that there was not a doctor but someone
trained in basic life support who responded.
Let us imagine that we are at a large fire service
conference. Could we ask the same question: “Is
there a doctor in the house?” The answer is probably
yes. And most of you know exactly who you are and
how hard it was to obtain that doctorate. So, why
raise it in this column?
My answer is simple: In spite of what we have done
to raise the bar in the field of education, we do not
have a capstone degree that is broadly available to our
best and brightest. Achieving a doctorate in our field,
fire administration, is somewhat difficult. We have
a lot of doctors in our industry, but they may not be
focused on fire administration.
PROGRAM AVAILABILITY
Where is the incentive to go through the rigors of
getting a doctorate in fire and emergency services?
And how accessible are these programs? Yes, there
are programs out there. But, if you are a chief officer
in West Hickup Falls, South Dakota, what sort of
program is going to be readily available to you?
Of course, one of the responses to that concern is
to look on the Internet for a long-distance program.
And that is a viable option, but it comes with limita-
tions—not the least of which is that the numbers
who register for courses online and the numbers who
complete them are not as high as we should expect.
So let me shift to a comparison of our peer groups,
specifically criminal justice. Do they suffer from the
same deprivation? Hardly. Go the Web site www.
criminaljusticeprograms.com/programs-by-state/ and
look at the number of programs that are available to the
upwardly mobile and aspiring chief of police. Again,
this is not certificate envy on my part. What I am com-
paring is the construct of our system in comparison
to our peer groups. We are not competitive with law
44 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_44 44
enforcement, and I would submit that we are not com-
petitive with the educational levels of city engineers,
human resource directors, and city managers either.
THE MEDICAL FIELD
Then again, I have actually heard it stated that being
a fire chief does not require any type of college degree
and that thousands of fire chiefs are doing their job
without having any degree at all. You know what—
that is true, too.
Maybe we are about to face the same dilemma that
the medical profession faced about 150 years ago.
According to the United States National Library of
Medicine, the first organization of medical profession-
als was chartered in 1766. By the early 1800s, there
were regulations, standards of practice, and certifica-
tion of doctors. By 1847, the American Medical
Association was formed. It was 40 years before the fire
chiefs formed their organization, the National Associa-
tion of Fire Engineers. By the late 1870s, there were 62
medical schools in the United States. Event after event
followed that has placed a set of criterion in place to be
a medical doctor. In contrast, how many colleges were
involved in education of fire chiefs in the 1870s? There
wasn’t even a study of the body of knowledge about
firefighting until Chief Ralph J. Scott did one in 1928.
DEGREE REQUIREMENTS?
Where is any requirement on the fire service to
possess a doctoral degree? Do we need such a require-
ment? Is there really any reason for post-graduate
degrees in an occupation where the lack of a degree is
not considered a liability by the hiring organizations?
I will leave the discussion open for now. But it has
got to be answered in the next few years if the fire
service is to have a true top-to-bottom educational
framework. Is there a doctor in the house? What
kind of doctor is he? And does the doctorate provide
a knowledge base that increases the fire service’s
efficiency or effectiveness?
Ronny J. Coleman is a retired state fire marshal for the State of
California. He has achieved chief officer designation at both the
state and national levels. Coleman has a master of arts degree
in vocational education, a bachelor of science degree in political
science, and an associate of arts degree in fire science. He is
president of Fireforceone, a consulting firm in California.
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:35 PM
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 Thermal Imaging
Do Thermal Imaging Cameras
Help During a Flashover?
Use in preflashover situations
F
lashovers are extremely dangerous and have
claimed the lives of too many firefighters over
the years. Many articles and training programs
By Carl Nix
have been produced to help firefighters understand
a flashover situation and how to escape safely. In a
flashover situation, fire conditions progress rapidly
from what was a hot fire to what becomes an ines-
capable fire.
As an instructor, I have heard firefighters say that
a thermal imaging camera (TIC) can help you dur-
ing a flashover. This is not true. A TIC is a tool to
help detect a flashover, but it can’t help you if you’re
caught in a flashover. Think about the amount of
time, or lack of time, you have in a flashover—two,
maybe three seconds to get out of the situation. You
have to move quickly. In this scenario, you don’t
have time to look at your TIC.
A preflashover situation is where your TIC can
help. Your TIC can give you a visual indication of
warning signs that you would otherwise not see.
Without your use of a TIC, the thick smoke acts as
a visual barrier to what is actually going on above
you. Convective velocity, thermal layering, and even
rollovers are often hidden inside the smoke and are
difficult or impossible to detect. The TIC can help
you visualize these events. Your TIC can help you
identify how rapidly the fire gases are moving across
the ceiling, indicating that they actually have some
place to go other than the room you are in. Thermal
layering is also visible to the TIC. When one or
both of these two visuals change, convective velocity
slows or thermal layers descend, it can serve as an
early indicator of potential flashover conditions.
I’ve mentioned this in my previous articles and
probably will continue to do so because it’s key
to staying safe when entering a burning building:
Always have your TIC with you so you can scan
a room prior to entry. This is so important when
avoiding a flashover. Scanning with your TIC lets
you look for signs of excessive heat buildup, partic-
ularly near the ceiling, or levels of high heat closer
to the floor where you might not otherwise expect
them. Your TIC will also help you locate potential
vertical or horizontal vent points in case you need
them and where the secondary means of egress are.
46 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_46 46
In a flashover situation, these tactics are lifesaving.
Your TIC is there to help you recognize the
dangers that you may encounter and how to avoid
those dangers so you and your fellow firefighters
can go home safely. Simply put, if you have no
other means of control such as ventilation or a hose
stream, you must get out quickly. If you wait until
the flashover is taking place, it’s too late for the TIC
to help you escape this extremely dangerous occur-
rence. A TIC cannot help you in a flashover, but it
can help alert you to a pending flashover.
It’s also important to note that the temperature-
sensing feature on your TIC is not a reliable indica-
tor of flashover or preflashover conditions. The
temperature-sensing capability of your TIC cannot
accurately detect the temperatures of gases, which is
where the greatest threat usually lies in the growth
stage of a fire. Your TIC is designed to detect sur-
faces but not gases. Temperature sensing is best used
when evaluating the temperature differences in the
same or similar materials. For instance, when per-
forming overhaul, you might use the temperature-
sensing feature to tell you what portion of drywall
is hotter than another portion of drywall. When
comparing like materials, the actual temperature
displayed does not matter as much as the difference
between the temperatures.
Fortunately, a flashover is not a routine occur-
rence but a culmination of successive, prior events
that can lead to a potentially catastrophic outcome
for firefighters. It is these preflashover events that
you must be aware of. In the same way that you use
a TIC to size up a building prior to entry, you must
constantly size up the interior conditions of a fire
environment and be observant of change. Once you
see the changes coming, you can find a path out of
harm’s way.
Carl Nix is a 30-year veteran of the fire service and a retired
battalion chief of the Grapevine (TX) Fire Department. He serves
as an adjunct instructor for North Central Texas College and a
thermal imaging instructor for Bullard. Nix has a bachelor of
science degree in fire administration and is a guest instructor
for Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service’s (TEEX) annual fire
training in Texas.
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:35 PM
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1604FR_47 47 3/22/16 2:35 PM


The 1¾-inch high-performance hose
BY PAUL SHAPIRO
M
ost fire departments have the ability to deploy 2½-inch
handlines, and many have the big line as a preconnect
to make a quick, large-flow attack on a significant
fire to achieve a quick knockdown. This is usually
done with the first-in unit. Of course, they also have the ability to
make up 2½-inch handlines from static loads in the hosebed for
large-flow operations. The flows for these big lines usually range
from 250 to 325 gpm. When it comes to large-flow handlines, the
2½-inch hose has always been the weapon of choice, because its
lower friction loss capabilities allow for more flow.
The drawback to using 2½-inch line is that it is heavy, which
makes it tough to deploy, especially in a first-in, quick-attack
mode; it is also difficult to move around after it is charged.
Because of these negative traits, firefighters will often avoid using
the 2½-inch line. The end result from this is that smaller lines
will be pulled and lower than required flows will be delivered.
REPEATING HISTORY
It’s a true fact that the fire service tends to do what it has always
done in the past when it comes to certain issues, and the 2½-inch
48 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_48 48
Riviera Hotel high-rise
handline flow tests.
(Photos by author.)
handline is a good example of this. History tells us that it is the
only line that works for big flows as well as high-rise fires. Assistant
Chief Bill Nemick with the Pueblo (CO) Fire Department brings
up an interesting point. He states that firefighters tend to choose
the size of the attack line based on the type of fire. A 1¾-inch
line is used for small fires such as single-family dwellings and the
2½-inch line is used for the large commercial fires. Once again, this
strategy is based on what has always been done in the past. He then
states that we should match the gpm to the British thermal units
and use the water delivery equipment that is best suited to get the
job done. As you will see, the 1¾-inch high-performance hose can
be used for the high gpm-demanding fires in certain situations.
Another good example of doing things the way we have always
done it concerns the handline used for high-rise firefighting. Again,
history tells us that the only line that can be used is the 2½-inch
because of the pressure issues in the high-rise structure. We are now
proving that two-inch and 1¾-inch are also an option in some
situations. Table 1 illustrates this. These numbers were taken at a
500-gpm/65-psi high-rise system in a 25-story building.
In recent years, there has been a resurgence of training and
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:35 PM
 advocating of the use of the 2½-inch attack line. Several fire service
instructors specialize in training in advancing the big line with
very positive results. They have shown techniques that remind me
of athletes training for an event. The basic use of body mechanics
makes a big difference in moving the big hose.
What I would like to do is add to the outstanding techniques taught
by these instructors by making the handline lighter while maintaining
the same 2½-inch handline flows. I will focus on the large-flow han-
dline concept with a different twist to it. We will be using 1¾-inch
high-performance attack hose for the high-flow handline for the pur-
pose of making the big hit line easier to deploy. The high-performance
hose has the ability to expand up to approximately 17⁄8 inches when it
is charged. This, along with a friction-reducing inside liner, creates a A 265-gpm flow from 200 feet of high-performance hose.
lower friction loss and therefore allows for higher flows.
A high-performance 1¾-inch high-flow line can be deployed as
MATCH THE FLOW easily as an interior standard-flow attack line with a flow of 265
The question that comes to mind is this: Will a 1¾-inch gpm. So, does a high-flow, high-pressure 1¾-inch handline create
high-performance attack line provide the flows that the 2½-inch a problem with the hose becoming rigid and hard to work with
line can produce? In the majority of the cases, I would say yes. because of the higher pump discharge pressure (PDP) as compared
Take a look at the 2½-inch nozzles that are in use today. You will to the lower PDP of the 2½-inch line? Is the flexibility dimin-
find that the majority have flows ranging from 250 to 325 gpm. ished? Try a simple test. Charge a 1¾-inch handline and throttle
These flows are achievable with 1¾-inch high performance. The up to 250 PDP but do not flow water. Next, drag the line, as you
high-performance 1¾-inch hose provides a realistic alternative for would, through an obstacle course such as the burn tower, fire
a high-flow line as far as ease of deployment is concerned. It is a station, or other realistic environment. What you should notice
lot easier to pull from the hosebed and extend when it is charged. is that there should be a little rigidity at the nozzle. This should
A 50-foot section of high-performance, 1¾-inch hose charged not affect your stream-directing capabilities. The rest of the line
weighs approximately 71 pounds and a 200-foot line weighs should be just as easy to drag through the hallway and around the
approximately 284 pounds charged. Conversely, the same length corners as if it were pumped at a common interior attack handline
in a 2½-inch line weighs approximately 533 pounds. pressure (120-150 PDP).
Once in a while, there is a call for a high-flow handline for an
interior attack. Yes, a 2½-inch line can work, provided that there is FLOW TESTS
sufficient staffing and the proper techniques are used. Four to six fire- The statistics presented in Table 2 compare 2½-inch and
fighters are not uncommon for this scenario. It does not matter what 1¾-inch high-performance lines at 200 feet with their corre-
the flow is, the weight of the 2½-inch line remains the same. sponding flows and PDPs. The 1¾-inch high-performance hose
is manufactured by Key Fire Hose. The nozzles used for this test
Table 1. High-Rise Fire Protection System, are smooth bore tips based on a 50-psi nozzle pressure. Because
Handline Flow Tests the high-performance hose will have a higher friction loss than
8/24/15: Riviera Hotel Las Vegas Nevada the 2½-inch at the high flows we are trying to achieve, a nozzle
System Specifications: 500 GPM @ 65 psi SORP
Table 2. 2½-in. Handline Flow Tests
HIGH PERFORMANCE
vs. 1¾-in. High-Performance Handline Flow Tests
1.88-in. hose × 150 ft.
PDP is for a 200-ft. handline
SORP 85 GPM 165 TIP 7/8 in. NP 54
Friction loss is for 100 feet of hose
SORP 85 GPM 185 TIP 15/16 in. NP 50
GPM TIP SIZE NP NR FL PDP
SORP 85 GPM 210 TIP 1 in. NP 50
265 1 1/8 in. 50 99 10 80
SORP 85 GPM 218 TIP 1 1/8 in. NP 34
300 1 3/16 in. 50 111 15 85
ECO 10
325 1 1/4 in. 50 123 20 90
2-in. hose × 150 ft. with 2½-inch couplings
SORP 85 GPM 177 TIP 7/8 in. NP 62
PDP is for a 200-ft. handline
SORP 85 GPM 201 TIP 15/16 in. NP 60
Friction loss is for 100 feet of hose
SORP 85 GPM 217 TIP 1 in. NP 54
GPM TIP SIZE NP NR FL PDP
SORP 80 GPM 248 TIP 1 1/8 in. NP 44
160 7/8 in. 50 54 20 90
BIG 10
185 15/16 in. 50 69 25 110
2½-inch hose × 150 ft.
210 1 in. 50 71 35 135
SORP 80 GPM 265 TIP 1 1/8 in. NP 50
265 1 1/8 in. 50 99 55 185
SORP 75 GPM 345 TIP 1 1/4 in. NP 56
300 1 3/16 in. 50 111 60 190
SORP: standpipe outlet residual pressure GPM: gallons per minute NP: nozzle pressure
NOTE: Tests were done from the hydraulically furthest standpipe outlet from the building pump. 325 1 1/4 in. 50 123 80 210

