FIRE PROTECTION AND ARSON INVESTIGATION

LADDERS

Ladder Uses
● RESCUE - The principal use of fire service ladders is for rescue work.
● ACCESS - Fire service ladders are used to gain access to attics, upper floors, or to the
roof of a structure as well as spaces that may be difficult to access otherwise.
● VENTILATION – Windows may be vented from the exterior using ground ladders.
● FIRE STREAMS - Ladders provide a means of access for hose lines from the ground
level. Fire streams can be operated directly off of properly supported ladders.
● BRACING - Ladders can be used as braces and as shoring in many applications.
● SALVAGE - Ladders can be used to effect efficient salvage operations; forming catch-all
basins, providing a means of attaching tarps, etc.

Ground Ladders - provide firefighters a means of safe access and egress, above and below
ground for. rescue, ventilation and firefighting purposes.
Aerial Ladder - mechanically-operated extendable ladder mounted on a fire truck with either a
mid-mount, rear-mount configuration or tractor-drawn configuration. It's designed to maximize
vertical reach for rapid response, ventilation, extinguishment and rescue operations

a. Wall ladder - installed into the wall like in the fire exit.
b. Extension ladder - ladders with two or more sections (bed and fly), and are extended with a
halyard.
c. Straight ladder - tall ladders that are not self-supporting. They must lean against a stable
support surface. It contains only one section. It ranges in length from 12 to 16 ft. (most common
size is the 14-foot)
d. Attic ladder - a retractable ladder installed into the floor of an attic or ceiling.
e. Roof ladder - straight ladder with folding hooks at the tip end. The primary purpose of the
roof ladder is to establish secure footing on a pitched roof.
f. Folding ladder – The folding attic ladder has hinged rungs whereby the two beams can be
folded together.

LADDER TERMINOLOGY

● Beam - The principal structural member of the ladder where the rungs are secured.
Beams may be solid or trussed.
● Butt - The bottom end of the ladder opposite the tip.
● Dogs - The mechanism that keeps the fly(s) from retracting once they are properly set
on the desired rung. These are also referred to as "Pawls" or "Locks".
● Fly - The top, extendable and retractable section or sections of an extension ladder.
● Guides - The metal strips on an extension ladder which guide the fly section or sections
while being extended or retracted.
● Halyard - The rope used to extend or retract the fly.
● Hooks - The curved metal hooks at the tip end of a roof ladder.
● Pulley - The grooved metal wheel over which the halyard or cable is drawn when
extending or retracting the flies.
● Rungs - Horizontal cross members of the ladder, used when climbing. Rungs on fire
service ladders are usually round and spaced 14 inches apart.
● Stops - Prevents the extension of a fly section out of the top of the bed.
● Tip - The uppermost end of the ladder (opposite the butt)
 Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP)
- created pursuant to Republic Act 6975 (Department of the Interior and
Local Government Act of 1990) Section 53-59.

BFP’s Mandate:
- responsible for the prevention and suppression of all destructive fires on buildings,
houses and other structures, forest, land transportation vehicles and equipment, ships or
vessels docked at piers or wharves or anchored in major seaports, petroleum industry
installations, plane crashes and other similar incidents, as well as the enforcement of the
Fire Code and other related laws.

- have the power to investigate all causes of fires and, if necessary, file the proper
complaints with the city or provincial prosecutor who has jurisdiction over the case.

BFP Ranks and Insignia

Commissioned officers
Fire Director - 2 stars
Fire Chief Superintendent - 1 star
Fire Senior Superintendent - 3 Sampaguita
Fire Superintendent - 2 Sampaguita
Fire Chief Inspector - 1 Sampaguita
Fire Senior Inspector - 2 Anahaw leaf
Fire Inspector - 1 Anahaw leaf

Non-commissioned officers
Senior Fire Officer 4 ^^^))))
Senior Fire Officer 3 ^^^)))
Senior Fire Officer 2 ^^^))
Senior Fire Officer 1 ^^^)
Fire Officer 3 ^^^
Fire Officer 2 ^^
Fire Officer 1 ^

BFP Position/Designation and minimum Rank

National Headquarters
Chief of the Fire Bureau - Fire Director
Office of the Deputy Chief for Administration - Fire Chief Superintendent
Office of the Deputy Chief for Operations - Fire Chief Superintendent
BFP Directorial Staff - Fire Chief Superintendent

Directorial Staff - Fire Senior Superintendent

Directorate for Intelligence and Investigation - Directorate for Operations
Directorate for Plans and Standard Development
Directorate for Comptrollership
Directorate for Fire Safety Enforcement
Directorate for Logistics
Directorate for Personnel and Records Management
Directorate for Information and Communications Management
Directorate for Human Resource Development
Regional Director (NCR) - Fire Chief Superintendent
NCR District Fire Marshal - Fire Senior Superintendent

Regional Director(Other Regions) - Fire Senior Superintendent

District Fire Marshal (Other Regions) - Fire Superintendent

Provincial Fire Marshal - Fire Superintendent

District Fire Marshal (Province) - Fire Chief Inspector

City or Municipal Fire Marshal - Fire Senior Inspector

Section 56. Fire Stations: at least one (1) fire station in every provincial capital, city and
municipality

Chapter 8 of the REVISED PENAL CODE (Article 320-326)

LAW ON ARSON

Article 320. Destructive Arson - Reclusion Temporal in its maximum period to Reclusion
Perpetua
a. Any arsenal, shipyard, military powder or fireworks factory; general museum
b. Any train or motor vehicle in motion; vessel out of port.
c. In an inhabited pace, any storehouse or factory of inflammable or explosive materials

Article 323. Arson of property of small value -

- small value property - property of value no exceeding 25 pesos
- Malicious Mischief - burning of small value property which clearly exclude the danger
of the fire spreading.