FireFighterNatioN .com a pril 2016 F ire r escue M agazine 49

1604FR_49 49 3/22/16 2:35 PM

 Can you see the difference? High-performance hose is just 1⁄8 inch larger. Various low-pressure nozzles can be used.

When the 1¾-inch high-perfor-

mance hose is used, because it has
1½-inch couplings, it would make
sense that it could be connected to
a 1¾-inch preconnect discharge.
It’s important to remember
that the standard for the small
handline preconnect plumbing
is two inches, which will not be
able to support the flows needed
A 2½-inch line is on the left and
the high-performance line is on the for a high-flow handline—at least
right. Here is where the high-per- efficiently. Therefore, it is crucial
formance hose is worth its weight to connect the line to a 2½-inch
in gold. discharge, whether it be a standard
2½-inch or one that is designed
with a low nozzle pressure is needed to keep the overall discharge for a 2½-inch preconnect.
pressure as low as possible. The flows for the 2½-inch start at 265 One thing that wasn’t mentioned in the flow tests was the
gpm since it is considered to be a high-flow handline. The flows fact that the nozzle reaction for flows above 250 gpm with the
for the 1¾-inch high performance start at 160 gpm because this 1¾-inch high-performance hose is severe enough to cause the
line can be used for both low- and high-flow operations. The tests hose to buckle right at the nozzle. Because the high-performance
include flows at 160, 185, 210, 265, 300, and 325 gpm. hose is smaller than the 2½-inch, it does not handle the nozzle
The 1¾-inch high-performance hose was able to match the reaction as well. The 2½-inch hose does not have a problem with
2½-inch hose in every flow category. The tradeoff with the lighter
and easier-to-deploy hose was that a higher PDP was needed
because, as previously mentioned, the 1¾-inch high-performance
hose has a higher friction loss than 2½-inch hose. Should the
higher PDP be a big concern? I say no. First, it’s important to
understand that the higher pressure used on the hose itself is
well within the pressure capabilities that the 1¾-inch high-per-
formance hose is designed for. The most common hose pressure
ratings for attack line hose includes a 1,200-psi burst pressure
and a 400-psi annual test pressure, which means that, according
to the National Fire Protection Association and the manufactur-
ers, the hose can be used up to 360 psi on the fireground. The
high-performance hose has a 1,500-psi burst pressure, an annual
test pressure of 500 psi, and a working pressure of 450 psi. We
did not get anywhere close to that for both the standard hose and
high performance on any of the lines we tested. The highest pres-
sure obtained was 210 psi. A 2½-inch discharge offers the best results.

50 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016 FireFighterNAtioN.com

1604FR_50 50 3/22/16 2:35 PM

 The 1¾-inch hose will have a tendency to kink at the nozzle at the high flows
because of nozzle reaction. The solution to this is adding a short section of
2½-inch hose at the nozzle.

firerescue.hotims.com
nozzle reaction at all. Keeping that in mind, we decided to use
a short piece of 2½-inch hose five feet in length at the end of
the 1¾-inch high-performance handline for the sole purpose of
absorbing nozzle reaction to assist the firefighter with handling You protect the people.
the high flows. It worked great. We protect the gear.
GO WITH THE FLOW
Striving to do a better job means being able to constantly
review and change things as needed. The 2½-inch handline has
been a great tool for a big-flow fire attack. In reviewing the big
line, one area of improvement that needs to be addressed is to
look at an easier way to deploy it. We have partially done this
with some excellent training from fire service instructors across
the country.
As you can see, the 1¾-inch high-performance hose along with
this training completely solve the deployment issue. As firefight- CABINET DRYERS

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Paul Shapiro has been involved with the fire service since 1981 and served as an drying cabinets are made specifically for heavy,
engineer with the Las Vegas (NV) Fire & Rescue for 28 years until his retirement. He bulky turnout gear. They are pre-programmed
is a certified fire instructor III for Nevada and has served on the faculty of many fire with NFPA 1851 compliant formulas to
academies throughout the United States. Shapiro authored Layin’ The Big Lines, a make caring for your gear hassle-free.
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training on large-flow water delivery systems and fire stream management. His Contact an authorized Milnor distributor
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FireFighterNatioN .com firerescue.hotims.com

1604FR_51 51 3/22/16 2:35 PM

 n the shadow of 9/11, a great rallying
cry went out across the fire service—
interoperability. No longer could we
operate within our own silos. Like
the move to standardize hose
couplings a generation before, having a radio
grid that allows us to communicate and
collaborate with our neighbors was no longer a
luxury. Fast forward 15 years and interwoven
radio networks, enormous mobile command
units, and plain language communication are
prevalent, if not universal. Yet, departmental
silos remain as prevalent. The most pressing silos
in the fire service these days concern data.
Now, you’re forgiven for rolling your eyes; Big
Data, Little Data, and every data in between
have all the hallmarks of yet another fad. Every-
where you turn, someone is pontificating data
as the salve for all manner of problems. With
this article, I suppose I am just as guilty. But I
am not alone. In the December 2014 issue of
FireRescue, Erich Roden and Matt Quinn’s article
“Big Data in the Fire Service: A Primer” outlined
extensively the multitude of ways Big Data is
already poised to impact the fire service. As they
put it: “Simply put, ‘Big Data’ can be defined as
any collection of data that is too large to be pro-
cessed by any of the standard tools commonly
used to work with data.”1
Be it response time data, building inspection
data, or any other, the fire service may be chock
full of potential Big Data, but the fire service
and data aren’t exactly peanut butter and jelly.
Data is something we do as much as it is some-
thing we use. Data is something we rush through
52 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_52 52
n
ta, building inspectio
Be it response time da ma y be cho ck
fire service
data, or any other, the t the fire servic e
ta, bu
full of potential Big Da y.
y peanut butter and jell
and data aren’t exactl
o.)
(Photo by John Cetrin
in the middle of the night so we can get back to bed. It is the forms we begrudgingly
complete to keep headquarters and city hall happy. Data is something we tend to do
for someone else. Moving to digital data systems has multiplied the amount of data
but not necessarily the ways we use data. As we start to improve the ways we use the
data, the more we realize just how siloed our data and our data systems are. Data
system integration is the next rallying cry that is poised to sweep the fire service.
This article focuses specifically on data integrations as they relate to the fire ser-
vice. It briefly introduces a number of concepts around data architecture, software
configurations, and data portability, as they are essential to understanding the capa-
bilities and limitations of current data and records management systems (RMSs).
This article is not intended to provide a comprehensive technical how-to manual
on data integrations; it is intended to help a nontechnical audience understand the
fundamentals of linking data systems.
DATA SYSTEM INTEGRATIONS
How many computer systems does your organization have to record a firefighter’s
certifications? How many different places does your organization record who worked,
on what day, and on what unit? When a family narrowly escapes a residential fire, how
many places would you have to look to determine if that was one of the houses where
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:35 PM

your department installed a smoke detector or had previous contact? Data system inte-
gration is the process by which different data and RMSs are linked on the back end
so that data transfer directly, seamlessly, and accurately from one system to another to
improve efficiency and effectiveness. Or, as IBM Analytics put it: “Data integration is
the combination of technical and business processes used to combine data from dis-
parate sources into meaningful and valuable information. A complete data integration
solution delivers trusted data from a variety of sources.”2
For the end user, it should seem intuitive: A change is made in one system and
is automatically updated in another system. No more keeping multiple lists and
spreadsheets or logging into multiple systems to ensure they all match up.
To illustrate the concept, let’s begin with a scenario: A firefighter/paramedic
has been diagnosed with meningitis and now the department needs to cover the
employee’s upcoming shifts and identify personnel and patients the employee likely
came into contact with. First, the automated shift-scheduling system pulls a list
of certifications from the training RMS and identifies the next person from the
overtime list that meets all the certifications and criteria required to fill the shift.
Next, the department queries the incident RMS to identify all calls to which the
sick employee responded. An automated message goes out to all potentially exposed
personnel and other stakeholders, alerting them to the possible exposures. While
FireFighterNatioN .com
1604FR_53 53
departmental personnel will be actively engaged
in overseeing this process, the data are exchanged
directly, in real time, to the respective computer
systems and persons. As far as the end user is
concerned, the systems just “talk” to one another
and pass the necessary information back and forth
seamlessly.
There is a certain magic to data integra-
tions. The data just go where they need
to go, are sent in the format they need to
be received, and trigger outcomes they
need to accomplish. However, this magic
is anything but. This requires extensive
programming, system configuration,
and information management plan-
ning. To be effective, data integrations
need to be carefully planned and extensively project
managed. The magicians of an integration are the
IT staff and the software project managers. While
the technical details and specifications may be best
left to the experts, it is important for firefighters
and fire service leaders to be at least broadly familiar
with the language and terminology of “data.”
DATA FOR … FIREFIGHTERS
These broadly accepted definitions, borrowed
from the data industry, are useful and necessary
to ensure a fundamental baseline of knowledge
about data systems:
Data: Data are* any values, labels, or informa-
tion related to a thing. (*Data are always plural.)
Said another way, data are information that has
been translated into a form that is more conve-
nient to move or process.
Data dictionaries: A data dictionary is a collec-
tion of descriptions of the data objects or items
in a data model for the benefit of programmers
and others who need to refer to them. Each data
object or item is given a descriptive name, its rela-
tionship is described (or it becomes part of some
structure that implicitly describes relationship),
the type of data (such as text or image or binary
value) is described, possible predefined values are
listed, and a brief textual description is provided.
Data quality: Data quality is the term used
for information that has five elements of qual-
ity: completeness, consistency, accuracy, being
time-stamped, and standards-based. Within an
organization, acceptable data quality is crucial
to operational and transactional processes and to
the reliability of business analytics (BA)/business
intelligence (BI) reporting. Data quality is affected
by the way data are entered, stored, and managed.
Data portability: Data portability is the abil-
ity to move data among different application
programs, computing environments, or cloud
services. Data portability has become common-
place (although not universal) among application
a pril 2016 F ire r escue M agazine 53
3/22/16 2:35 PM
 programs designed for use on diverse vendors’ software.
Authorization and permissions: Authorization is the process
of giving someone permission to do or have something within a
computer network or program. Authorization is sometimes seen
as both the preliminary setting up of permissions by a system
administrator and the actual checking of the permission values
that have been set up when a user is getting access.
Data architecture: Data architecture is a term applied to both the
process and the outcome of thinking out and specifying the overall
structure, logical components, and logical interrelationships of data.
Data mapping: Data mapping is a process used in data warehous-
ing by which different data models are linked to each other using
a defined set of methods to characterize the data in a specific defini-
tion. Data mapping serves as the initial step in data integration.

ALL-IN-ONE SOLUTIONS VS. INTEGRATIONS

When we begin discussing data system integrations, the most
obvious question is: Why not just buy one piece of software that
does everything? Many existing RMSs that fire departments already
have do just that. Most of the major RMS vendors are designed to
allow a department to enter fire and EMS incident data, maintain
training logs, document fire investigations, manage various inven-
firerescue.hotims.com
tory and daily inspections, and even conduct building inspections.
Some RMS solutions are bundled with the computer-aided dis-
patch (CAD) system to provide the whole package. So, with native
built-in all-in-one functionality, why would a department even
want to consider maintaining separate systems?
The all-in-one package approach served us well during the first
generation of the digital fire service as we moved from paper forms
to digital forms. Yet, as fire departments become more tech-savvy


# #
!
"# "# " and tech-capable, many are looking to independent software solu-
tions to meet specific needs. Moreover, even if a department uses an

 !
##!
#!#

#"!# all-in-one solution, there is likely other software across the depart-
ment and municipality that could be integrated: human resources/
payroll software, building/planning department software, etc. Data
integrations are just as important to all-in-one solutions.
Many software vendors, including all-in-one systems, have
anticipated this move and have already created boilerplate integra-
tions between popular software pairings to provide these linkages
!"#
#!# #!

at reduced costs. Ask any software vendor at a fire service trade

#!# 
# 
show what other software (even sometimes competitors) that
they integrate with, and they are likely to have a list of software
# # !
# with which they currently successfully integrate and a list of other
software with which they could potentially integrate. Integrations
are becoming the bread and butter of the software industry.

APPLICATION PROGRAM INTERFACES

 
!
"!!



Connecting computer systems, each with their own language,
structure, and security, is a bit like fire pumps, each with their
own threads, plumbing, and design. Like the move to standardize
# couplings, computer engineers created a standardized connection

firerescue.hotims.com
FireF ighterNatioN .com

1604FR_54 54 3/22/16 2:35 PM

 Table 1 in which most agencies operate, these potential additional costs
are likely to face intense scrutiny. However, the upfront costs are
Version 1 123 S. Smith St. SE
often considerably less than deciding after the fact to integrate the
Version 2 123 S. Smith St. SE
systems to address the frustrating inefficiencies, errors, or duplica-
Version 3 123 S. Smith St. SE tions of new but still siloed computer systems.
Version 4 123 S. Smith St. SE Linking different systems requires a comprehensive data inte-
Version 5 123 S. Smith St. SE gration to ensure the data go in the correct directions, go in the
correct form, and are linked to the correct information. When
Table 2 data exist in a silo, they can take any form that is convenient.
Unit Numbers 123 S. Smith St. SE, Apartment 2304 When linked to other systems, the data architecture—the way it
Address Ranges 120 – 125 S. Smith St. SE is configured, ordered, and populated—becomes very important.

Table 3 SHARING DATA

Building 1 14 007700100445
Building 2 15 206 04 095
Building 3 17 0161 LL0158
interface, known as an application program interface (API), to
facilitate the linking of different computer systems.
Many of the data systems and RMSs fire departments are
already using have built-in APIs, although many fire departments
may not be using them to their full potential. More importantly,
just because your data systems have an API doesn’t mean all your
systems are automatically or necessarily inexpensively connected.
Identifying essential and preferred data integrations should
be a vital component of specifying, bidding, or purchasing new
software. Data integrations are likely to add sometimes significant
costs to the overall purchase price of new software and should be
anticipated in budget requisitions. In the tight financial climates
Discussing data integrations very quickly gets mired in complex
technical jargon and concepts. Again, many of those specifics are
best left to the IT professionals. For nontechnical staff, the question
is: How could you improve your agency’s efficiency and effectiveness
by sharing data? This is a question being asked all across the country
and serves as the lynchpin of “Open Data Initiatives” in municipali-
ties large and small. The challenge of linking data systems among
city agencies can be as fundamental as ensuring that record A in one
system relates to the same location as record B in another.
Traditionally, location linkages are based on the physical address of
the property. However, given the complexity of matching addresses
in large/subdivided buildings and the differences in data architecture,
addresses are difficult to use for this purpose. For example, some
systems concatenate addresses into one field as seen in Version 1 in
Table 1. Others handle the various components of streets differently:
street numbers, direction, name, type, post direction, etc.

firerescue.hotims.com

1604FR_55 55 3/22/16 2:35 PM


When specific unit numbers or address ranges are included,
they only further complicate matters, as can be seen in Table 2.
In other areas, parcel numbers are used for this purpose. Parcel
numbers are less ideal, as most use both alpha and numeric char-
acters. Also, parcel numbers are often spaced inconsistently and
may even have different number of digits. Additionally, there may
be multiple buildings on one parcel, or one large building may sit
on multiple parcels. The three actual parcel numbers in Table 3
are all within the same city limits.
What is needed is a unique identification number that all
municipal services would share to facilitate data integration across
data systems. New York City is an example of best practice in this
arena. Under the Bloomberg administration, the city adopted an
Open Data Initiative to link previously siloed databases. The goal
was to create more efficient and transparent municipal services.
One of the lynchpins of that initiative was the creation of a
unique building identification number (BIN) that would link
each of the disparate systems together.
INTERDEPARTMENTAL BENCHMARKING
Similarly, as fire departments work to ensure they are providing
the highest quality service to their respective communities, more
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communities and governments are asking: How are we doing
relative to similar communities? Unspoken in that question is a
presumption: How are we doing relative to similar communities
currently? With the advent of the National Fire Incident Reporting
System (NFIRS) Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW), National Fire
Operations Reporting System (NFORS), and Fire Community
Assessment Response Evaluation System (FireCARES), we are on
the cusp of an explosion of real-time, interdepartmental bench-
marking and comparisons.
The forthcoming NFIRS EDW is, as fire data evangelist Sara
Wood puts it, “the missing piece of NFIRS,” allowing more
real-time access to not only their own departmental data but
that of comparable, or not so comparable, departments across
the country. While the data remain only as accurate as they are
entered, the EDW will allow users to create reports to drill down
into every corner of NFIRS data.
The NFORS system is designed to supplement and expand fire
incident data capture beyond the current parameters of the NFIRS.
NFORS is a Web-based system to capture, analyze, and benchmark
data of what occurred on the fireground, how long it took, and
what was the outcome. With the data available real-time, person-
nel can review what occurred; document positive and negative
outcomes; and translate that data into usable information for policy
makers, training personnel, and elected leaders. While each of the
specific data points can be entered manually after the incident,
NFORS is configured to allow importation of data from CAD and
RMS solutions. Moreover, since many of the largest RMS vendors
have been active stakeholders in designing NOFRS, many are
working on direct integrations to allow seamless data entry directly
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 into NFORS without having to enter data in multiple locations.
FireCARES is loosely related to NFORS, having also been
borne out of the landmark Firefighter Safety and Deployment
Study. FireCARES measures and scores a fire department for
how well, comparatively, it performs: If fire department resources
(both mobile and personnel) are deployed to match the risk levels
inherent to hazards in the community, it has been scientifically
demonstrated that the community will be far less vulnerable
to negative outcomes in firefighter injuries and deaths, civilian
injuries and deaths, and property losses. FireCARES analyzes
massive amounts of fire department data to identify if resources
are appropriately deployed to match a community’s risk level.
This initiative measures the fire loss outcomes of a fire depart-
ment relative to an idealized version of itself, resulting in a perfor-
mance score. The program is based on a complex mathematical
model that factors in many data points and makes a number of
theoretical assumptions to derive the performance score.
This is a prime example of the difference between Big Data and
traditional approaches to analyzing performance. Traditionally,
we want to look at specific incidents to figure out what caused
positive or negative performance outcomes. Or we want to break
it down to look at specific territories (“everyone here knows Bat-
talion A is unique”) or other local nuance (“well the train along
XYZ Street always slows Engine Q down”). With Big Data, the
individual data points become less important; outliers, missing
data, and other data quality problems are identified and removed
using statistical techniques, often without anyone ever looking at
the specific data point. Relationships among the data are identi-
fied by the analysis of the data.
JOIN THE CHORUS
The chorus for this rallying cry is growing louder. Fire departments
across the country are becoming increasingly data savvy. Data are
becoming less of what we create simply for someone else. Integrating
data systems is the backbone for this paradigm shift. Fire service
leaders don’t need to be experts in data architecture or API configura-
tions to realize its value. They do, however, need to broadly under-
stand what integrations can and cannot do and budget appropriately
to ensure vital systems are appropriately integrated. With the current
speed of technological development and data production, the only
limitation of how interconnected our data systems will be in another
15 years is our willingness to embrace integrations. As expensive as
integrations can be, can we afford not to?
REFERENCES
1. Roden, Erich, and Matt Quinn, “Big Data in the Fire Service: A Primer,” FireRes-
cue, December 2014.
2. IBM Analytics, “Data Integration,” www.ibm.com/analytics/us/en/technology/
data-integration.
Matt Hinds-Aldrich, PhD, is a management analyst for Atlanta (GA) Fire Rescue
Department, where he manages a diverse range of projects and initiatives. He has
been actively involved in the fire safety field for 15 years, having most recently
served as a fire science assistant professor and interim program director at Anna
Maria College. Most of Hinds-Aldrich’s work focuses on performance manage-
ment, organizational problem solving, and community risk reduction initiatives. He
has researched, written, and presented extensively on the concepts of firefighter
culture, behavioral economics in public safety, and the unfortunate topic of
firefighters arrested for setting fires.

 
 
   



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FireFighterNatioN .com a pril 2016 F ire r escue M agazine 57

1604FR_57 57 3/22/16 2:36 PM

 The

to
Road Part 1
Resilience
Taking care
of ourselves
BY NAOMI L. BAUM

Along with the stories of courage and

bravery, there is a darker side to fire-
fighting that needs some light shed
on it. (Photo by Chris Mickal.)

58 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016 FireFighterNAtioN.com

1604FR_58 58 3/22/16 2:36 PM

 F
irefighters are tough. Walking into burning buildings and put-
ting out the flames take a great deal of both physical and men-
tal resolve. Spending months and years of their lives training so
that, when the call comes, they are ready to jump into action
and save lives, firefighters sometimes seem invincible to the public—and
maybe even to themselves. But are they? What happens after the flames are
doused and the fire is out? Where do firefighters go, and what do they do?
Psychological studies show that first responders, a group that includes not
only firefighters but also police officers, paramedics, and emergency room
workers, are at greater risk for work burnout, compassion fatigue, alcohol-
ism, and more. These statistics call attention to the fact that, along with the
stories of courage and bravery, there is a darker side to firefighting that needs
some light shed on it.

HELPING THE HELPER

Helping the helpers is the concept most often used when discussing the
often overlooked needs of people who have chosen to be in helping profes-
sions. Used with professional groups ranging from trauma psychologists and
social workers to police officers, firefighters, and humanitarian aid workers,
helping the helper refers to noticing and paying attention to emotional needs
that have often been neglected amid the enthusiasm of these helpers to do
their work.
There are two parts to consider in how we help ourselves, the helpers. There
is the day-to-day maintenance that is required if we are to stay in tip top
condition. Then, there are those special occasions after particularly difficult or
horrific events we have encountered in our work that require special attention.
Here, I will focus on the first part of helping the helper, the daily routine.
How we normally take care of ourselves can greatly affect the way we
perform under stress. Just as we all know how important it is to exercise, eat
well, and get enough sleep, there are activities that we can engage in that
will keep us mentally fit and healthy. The concept of resilience is particularly
helpful here.

WHAT IS RESILIENCE?
Picture a spring. When you compress the spring, or when the spring is
under a lot of pressure or stress, it contracts. When you stop pressing on it,
or remove the stress, the spring bounces back. This captures the essence of
resilience. It is a flexible attitude that allows for a wide range of emotions
and reactions. It is the ability to withstand stress and to bounce back after
adversity. A resilient person will feel pain, anger, sorrow, and fear without
worrying that he will be swallowed up by those feelings. Allowing yourself
to leave these feelings and move on to happiness, joy, excitement, and fun is
the essence of resilience. That spiral motion of movement between the more
difficult emotions of pain and sadness to happiness and joy characterizes
resilience. The ability to access a variety of behaviors and activities and to be
flexible and decide what works for you right now is true resilience.
So how do we build resilience? How do we let ourselves express a wide
range of emotions in a healthy and constructive way? Can resilience, in
fact, be built? In the Building Resilience Intervention (BRI) model that
I developed and implemented worldwide, there are four essential steps.
Learning about these steps and practicing skills related to them can greatly
enhance coping in populations that have been exposed to a large variety of
traumas ranging from natural disasters to terrorism and war. Specifically,

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1604FR_59 59 3/22/16 2:36 PM

 THE ROAD TO RESILIENCE
first responder teams who have trained in the BRI have
reported improvements in stress level and feelings of
well being as well.
STEP ONE
The first step in helping yourself is developing self-
awareness, self-knowledge, and understanding how
your mind and body are connected. For a start, take
an inventory of your stress level. What stresses do you
have in your life? Are they ongoing? Transitory? Are
they things that are in your control or out of your
control? Examples of ongoing stresses are elderly parents
and physical illness. Stressors that are more short term
include an unexpected bill, a deadline at work, and cov-
ering shifts for a friend on vacation. Check out where
your stresses occur. Are they mostly at work? In the fam-
ily arena? Somewhere else? Of course, none of this will
change the stresses in your life, but mapping them out
can help you become more aware of what is going on in
your life and examine what you might change and what
you cannot. Often, sharing your results with a partner
or friend can be helpful as well.
STEP TWO
The second step in building resilience is learning how
to communicate about feelings. Research shows that
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the single most important feature in helping people
cope with adversity is the amount of social support they
have from family and friends. Learning how to reach
out and talk to family members about how you are
feeling and what is going on in your life and learning to
listen to them can go a long way toward strengthening
existing social networks. In my experience, firefighters
often have difficulty sharing their work life with their
life partners. They often feel that nobody outside of the
station house can actually understand them. Learning
how to break down those barriers and share with the
important people in your life can create a sense of sup-
port that is invaluable.
STEP THREE
What do you do when the going gets tough? How do
you help yourself? What works for you? Do you call a
friend, go fishing, read a book, or take a nap? Examin-
ing how you normally cope with stress and adversity
and expanding on those existing strengths and resources
comprise the third step in resilience building. Most
people have a preferred method of dealing with stress or
hard times. For some, it is physical like going for a run
or taking a bath. For others, it may be reaching out to a
friend. Yet others prefer to curl up with a book or watch
a movie.
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3/22/16 2:36 PM
 Beware of the quick fix of alcohol or drugs. They
may provide temporary relief but should not be
used as a consistent crutch over the long term.
Often, the use of alcohol or drugs quickly turns into
abuse and further exacerbates existing problems.
Trying out new ways of coping and finding new
hobbies and activities that you enjoy are important
steps in resilience building. The more resources
you have at your fingertips, the better off you are.
That way, if one avenue is closed, you always have
something else to try.
STEP FOUR
The fourth step in resilience building is finding
meaning. Firefighters can easily find meaning in the
hard work they do saving lives, but they may have
a harder time understanding the tragedies that they
encounter over the course of their careers. Finding
a way to talk about the existential dilemmas they
face that may include feelings of helplessness and
crisis in belief can be an important part of resilience
building.
TAKING THE STEPS
Taking care of yourself, not only physically but
also mentally, will keep you prepared and in a state
FireFighterNatioN .com
1604FR_61 61
of fitness for whatever life has in store. This takes
both time and attention, but the results are well
worth it. Just to recap, spending time on the follow-
ing four essential steps will lead you to the road of
resilience:
1. Learning self-awareness and understanding
your stress.
2. Communicating emotions.
3. Identifying coping resources.
4. Finding meaning.
Working on this with a work partner, or one at
home, is a great way to go.
Naomi L. Baum, Ph.D., is a psychologist who internationally
consults in the field of trauma and resilience. She is the former
director of the Resilience Unit at the Israel Center for the Treat-
ment of Psychotrauma where she created the Building Resilience
Intervention (BRI), a program she has implemented extensively in
both Israel and internationally in post-disaster and post-trauma
environments. Baum directs the International Summer Course-
Trauma and Resilience from the Israeli Perspective, a course
offered in conjunction with the Hebrew University. She is the
author of two books, Life Unexpected: A Trauma Psychologist Jour-
neys through Breast Cancer, and Free Yourself from Fear: A Seven
Day Plan for Overcoming Fear of (Recurrent) Cancer. Baum’s Web
site is: www.naomibaum.com.
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 A real life example of their effectiveness
BY DAVID F. PETERSON
mergencies of all types are inherently
dangerous because of the unsettled
nature of incidents and the
“Behold th
dynamics involved in both their
He makes
development and abatement. Consequently,
when his n
the hazards and risks to emergency respond-
ers are abundant, and injuries and death are a –James B.
very real possibility for all emergency medical
services (EMS) and fire department personnel.
What is needed to help minimize risk to responders is
effective leadership to model risk management in the field; an
effective and sanctioned risk management model in policy form;
and comprehensive training on how to use a risk management
model for any emergency. What follows is a real life incident that
applied a risk management model and saved a life!
DEPARTMENT IMPLEMENTATION
As the fire chief for a village, paid-on-call fire department, I rec- new policy at a department training session. The reasons for the
ognized the importance of developing and applying a risk man-
agement policy for our department employees to follow. Most
fire departments do not have formal risk management policies, or application and utility of risk management. In short, I wanted
statements, or mantras, and my department was no exception.
62 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_62 62
A fairly well known risk statement from the
National Fire Academy was worthy of consid-
e tu rt le. eration: Risk a lot to save a lot. Risk a little
s s
p ro g re to save a little. Risk nothing to save nothing.
o u t.”
e c k is However, this seemed to be too simplistic.
Conant While there are several other risk manage-
ment models that have been developed over
the years, one stood out as being very com-
prehensive and yet specific enough to be applied
at nearly every type of emergency. We will get to the one
statement that was selected for our fire department.
The purpose of a risk management policy is to help provide as
safe a working environment as possible for all department person-
nel through an administrative control. Yet, merely proclaiming
a risk management model as “the way” is a hollow approach and
deceptive to all members unless proper training supports the
policy. Therefore, the risk management model was presented as a
policy were outlined, and then several scenarios were presented
and discussed thoroughly so that all personnel understood the
to make it abundantly clear that our goal was for everyone to go
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:36 PM
 home after each emergency response with their safety and well
being completely intact.
Over the course of several months and after application of
the risk management model at all emergencies, the concept of
risk management seemed to take root in department members.
Our own approach was to include the risk management model
in all incident checklists and even laminate it on the dashboard
of all emergency vehicles. The premise was to get it out in
front of everyone to see and use so that it became part of our
response fabric and cultural mindset. Numerous and repetitive
uses of the risk management model were exercised each week
during both EMS and fire training sessions. Essentially, we
slowly turned each department member into a risk management
officer.

RISK MANAGEMENT MODEL POLICY

The collapse zone that pinned the victim to the floor was inside the west door,
The International Association of Fire Chiefs developed and
approximately one third down the south wall on the right. This view is looking
issued a policy regarding rules of engagement as a general order at the west side of the building after the emergency phase has ended. Broken
for all responders. That policy states: To address risk at each emer- trusses can be seen hanging from the wall. (Photo by Lloyd Schultz.)
gency, and to minimize risk to each responder, all personnel are
expected to consider and operate with this risk model in mind:
• DO NOT risk your life for lives or property that cannot be
saved.
• Extend LIMITED risk to protect savable property.
• Extend vigilant and measured risk to protect and rescue SAV-
ABLE lives.

THE INCIDENT
Just over three years ago, an extremely windy day had ensued
on a hot, late August afternoon in southern Wisconsin. At a con-
struction site for a future semi-truck wash facility, workers were
installing large-span, lightweight, wood trusses onto the top of
the wood-frame walls. This was a large pole frame type of build-
ing, approximately 110 feet long and 50 feet wide, and the trusses
were craned into place where workers at the top of the 20-foot
walls secured them into place. To rely on the strength of the ends
of the building, the trusses were installed on each end initially
and then worked toward the middle.
After three trusses were installed on each end, and while the
fourth truss was being positioned on the east end, a wind-induced
collapse occurred. The last truss fell against two other trusses on
the east end and they fell to the floor of the building, shattering
apart as they fell and pulling the south wall in toward the center
of the building.
At the same time, the last truss installed on the west end also
collapsed and fell to the ground. It was at this location that four
construction workers were involved in the immediate collapse
area; one of them on the ground was struck by the truss remains
and pinned to the floor.
Other on site workers immediately checked on the four work-
ers and found that one of them was unconscious but breathing
and bleeding profusely from a head wound. Even though he’d
been wearing a hard hat at the time, the force of the falling
truss destroyed his head protection and violently forced him to
the sand and fine-gravel floor. One of the workers immediately
called for emergency help and police, fire, and EMS responded.
Meanwhile, with the remaining trusses and the south wall flailing
in the high winds, the remaining workers on site did not enter
The Risk Management Model displayed on the dashboard in a fire truck.
(Photo by author.)
the collapse area. After a quick head count, it was soon deter-
mined that the worker who was struck and bleeding was the site
foreperson.
INCIDENT MANAGEMENT
First on the scene was a local police officer who verified the col-
lapse. He was quickly joined by a Wisconsin State Patrol officer.
Both of these officers immediately entered the collapse area to
render aid to the pinned construction worker, with the local
officer bracing the leaning south wall the best he could. Shortly
after the arrival of the police officers, a fire engine arrived with
five firefighters followed by a rescue with one paramedic and one
emergency medical technician. A few minutes later, a grass fire
truck arrived with two additional firefighters.
The incident commander (IC) who arrived on the engine
conducted a quick assessment and, combined with on scene
information, considered an entry into the collapse zone for rapid
victim removal. His thought process was that the worker may
have life-threatening injuries and need to be removed as soon as
possible to save his life. The IC reflected on the department’s risk
management model policy and the three statements. He knew he
was presented with a savable life but that it presented a significant

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1604FR_63 63 3/22/16 2:36 PM


This image is looking at the south wall of the structure from the west side
after the emergency phase. Note the bowing of the wall because of the
collapse of the trusses. This wall was secured with ropes and anchored to a
grass fire truck during the emergency. (Photo by Lloyd Schultz.)
The collapse of trusses within the structure viewed from the east side after
the emergency phase. (Photo by Lloyd Schultz.)
risk for his personnel to enter the collapse area. Consequently,
while he would locate outside the collapse zone, he committed
to sending only three people into the hazard area to package and
remove the patient based on these observations and situational
awareness.
The remaining trusses at the roof area appeared to be secured
and nonmoving. The remaining trusses did not appear to have
forces applied to them from collapsed trusses.
The unsecured trusses appeared to be all on the ground or at
least secured at one point that appeared to keep them stable. The
south wall would need to be secured promptly and simultane-
ously with the rescue effort as the high winds were unrelenting.
A firefighter used the grass fire truck to act as the anchor and
prevented the south wall from collapsing further with rescue rope.
The worker was bleeding profusely and time was of the essence.
A medical helicopter was dispatched by the IC. Because of
extreme risk, all personnel would need to wear their fire helmets
with the paramedic wearing a hard hat. These responders entered
with a patient backboard, EMS supplies, and hand tools to
attempt a rescue.
On entry, the paramedic assessed the patient and found he
suffered a severe head injury with a possible cranium frac-
ture and was unconscious but breathing. The patient was also
64 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_64 64
bleeding from the mouth. Cervical traction was applied with a
cervical collar, the head wound was addressed, and the patient
was rapidly placed on the backboard and secured. Within five
minutes of responder arrival, the patient was removed from the
collapse zone and administered more medical care in a safe area.
All responders safely vacated the hazard area at the same time
as patient removal and began to assist the paramedic in secur-
ing the patient’s airway. At this point, the patient began to be
combative because of his brain injury. After sedation and more
immobilization, intravenous lines were established and extremity
fractures were splinted. Shortly after this on scene medical care,
the patient was loaded into the emergency medical helicopter
transport approximately 20 minutes post extrication. The patient
was flown 41 miles due east to Milwaukee’s Froedtert Hospital
for definitive medical care.
THE AFTERMATH
It was later learned that the patient was a 36-year-old male
who suffered a skull fracture and brain injury, an abdominal
injury with an internal bleed, and extremity fractures; he was
consequently kept in a coma for two weeks. The paramedic who
treated the victim stated that a few more minutes left untreated
would have surely meant death for this man. The best part of
this story was that he endured a lengthy rehabilitation period
that led to a full recovery. This survivor, and his very grateful
wife, showed up at the fire department exactly one year later,
walked in, and stated that he was reporting back to work two
weeks after that.
Although all responders in the collapse area were subjected to
danger, it is apparent, in retrospect, that careful but expedient
thinking considered “extending vigilant and measured risk to pro-
tect and rescue savable lives.” It is a tribute to the leadership pres-
ent, in consideration of the department’s risk management model
policy, and the effective training in the months leading up to this
incident that changed this potential tragedy into a triumph.
Author’s note: As the chief of the department, I interviewed all
responders who responded to this incident and determined that
the actions taken to save this man’s life were nothing short of
heroic and completely consistent with our risk management
model and policy. Essentially, these dedicated responders “risked a
lot to save a lot” in the finest fire service tradition. Consequently,
these responders were given written commendations and received
awards at the next annual award ceremony. The Wisconsin State
Patrol trooper who entered the collapse zone with his first-aid kit
also received an “Officer of the Year” award for his actions.
The author wishes to thank paramedic Jim Lilly for his contribu-
tions to this article.
David F. Peterson is a 35-year veteran of the fire service and a retired Wisconsin
fire chief. He is presently the EMS and fire training coordinator for Blackhawk
Technical College in Janesville, Wisconsin. He has served as a company officer,
training officer, haz-mat team leader, chief officer, and incident commander in his
career. He is a past board member for the Wisconsin State Fire Chiefs Association,
a national presenter on fire service topics, and founder of the Wisconsin Associa-
tion of Hazardous Materials Responders. Peterson has an M.S. degree in executive
fire leadership and disaster preparedness and is a National Fire Academy graduate
of the Executive Fire Officer Program.
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:36 PM
 BY SCHUYLER “SONNY” CUDD
Training a multinational/multicultural fire department
fter a career that spanned 31 years in the Louisi-
ana fire service, I was presented with the opportu-
nity of a lifetime, and one that I never expected.
In 2014, I was offered a job as an emergency
response site specialist, the equivalent of a deputy
chief, for a new petrochemical company in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. I
had no idea what I was getting into, but it turned out to be the
most rewarding period of my entire career. (Because of company
policy and Saudi law, I am not allowed to mention the company
name and, because I would like to keep my job, it would be in
my best interest to comply.)
The company that I work for has made industrial history
because it is the largest petrochemical facility that has ever been
constructed in a single phase, with 26 different plants rising out
of the Saudi Arabian desert at one time.
This brings me to the emergency services division/fire depart-
FireFighterNatioN .com
1604FR_65 65
If we could not give them all of
the technical knowledge, we could
still give them the soul of the
firefighter. (Photos by author.)
ment. Now, keep in mind that if the facility is being constructed
from nothing, so was the fire department. At the time of this
writing, our department is made up of around 50 members
from five different countries. Our day staff, or upper command
structure, is mostly American while our shift command is mostly
English and Scottish. Our experienced firefighters are mostly
Filipino while our newest firefighters are all Saudis.
It is this last group that this story is really about. During my
career in Louisiana, I was fortunate and blessed to become a fire
service instructor and worked for the Louisiana State University
(LSU) Fire and Emergency Training Institute for 16 years of my
31-year career. During that time, I trained many firefighters in
a variety of disciplines, including a few years with the Recruit
Academy. It is this experience that led to me working as an
instructor for the brand new fire department’s very first recruit
academy in Saudi Arabia.
a pril 2016 F ire r escue M agazine 65
3/22/16 2:36 PM
 RECRUIT CLASS
We started with 15 young Saudi Arabian men who had just
undergone 14 months of English language training. Some knew
very little English at the start, and some did not know any at all.
After the completion of the English language training, they were
sent to us. Now it is important to say that although they went
through English language training, none of the training included
fire service language, and we all know what that is like. We then
added five Filipino firefighters who knew very little English, and
what they did know did not come with formal training.
The assigned instructors included me and another former
LSU instructor. Deputy Chief Duane Mixon was the lead of the
academy. Our training coordinator headed up the program from
an administration position. We then added a young Saudi officer,
Abdulmajeed Al Huthail, who loves the fire service and shows
a lot of promise as a future leader of the department, which is We started with 15 young Saudi Arabian men who had just undergone 14 months
important as the whole goal of this operation is to place it in the of English language training.
hands of the Saudis one day. But early on, the young Saudi officer
was there to help with translation. As the academy went on, the
young Saudi officer would prove his worth tenfold.
The first day of the academy was much like any other in that
everyone introduced themselves and we started laying down the
rules. This was our first indication of how vast the language bar-
rier was. Our mindset when we started the academy was to do it
like we had always done it (ever hear that before?). We began in a
classroom and started throwing PowerPoint® presentations on the
wall. We soon discovered that the only thing hitting the wall was
our hard instructor heads. The young men could not grasp the
subject at all because they had nothing to draw from. For most
of these men, this was the first job they had ever had. We began
teaching using the same verbiage and rhythm that we knew, and
it was getting us nowhere fast. When we would give them a quiz
on what they had been taught in class the day before, the results
This academy would have to become a full on outside, physical academy.
were less than stellar.

CHANGING STRATEGY
After a couple weeks, we knew we had to make a change. For
those of you who have trained firefighters, you can attest to
the fact that you will always have some students who are better
hands-on learners than book learners—I had 20. After several
discussions, I made the suggestion to shut down the computer,
turn off the projector, and close the books. This academy would
have to become a full on outside, physical academy.
Our leadership at the time agreed that we would not be able to
achieve certification but we could build staffing worthy, opera-
tional firefighters. We would still follow the curriculum and the
standard. This would be a first for my career.
Let me explain a little about the Saudi Arabian fire service.
Unlike our American fire service, the Saudi fire service does not
recognize things like duty, honor, tradition, and courage. In fact,
being a firefighter in Saudi Arabia is considered a low-end, menial
job. So finding a Saudi who has the fire service in his heart is
a rare thing indeed. In examining these differing mindsets, we
knew we had an uphill battle.
We also knew that we had 15 Saudis who were simply balls of
clay who did not know that they were NOT supposed to love the
fire service. Although we would have to compromise on how we
taught the academy, we refused to compromise our love for what
we do and who we are. We would affect hearts and minds. If we
could not give them all of the technical knowledge, we could still
give them the soul of the firefighter.
THE ACADEMY
The academy was held at the Saudi Aramco Advanced Live Fire
Training Center. If there was a theme park for live fire instructors
to go play, this would be the place.
It started like all academies on the training ground. By nature,
Saudi people are sometimes not the biggest or strongest people.
Most are small. Some are taller than others but most are not very
physical in size or strength. So, early morning exercise became a
battle of attrition. Eventually, they all became stronger in body
and mind.
The mindset of the men coming in was very timid and shy. No

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1604FR_66 66 3/22/16 2:36 PM

 one would be the first to volunteer
to do something. In fact, we would
have to demonstrate and explain The skills we were teaching were
starting to take hold in their minds
things many times over. The men and bodies and the love of the job
were afraid to make mistakes and was taking hold in their hearts.
did not want to be singled out. We
were told that we had to be very
careful with how we speak to them academy. We would train on one
for they offend easily. Many times prop at a time and slowly add more
we would ask: “Do you under- props as the recruits’ ability and
stand? Yes?” In unison, they would confidence increased. By the time
respond, “Yes.” This was their of the night burn, these young men
response not because they under- could fight as many as eight or nine
stood but because they thought they props at a time by moving from
were supposed to say yes. one to another as the fires were
I started doing things to affect the extinguished.
hearts and minds of the recruits. I All external field lights were
would talk to them about what the turned off and one by one we lit 11
job is, what it means. I began to different fires; and one by one, they
speak of tradition and honor and sacrifice. Here I was, in their pushed and they fought. As each fire was extinguished, it began
eyes this big, old, salty firefighter with the leather helmet talking to get darker and darker until the last fire was extinguished. Then,
to them like I just walked out of central casting. As corny or as I stood there in the darkness of a training center on the other
ridiculous as that sounds, we began to see something happen. The side of the world, I heard the joyous screams and cheers of pride
light was beginning to come on. Although we still had a long way and accomplishment roar out of these young men as though they
to go, they were starting to get it. had fought a great battle and were victorious—for they were.
Like in any academy, you have those who rise to the top and They did not win the fight of simply battling the fire. They won
those who just try to get by. We saw leaders start to emerge. They the battle within themselves of shaking off what they were told
began to challenge and motivate each other. The skills we were of being a Saudi firefighter. On that night, at that moment in the
teaching were starting to take hold in their minds and bodies and dark, we all became brothers.
the love of the job was taking hold in their hearts.
BROTHERHOOD
MEMORABLE MOMENT The academy would continue on for another three months after
One of the most memorable moments, of which there are more that. They would train and fight many more fires and endure
than I can list here, took place about three months in during our more hardships. But now they were different. They were now fire-
first night burns on flammable liquids. What I saw and heard that fighters. At the end of the academy, I told them how proud I was
night I will never forget. of them and how much being a part of history meant to me.
The industrial petroleum complex unit, which is made up I told them that, in my heart, we had trained the very best
of many different props, was our focal point for most of the firefighters in the entire kingdom of Saudi Arabia and would put
them up against any other crew that could be found. I
told them that I would stand with them as my brothers
and, as we continue to move forward with making
history here, nothing will ever compare with having the
honor and blessing of being a small part in the shaping
of these young men.

Schuyler “Sonny” Cudd is a 31-year veteran of the fire service and

I told them that, in my heart, we had trained the very best firefighters in the entire kingdom
of Saudi Arabia and would put them up against any other crew that could be found.
is working as an emergency response site specialist/deputy chief in
Saudi Arabia. He started as a volunteer for the Boyce (LA) Volunteer Fire
Department in 1984. Cudd worked for Rapides Parish (LA) Fire Protec-
tion District 2 as well as one season as a Type 2 wildland firefighter in
Colorado. In 1995, he worked as an aircraft rescue firefighter (ARFF)
in England Airpark Fire Department. In 1997, Cudd became an adjunct
instructor with Louisiana State University’s (LSU) Fire and Emergency
Training Institute (FETI), teaching in the Industrial and ARFF programs.
In 1998, he was hired as a full-time instructor at LSU FETI where he
was promoted to program manager. Cudd is NFPA/IFSAC certified as
an Instructor 2, Officer 2, Incident Safety Officer, Haz-Mat Technician,
and NIMS 400 Level instructor, fire inspector, and fire investigator.

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1604FR_67 67 3/22/16 2:36 PM

 Firefighters’
“little black book”:
A pocket guide
to safety
BY STAN TARNOWSKI
fter serving three decades as a firefighter who pro-
gressed through the ranks to become a fire chief, I
thought this may be the time to share my thoughts on
how all firefighters and officers can better serve—not
necessarily from a physical command perspective but from a
personal character perspective. I call it leading from the front—
regardless of your rank—through daily conduct that is morally
and ethically sound.
Over the past months, I shared 40 of my dos and don’ts, and
here are the final 10 to add to your pocket guide. This series
should be used as a daily reminder of the things we should and
shouldn’t do to respect and serve our community.
#41: FAMILY CLUSTER AT THE STATION.
A fire department family has a very unique bond. Unless you
have been in one, you cannot know it. The family cluster pro-
vides for its own in many special ways. Things are talked about
68 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_68 68
and acted on that we wouldn’t do with our personal families. Our
station family will help with critical incident stress management
for members who have been working on scene at a crisis.
Our work family cluster helps us deal with those emotions and
get us back to our personal families. Stay strong for each other
and help each other always. We do not want to see any more
firefighter suicides.
#42: PROFANITY AT THE STATION.
In 1975, when I started my career, the language around the
firehouse was obnoxious to say the least. Every other word seemed
to be a cuss word. Profanity in conversation seemed to go hand
and hand with our job. Well, I am happy to say that over the past
30 years, there has been a great adjustment for the better. There is
much less profanity, and I believe it is a shift in the family dynam-
ics, respect given is respect earned, and more of our folks continu-
ing their education levels. All of these initiatives help to achieve
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:36 PM

that goal to lower the usage of profanity around the home and fire
station. We have to watch what we say and how we say it!
#43: OBSCENE GESTURES ON AND OFF DUTY.
In metro Atlanta (GA), an engine operator driving his engine
company through town was “accidentally” cut off by a driver
switching lanes. His immediate response was to show the car
driver how he felt about that and flipped him off. Needless to say,
the engine operator had to apologize and was reprimanded as a
result of the complaint file by the other driver. Whether you are
driving your engine company or your personal pickup truck, act
smart and don’t make any gestures.
#44: ETHICAL BEHAVIOR WHEN OUT PURCHASING ITEMS.
Always use good ethical business behavior when you are out
purchasing anything. Never, ever take anything for free. Wearing
your uniform and driving up in your engine do not provide free
FireFighterNatioN .com
1604FR_69 69
As 21st century firefighters, we need to
do our job smarter and with a high moral
aptitude. (Photo by John Cetrino.)
access to all you need. In the supermarket, you must pay the same
prices as the customers in line with you. Some business owners
and managers will want to give you a discount because you are a
firefighter but, while free and discounted items sound like nice
gestures, it is unethical for us to accept. Other citizens who witness
this may not say anything right then but will possibly talk about
how they felt it was wrong for us to get a deal while they had to pay
full price. When offered a deal, reply: “We really appreciate your
offer; however, our department policy doesn’t allow for it.”
#45: USE OF YOUR POSITION FOR FAVORS.
This topic is a killer. If you get in the habit of using your posi-
tion to obtain favors from people, then you have put yourself
in that unethical, immoral category. I know chief officers who
would always make sure they wore their work uniforms when
they went shopping for anything, especially for items like a house
or car; looking at private schools and colleges with their children;
a pril 2016 F ire r escue M agazine 69
3/22/16 2:36 PM
 and for services like roofers, painters, electricians, and plumbers.
What starts out to sound like a great idea, even to your family
members, can end up disastrous.
As a rule of thumb, never show up representing your depart-
ment in uniform if you are purchasing personal items. This will
keep everyone on the same ethical page.
#46: BORROWING/STEALING ITEMS
FROM YOUR DEPARTMENT.
It is a general bad habit to take or borrow anything from your
station. Taking pencils, pens, and paper; using the copier machine
for personal needs; or taking tools, equipment, or even a truck for
your personal use will put you in the category of being unethical.
We all need to purchase our own items for our personal use. The
work items and equipment are for work jobs and use. Make good
choices. Purchase your own items, and then you won’t have to
look over your shoulder wondering.
#47: FIRE DEPARTMENT-ASSIGNED TAKE-HOME VEHICLES.
The topic of who gets to take home a department vehicle when
they are off duty has caused much discussion and even arguments
within the department. Some departments have strict rules where
only the fire chief will be allowed to take his department-assigned
vehicle home. The chief of the department is for all intents and
purposes the only one who will need to have access to all his gear
and radio equipment, including computers, in the event of a
manmade or natural disaster/incident.
The on-duty suppression folks already have all their apparatus,
vehicles, and equipment with them at their station. Fire marshal, fire
arson investigator, fire prevention officer, and public information
officer are positions that use a non-first response vehicle that needs
to arrive within the designated response time to an incident. That’s
not to say that they won’t be needed at the call, but those who are
assigned to these positions and vehicles can drive to their stations to
pick them up and respond to the incident from there. Most depart-
ments will not include these people and their vehicles as part of their
list of emergency vehicles needed to handle an emergency.
We have all heard stories of incidents occurring during off-duty
hours where the assigned driver of these nonemergency response
vehicles had to explain a situation that occurred off duty while
they were driving their department vehicle, including incidents
such as accidents; driving under the influence; or being seen leav-
ing a dance club, taking the family to the mall, or going out to a
restaurant. Use sound judgment.
#48: BEING OUT OF YOUR RESPONSE TERRITORY.
We all have situations that come up in our personal lives while
we are on our 24-hour tour that may need our attention. You also
may need to handle a detail or check on something that one of
your engine company members is concerned about, but if you
handle any of them you will be out of your assigned response area.
Doing something outside of your response area may appear OK
on the surface until you have to answer to your chief, or a citizen,
why it took you so much longer to get to their fire or medi-
cal call. It is imperative that we follow department suppression
operations policies. Think before you act.
70 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_70 70
#49: CONDUCTING COMMUNITY OUTREACH
IN YOUR STATION NEIGHBORHOODS.
Having served in the northeast and the southeast, there is one
thing I know for sure: Your fire station neighbors love having
you there. If yours are like many, they will drop off pies, cakes,
casseroles, cupcakes, and all sorts of goodies out of the blue. Now,
that is what I call a good neighbor relationship. When it comes
to addressing neighborhood interface, efforts should include the
following:
• Don’t keep all your stations closed up like no one is home. If
you are a volunteer department and no one is supposed to be
home, then that is fine. If you are a career, full-time depart-
ment, that is very different.
• Don’t send the message to your neighbors that you are only
interested in them if they have an emergency.
• Do keep your station doors open and actually feel free to
stand or even sit out front of your stations and wave to your
neighbors like you would in your own home neighborhoods.
Let’s face it, citizens pay taxes and the tax base in your city
pays for salaries and benefits as well as your operating equip-
ment. If they see you being open and friendly, they will feel
better about paying their taxes and may even give an extra
donation to your department.
• Do one thing to get to know your neighbors. We sponsored a
cookout at one of our multifamily structure neighborhoods,
with no pool, on one of those 95 to 100 degree days. We then
laid up the 100-foot aerial and played off the 750-gpm monitor
hovering over the basketball court for a couple hours. The com-
munity and the media loved us for that. Be creative and win!
#50: INTERFACING WITH YOUR
OPERATIONAL COUNTERPARTS.
It’s never an easy task to get all public safety groups to agree and
operate together and play nice all the time. This could mean both
off duty and on duty, working incidents, and in the conference
room planning budgets. The other departments could be public
works, electrical, streets, code enforcement, etc. Everyone wants
to be in charge. Does this sound familiar to you?
• Don’t start a war with your police department, especially if it
also controls the 911 communications center.
• Don’t try to play the city manager against any one department
in an effort to look good in front of him.
• Do be friendly toward all departments that operate within
your organization’s structure.
• Do play nice when at meetings with other department mem-
bers. That means get along, be polite, and stay professional.
• Do share all the information you may have on an upcom-
ing event or a potential incident. Trust is everything when it
comes to public safety, so act accordingly.
• Do act mature and responsible in everything you do. It will
pay off in the short and long run.
• Do be kind.
EMBRACING 50 DOS AND DON’TS
Every once in a while, we all have to stop and examine how we
conduct ourselves in everything we do and every way we do it,
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:36 PM
 in and out of the public and family eyes,
on the job and off. This has happened to
me, so I had a chance to reevaluate how
I was conducting my moral and profes-
sional business. Sometimes I didn’t like
what I saw in myself and had to make
changes. After my public sector fire service
retirement, I saw that life would continue
to throw us those curveballs and provide
temptations that would have us making
choices. You can make the right ones or the
wrong ones; I made a few of each.
I was able to finish a fire service career
with some 30 years of personal and profes-
sional experiences that led me to write
these top 50 dos and don’ts that I consider
important enough to share with you. Some
appear to be common sense while others
are more complex and of a delicate nature,
but I have seen firefighters lose sight of
their goals and make minor errors in choice
that can lead to disaster, up to and includ-
ing the termination of a career.
As 21st century firefighters, we need
to do our job smarter and with a high
moral aptitude. Every day, we learn of
another firefighter, lieutenant, captain, or
chief officer being reprimanded and even firerescue.hotims.com
terminated for conduct unbecoming. If
we choose the wrong way, we will have to
serve out our punishment.
I ask you to conduct a mental/moral
check when you are reviewing these top 50 JSA-300-CS
topics and see how you fare. Be honest Confned Space Stretcher
when doing it, as only you will know the
true answers to the questions. If you are
not happy with what you see or how you
feel, then this is the time to make changes
in your life. If you don’t change behaviors JSA-300-CS
that could be considered destructive, then
the cycle will continue and your daily
situation will grow worse. You can make a
difference in your life right now.
Designed for rescues where space is confined, the Junkin 19" Width Specifcations
Dimensions: 81 ½" L x 18 ∕" W x 7 ¾" H
Stan Tarnowski, chief (ret.), began his career in 1975 Confined Space Splint Rescue Stretcher has steel, all-welded rigid
Shipping Weight: 23 lbs.
with the Boston (MA) Logan International Airport construction, which does not rely on the injured person to attain form or
Fire Department serving in multiple operational and rigidity. The basket is 18 gauge, 1" hexagon mesh netting. Includes nylon
administrative positions. In metro Atlanta, Georgia, he web straps for securing at chest, abdomen, thigh and calf. Supplemental
served as chief, 911 and EMA director in Union City, accessories to facilitate special handling needs are available.
deputy and suppression chief at the Georgia State Fire
Academy, and chief of training at the Henry County Fire PROUDLY MANUFACTURED IN THE USA

Department. Tarnowski received his associate’s degree

in fire science in 1976 from Bunker Hill Community
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president of Firesafe Consulting Group.   S A F E T Y A P P L I A N C E CO M PA N Y

www.junkinsafety.com

FireFighterNatioN .com firerescue.hotims.com

1604FR_71 71 3/22/16 2:36 PM

 Company Officer Development
Potty Training
How to provide fire attack training tips
to all your members 24/7!
T
o overcome nervousness in a would-be speech
By Stephen Marsar
giver’s or performer’s stomach, there is an
age-old adage that advises them to picture
the audience naked in an attempt to humanize the
experience and bring the performer and audience
down to the same basic level. For the company
officer attempting to conduct a drill on fire attack,
I would not recommend such a strategy. First of all,
in this day and age of a kinder, gentler fire service,
political correctness, and equal employment oppor-
tunity, it may cause issues. But more importantly,
do you really want to picture your firefighters
naked? Perhaps the advice of another tried and true
technique is to picture your audience doing what all
humans must do naturally—going to the bathroom.
Yuck! OK, perhaps we should skip that one too ...
or should we? (Where the heck is this article going?)
BARE BOTTOM
Let’s take those several trips a day to the bath-
room to a more professional level. Let us use them
as an opportunity to take advantage of this “captive
audience” (at least for a few minutes) on each visit.
Talk about teachable moments! Now, bear with me
here (no pun intended). If you go out and spend a
minimal amount of cash on a few inexpensive and
basic picture frames and the applicable mounting
system to secure the frames, you can use them to
keep your firefighters’ attention as they “hit the
head.” We’ll call it the “Potty Training Program” (or
“PTP” for all you acronym addicts out there).
Let’s say you’re reading a recent article in FireRes-
cue, and you come across an article that is a perfect
Put the Potty Training topic where it won’t get wet. (Photo by author.)
72 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_72 72
topic to drill on and to educate your members.
Normally you might plan a sit-down drill period, or
hands-on training session, or perhaps just pass along
what you learned at an informal Roll Call based on
what you read. Now, let’s take that one-time drill a
step further.
SEAT UP OR SEAT DOWN?
It doesn’t matter here. In addition to disseminat-
ing the information formally to your members, how
about typing up the highlights of the article (or
better yet, cut out the article itself ); putting it in a
frame; and hanging it in the bathroom above the
urinal, on the wall next to the toilet (or on the inside
of the stall door if that would work better), and per-
haps by the sink or hand dryer. Just make sure they
won’t get wet or splashed. Now the members (both
male and female) can have the opportunity to read
while they’re taking care of their personal business.
In addition to fire attack strategies and tactics,
this technique can also be used to reinforce rules
and regulations, training bulletins, safety messages,
etc. There’s almost no end to what can be posted as
long as it is fire service-related and kept on a profes-
sional level.
DON’T FORGET THE AIR FRESHENER
To keep the articles and the basic educational
premise behind them fresh (again, no pun
intended), remember to change information in the
frames on a regular basis; I’ve found that monthly
works best. Also, use lots of pictures and diagrams
accompanied by few words whenever possible (we
don’t want our members turning these trips to the
bathroom into long study sessions). Additionally,
you can ask your members for ideas on what they’d
like to see in the frames to keep them up to date on
their firefighting, technical rescue, and EMS knowl-
edge skills (the equipment manufacturers likewise
would love you for it!). In those cases, be prepared
to do some homework to search for the information
that the members say they’d like to see.
POTTY MOUTH
In my volunteer department, our company
captain, Sal Ancona, instituted his Potty Training
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:36 PM
 program with great success. Some of the topics he
covered with diagrams and pictures include appa-
ratus placement, exposure identification, oil burner
parts and potential emergencies, foam operations,
portable ladder placement, and chain of command
(with associated responsibilities). Other suggested
topics include body substance isolation, commu-
nicable disease prevention, commercial tourniquet
application, driving safety/emergency vehicle opera-
tor course tips, and pumping operations. Another
interesting take is to post fireground pictures (avail-
able from many different sources) with the caption:
“What’s Wrong with This Picture?” or “What
Would You Do?”
END RESULT
Perhaps one of the unintended outcomes of Potty
Training programs has been the talk it has inspired
among company and department members. The
topics and pictures have sparked some spirited
debate, standard operating guideline discussions,
and even spontaneous drills on the correct use of
tools and equipment—a homerun for everybody
involved. Use it to its full advantage.
I HAVE TO “P”
“P” as in Pass. Using the Type A personalities
of your firefighters, perhaps after a few rounds of
You may not consider yourself
a hero. But we do!
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1604FR_73 73
Potty Training, just when you think the members
have gotten the hang of it, you can plop a quiz into
the mix.
Keep it short and sweet (five to 10 questions
max), and base it on the previous few postings.
Perhaps posting the questions by the toilet or urinal
and the answers by the sink will help satisfy those
who seek instant gratification on their test taking
success.
The difference between this kind of Potty
Training compared to the real-life type is that the
members will see it and take notice right away and,
although jokes may be bantered around at first, as
the company officer you will hopefully see the
benefits start to emerge immediately.
Stephen Marsar, EFO, MA, is a 25-year veteran and captain
in the Fire Department of New York (FDNY). He is also a former
chief and commissioner of the Bellmore (NY) Fire Department.
He teaches extensively at the FDNY and Nassau County (NY)
Fire and EMS academies, and he’s an adjunct professor at the
Nassau County Community College. Marsar has a master’s degree
in homeland defense and security from the U.S. Naval Post
Graduate School as well as a bachelor’s degree in fire science
and emergency services administration from SUNY Empire State
College. Marsar graduated with honors from the National Fire
Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program and is a National Roll
of Honor inductee.
Crew Seat
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610-994-5436
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firerescue.hotims.com Part of the USSC GROUP
3/22/16 2:36 PM

Global Risk Reduction
By Jim Crawford
To read more
from Jim Crawford,
visit www.firefighternation.
com/author/jim-crawford.
74 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_74 74
Community Risk Reduction
Best practices and event support
e often talk about best practices as if
W we know what that really means. In my
world, that is pretty straightforward: Best
practice means producing the best results. As my
recent articles have delved a little more deeply into
evaluation concepts for community risk reduction,
I think only a short recap is necessary to help make
the point of this column.
Best results can mean most efficient, or effec-
tive, or both. We can measure best results for every
aspect of what we do in the fire service: emergency
response, plan review, fire investigation, public
education, and code enforcement. Each has its own
particular nuance for these measures, but we can
describe our efforts as being faster, less expensive, or
improving public safety in concrete terms.
So when I look for best practices, I’m looking
for examples of community risk reduction efforts
Some of the more interesting and challenging
programs in the U.S. are related to more recent
efforts I describe as community paramedicine.
that provide us with examples of how to be more
efficient and effective. We can find examples of
programs in the United States and elsewhere in the
world.
WORLDWIDE PROGRAMS
In the United States, as more of our call volume
is devoted to emergency medical responses, it is
natural to look for best practices there. And with
a population that is continuing to age and “baby
boomers” taking up a larger percentage of just
about every community, we know we can expect
more medical emergencies. So being efficient and
effective is what we’re supposed to do.
Elsewhere in the world, I find examples of
emergency response and prevention programs that
provide us with best practices related to fire safety.
That’s because, in many industrialized nations, the
fire loss statistics (incidents, deaths, injuries) are
better than ours in the United States. They are obvi-
ously producing measurable results because their
fire death and incident rates are lower per capita
than ours here.
That is true for the United Kingdom, where on
average the fire death rates are about 30 percent less
than ours, even though we have made tremendous
progress here. What does that mean? It means that
the human race is capable of more in the area of fire
safety, so our job is far from over.
Merseyside in the United Kingdom had an
aggressive home safety visit program where, over
a 12-year span, members conducted more than
700,000 home safety visits. They reduced their
fire incident rate by more than 30 percent and fire
death rates by more than 50 percent. Surrey, British
Columbia, has published a scientific study on the
results of its home visits over time, producing mea-
surable and statistically valid reductions of incidents
and fire deaths. Ontario, Canada, is also producing
some great examples from which we can learn.
EFFORTS IN THE UNITED STATES
To be fair, there are great examples of programs
that are working in the United States. Many are
showcased at the National Models in Prevention
Symposium conducted in Fairfax, Virginia, again
this year, with case studies posted on the Vision
20/20 Web site (www.strategicfire.org).
Some of the more interesting and challenging
programs in the United States are related to more
recent efforts I describe as community paramedi-
cine. In loose terms, that is the integrated approach
to emergency medical responses and outreach that
aims to be more efficient, keep people out of the
hospital setting, improve outcomes (like heart
attack survivability), and manage call volume.
I’ll be writing more about case studies in the
future, focusing on places like Spokane Valley, WA;
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:36 PM
 Anaheim, CA; Mesa, AZ; and Rio Rico, AZ. Best
practices are also available at the Fire Service Based
EMS Advocates Web site: http://fireserviceems.
com/download-best-practices. But you can learn
more by attending my presentation at the Fire
Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) Inter-
national 2016, April 18-23, in Indianapolis (www.
fdic.com).
There will also be a panel presentation at the 28th
Annual National Fire and Emergency Services Sym-
posium and Dinner, hosted by the Congressional
Fire Services Institute (CFSI) in Washington, DC,
May 4-5 (www.cfsi.org). Both presentations will
focus on best practices from the United States and
abroad. The CFSI panel will include presentations
from a cross section of practitioners so you receive
more than one perspective.
Jim Crawford, FIFireE, is project manager for Vision 20/20
and a retired fire marshal and deputy chief of the Vancouver
(WA) Fire Department. He is a member of the NFPA technical
committee on professional qualifications for fire marshals, a
former member of the Standards Council for the NFPA, a fellow
of the Institution of Fire Engineers, a life member of the IAFC,
and past president of the International Fire Marshal’s Associa-
tion. Crawford is the author of Fire Prevention Organization
and Management and serves as an editorial board member of
FireRescue. He has received the R. Wayne Powell Excellence in
Fire Prevention Award, the Dr. Anne Phillips award for leadership
in fire and life safety education from the Congressional Fire
Services Institute and the International Fire Service Training
Association, the “Fire Protection Person of the Year” from the
Society of Fire Protection Engineers, and the Percy Bugby Award
from the International Fire Marshal’s Association.

EVENT SUPPORT
I’m not plugging these events for my
benefit. It is important to support them
because of what they do for us collectively.
Training is a no-brainer, and FDIC Inter-
national is the largest training conference
for the fire service in the United States.
The CFSI program has a separate function
that is equally critical. It includes a full day
of seminars featuring national fire service
leaders, administration officials, federal legis-
lators, and congressional staff. This the only
program in the fire service that features such
a distinguished panel of national leaders
involved in advancing federal legislation and
administering federal programs benefiting
the fire service. It offers important informa-
tion and answers questions about the federal
YOU ARE DRIVEN TO

LEAD
government’s role in preparing our nation’s
fire service to perform its mission more
effectively and efficiently.
The dinner serves an equally important
purpose: It is CFSI’s principal fundraiser
that enables the organization to continue
its work with Congress. Have you tracked
issues related to firefighter safety? Survi-
vor benefits? Grant programs that help
purchase equipment, provide staffing, or
WE ARE DRIVEN TO HELP YOU GET THERE.
provide for fire prevention programs? CFSI
At American Military University, we understand where you’ve been, what you’ve done
is the collaborative body that works avidly
and what you’d like your team to achieve. Choose from more than 90 career-relevant
on our behalf.
online degrees—which can help your personnel advance their careers while serving
Attend these events. Even if you don’t see
their community. Your team will join 100,000 professionals gaining relevant skills that
my presentations, it is important to show
can be put into practice the same day. Take the next step, and learn from the leader.
up and support these efforts.

Jim Crawford will present “Community Visit us at www.PublicSafetyatAMU.com/FIRE-RESCUE

Risk Reduction: the Future of the Fire
Service” on Friday, April 22, at 10:30
a.m. at FDIC International 2016 in
Indianapolis.

firerescue.hotims.com

FireFighterNatioN .com

1604FR_75 75 3/22/16 2:36 PM

 New Deliveries
By John M. Malecky
The Refton (PA) Brush 59 is this Ford F-550 XLT 4 × 4 with
a Marco aluminum body. It has a Ford Power Stroke engine, a
brush guard, a 500-gpm Hale AP pto pump, a UPF 3,455-gal-
lon water tank, pump-and-roll capability, a Hannay booster reel,
two 1¾-inch preconnects, a front bumper spray bar, and FRC
floodlights.
Marco Equipment Sales, LLC
610-273-9937; sales@marcoequip.net
firerescue.hotims.com
The Geneseo (IL) Fire Department operates this Alexis pumper/
tanker built on a Spartan Metro Star chassis. Powered by a
450-hp Cummins ISL 9 diesel engine, it has a Waterous CXS
1,500-gpm pump, three Mattydale preconnects, a 3,000-gallon
Pro Poly water tank, a Newton 10-inch electric swivel dump
valve with a 36-inch extension, a Ziamatic folding tank rack, and
a Norcold refrigerator in the cab.
Alexis Fire Apparatus
800-322-2284; www.alexisfire.com
firerescue.hotims.com
The Halesite (NY) Fire Department has in service this Rescue 1
heavy rescue unit on a Spartan Metro Star chassis. It has a 450-
hp Cummins ISL 9 diesel engine; a 10-inch raised roof cab with
a 24-inch bumper extension; and an 18-foot, nine-inch nonwalk-
in body. Other features are a Harrison 30-kW generator, a Will
Burt Night Scan, a rack for 21 spare SCBA cylinders, an awning,
and a 4.5-ton portable winch.
Rescue 1 Mfg.
732-223-1411; www.rescue1mfg.com
firerescue.hotims.com
76 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_76 76
The Livingston (TX) Fire Department’s “wet rescue” is built by
SVI Trucks on an International 7600 chassis. It has a 20-foot,
nonwalk-in rescue body. Specs include a 300-gpm Waterous CP
pump feeding a 1½-inch front bumper line, a UPF 250-gallon
water and 20-gallon foam tank, an Onan 25-kW generator, a
Command Light tower, FRC brow and rear tripod floodlights,
and Whelen scene lights on the body.
SVI Trucks
888-784-1112; www.svitrucks.com
firerescue.hotims.com
The Detroit (MI) Fire Department placed in service 10 Smeal
pumpers built on the Spartan Metro Star chassis. They have
a 400-hp Cummins ISL 9 diesel engine with an Allison 3000
EVS transmission. Specs include a Waterous CVSU 1,500-gpm
pump, a UPF 500-gallon water tank, a stainless steel body, Han-
sen roll-up doors, and an Elkhart deck gun.
Smeal Fire Apparatus
402-568-2224; www.smeal.com
firerescue.hotims.com
Nazareth (PA) operates this KME heavy rescue with a Predator
Panther LFD chassis and 16-inch raised-roof cab. Specs include a
nonwalk-in body with ROM doors, a 9,000-pound Warn winch,
an Onan 20-kW PTO generator, a storage rack for five SCBA,
an air cascade, a Hurst power unit, and an ADA Voyager rear
camera system. It has a 211-inch wheelbase.
PHOTO BY ADAM ALBERTI
KME Fire Apparatus
800-235-3928; www.kovatch.com
firerescue.hotims.com
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:40 PM
 New Products

Larson Electronics Elbeco Shield Color Block Soft Shell Jacket

TPM-LED-L1X4-25CC-1227
Larson Electronics’ TPM-LED-L1X4-
25CC-1227 LED light tower contains
one LED light head that
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This temporary fixed mount
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800-369-6671;
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firerescue.hotims.com
Elbeco’s Shield Color Block Soft Shell Jackets are specifically
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the Color Block Soft Shells are available in red/midnight
navy and HiVis/red. The HiVis/red jacket is ANSI 107-
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Elbeco
800-468-4654; www.elbeco.com
firerescue.hotims.com
Darley Lightweight Booster Hose
Darley’s lightweight, kink resistant, noncollaps-
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Underwater Kinetics
800-852-7483; www.uwkinetics.com
firerescue.hotims.com

FireFighterNatioN .com a pril 2016 F ire r escue M agazine 77

1604FR_77 77 3/22/16 2:40 PM

 rescue equipment
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78 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016 FireFighterNAtioN. com

1604FR_78 78 3/22/16 2:40 PM

 monitoring systems CommuniCations

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FireRescue® (ISSN 1094-0529, USPS 858-060). FireRescue is published 12 times per year, monthly, by PennWell® Corporation, 1421 S. Sheridan, Tulsa, OK 74112. Periodicals post-
age paid at Tulsa, OK 74112 and at additional mailing offices. SUBSCRIPTION PRICES: Send $24 for one year (12 issues) or $44 for two years (24 issues) to FireRescue, P.O. Box 3425,
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1604FR_79 79 3/22/16 2:40 PM


High Risk/Low Frequency
By Matthew Tobia
To read more
from Matt Tobia,
visit www.firefighternation.
com/author/matthew-tobia.
80 F ire r escue M agazine April 2016
1604FR_80 80
The Backstep
Guidelines for first-arriving companies
R
emember the last time you responded to a
trench rescue? Never? For most of us, the answer
is identical. Structural collapse? Confined
space rescue? Wilderness search and rescue? As “all-
hazards” organizations, your fire company is going to
be summoned to a wide range of incidents, some of
which will be once-in-a-lifetime events. Repetition
builds experience, but high-risk/low-frequency events
demand a different approach than the “bread and but-
ter” operations you can accomplish from memory.
TRENCH COLLAPSE
It’s early spring, and a recent spike in temperatures
has permitted crews to perform some critical work
on a waterline. An 18-year-old worker is repairing a
12-inch pipe at the bottom of an unshored 15-foot
trench that is approximately three feet in diameter. It’s
a family business, and the worker’s father is operat-
ing the backhoe while his uncle and brother prepare
a section of pipe to replace the one that is damaged.
Although the father has more than 30 years of experi-
ence, the trench collapses on his son, burying him
under tons of soil. You are the first-arriving engine
officer (or chief officer). What do you do?
LEARNING FROM OTHERS
Commercial pilots, responsible for the lives of thou-
sands, must maintain a command-level knowledge of
their job. But, is it reasonable to expect them to be able
to recall from memory all of the steps (in the correct
order) necessary to overcome an inflight emergency?
Under the most extreme circumstances, these tremen-
dously well-trained professionals do not rely on their
memories to overcome chaos—they rely on checklists.
If you subscribe to the idea that the first five min-
utes of any incident are a predictor of the outcome,
then your obligation is to ensure that the initial
decisions made, actions taken, and orders given are
100 percent accurate and executed flawlessly. Such
accuracy cannot be borne out of experience alone.
Every engine, truck, and emergency services unit
that has the potential to respond to any high-risk/
low-frequency event should keep a set of cue cards (i.e.,
checklists) in the vehicle cab that can be referenced
quickly during response. The cards should describe, in
large-print/bulleted form, the initial considerations for
the first-arriving officer. Resist the temptation to put
these on your tablets or smartphones. Technology is an
amazing thing, right up to the point when it does not
work and you are left in the Dark Ages. Who arrives
first is far less important than ensuring that they are
equipped with the tools to be successful.
RESPONSE
Back to the trench collapse. First-arriving officers
do not need to know that there are three classes of
soil or that a square foot of soil weighs 100 pounds.
The officer does not need to be a trench-rescue tech-
nician. As chief officers, our obligation is to ensure
that initial companies are equipped to make the right
decisions. The cue card could read as follows:
• Do not enter any unshored trench >4 feet in depth.
• Stop 250 feet from the reported incident address
(turn off the vehicle).
• Establish command and provide a Brief Initial
Report (request police for crowd control).
• Establish a Cold Zone, and direct all responders
to stage 500 feet from the scene.
• Establish a Hot Zone (100 feet), and remove all
personnel from the area while shutting down all
sources of vibration.
• Determine the number of victims and the extent
of the entrapment.
• Call for additional resources.
RESOURCE PROTECTION
The trench incident is just one example of tragic
circumstances to which we could be summoned, and
although it might be perceived as unrealistic to
expect company/chief officers to rely on checklists for
high-risk/low-frequency events, requiring their use
will inevitably and undeniably save responder lives.
There are countless examples of first responders who
have died engaging in a once-in-a-lifetime incident
armed with nothing more than a servant heart.
Tragically, this will not bring them home alive.
Nothing can or should replace being a student of our
service, and every day is a training day. Checklists,
however, represent a nearly zero-cost way to
demonstrably improve our performance when the
varsity team has been called to the field.
Matthew Tobia is an assistant chief with the Loudoun County (VA)
Department of Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Management and is
a 27-year veteran of emergency services. He can be reached at
matthew.tobia@loudoun.gov.
FireFighterNAtioN.com
3/22/16 2:40 PM
 firerescue.hotims.com

1604FR_C3 3 3/22/16 2:40 PM

 825 LB TIP LOAD RATING
The HP 78 Ladder holds 750 lbs of


 


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1604FR_C4 4 3/22/16 2:40 PM