Article 325. Burning one’s own property as a means to commit arson - setting of fire or
destroying his OWN property for the purpose of committing arson or destruction of property
belonging to another.

Article 326. Setting fire to property exclusively owned by the offender. — If the property burned
shall be the exclusive property of the offender, he shall be punished by arresto mayor in its
maximum period to prision correccional in its minimum period, if the arson shall have been
committed for the purpose of defrauding or causing damage to another, or prejudice shall
actually have been caused, or if the thing burned shall have been a building in an inhabited
place.chanrobles virtual law library. Arresto Mayor

Article 326-A. If Death resulted as a consequence of arson - punishable by Death penalty

Article 326-B. Prima Facie Evidence Of Arson.

- clothing soaked in kerosene, petroleum, gasoline or any flammable materials
- substantial amount of inflammable substance not necessary in the course of
business
- Fire started simultaneously in more than one part of the building
a. total insurance is more than 80%
b. presented a fraudulent claim
 Presidential Decree No. 1613
Title: “Amending the Law on Arson”

- the law on arson in the Revised Penal Code suffers from certain inadequacies that
impede the successful enforcement and prosecution of arsonists
- Art 320-326 of the RPC is inadequate

Section 1. Arson. Any person who burns or sets fire to the property of another shall be punished
by Prision Mayor.

The same penalty shall be imposed when a person sets fire to his own property under
circumstances which expose to danger the life or property of another.

Section 2. Destructive Arson. The penalty of Reclusion Temporal in its maximum period to
Reclusion Perpetua shall be imposed if the property burned is any of the following:

1. Any ammunition factory and other establishment where explosives, inflammable or

combustible materials are stored.

2. Any archive, museum, whether public or private, or any edifice devoted to culture, education
or social services.

3. Any church or place of worship or other building where people usually assemble.

4. Any train, airplane or any aircraft, vessel or watercraft, or conveyance for transportation of
persons or property

4. Any building where evidence is kept for use in any legislative, judicial, administrative or other
official proceedings.

5. Any hospital, hotel, dormitory, lodging house, housing tenement, shopping center, public or
private market, theater or movie house or any similar place or building.

6. Any building, whether used as a dwelling or not, situated in a populated or congested area.

Section 3. Other Cases of Arson. The penalty of Reclusion Temporal to Reclusion Perpetua
shall be imposed if the property burned is any of the following:

1. Any building used as offices of the government or any of its agencies;

2. Any inhabited house or dwelling;

3. Any industrial establishment, shipyard, oil well or mine shaft, platform or tunnel;

4. Any plantation, farm, pastureland, growing crop, grain field, orchard, bamboo grove or forest;

4. Any rice mill, sugar mill, cane mill or mill central; and

5. Any railway or bus station, airport, wharf or warehouse.

Section 4. Special Aggravating Circumstances in Arson. The penalty in any case of arson shall
be imposed in its maximum period;

1. If committed with intent to gain;

2. If committed for the benefit of another;

3. If the offender is motivated by spite or hatred towards the owner or occupant of the property
burned;

4. If committed by a syndicate.

The offense is committed by a syndicate if its is planned or carried out by a group of three (3) or
more persons.

Section 5. Where Death Results from Arson. If by reason of or on the occasion of the arson
death results, the penalty of Reclusion Perpetua to death shall be imposed.

Section 6. Prima Facie evidence of Arson. Any of the following circumstances shall constitute
prima facie evidence of arson:

1. If the fire started simultaneously in more than one part of the building or establishment.

2. If substantial amount of flammable substances or materials are stored within the building, not
necessary in the business of the offender nor for household use.

3. If gasoline, kerosene, petroleum or other flammable or combustible substances or materials

soaked therewith or containers thereof, or any mechanical, electrical, chemical, or electronic
contrivance designed to start a fire, or ashes or traces of any of the foregoing are found in the
ruins or premises of the burned building or property.

4. If the building or property is insured for substantially more than its actual value at the time of
the issuance of the policy.

4. If during the lifetime of the corresponding fire insurance policy more than two fires have
occurred in the same or other premises owned or under the control of the offender and/or
insured.

5. If shortly before the fire, a substantial portion of the effects insured and stored in a building or
property had been withdrawn from the premises except in the ordinary course of business.

6. If a demand for money or other valuable consideration was made before the fire in exchange
for the desistance of the offender or for the safety of the person or property of the victim.

Section 7. Conspiracy to commit Arson - shall be punished by Prision Mayor in its minimum
period.

Section 8. Confiscation of Object of Arson. The building which is the object of arson including
the land on which it is situated shall be confiscated and escheated to the State, unless the
owner thereof can prove that he has no participation in nor knowledge of such arson
despite the exercise of due diligence on his part.

Presidential Decree No. 1744

AMENDING ARTICLE THREE HUNDRED AND TWENTY OF THE REVISED PENAL
CODE PROVISIONS ON ARSON
 - To effectively discourage and deter the commission of arson, and to prevent destruction
of properties and protect the lives of innocent people, it is necessary that capital
punishment be imposed upon arsonists.

Section 1. Article 320 of the Revised Penal Code shall read as follows:

"Article 320 Destructive Arson. The penalty of reclusion temporal in its maximum period to death
shall be imposed upon any person who shall burn:

1. One (1) or more buildings or edifices, consequent to one single act of burning, or as result of
simultaneous burnings, or committed on several or different occasions;

2. Any building of public or private ownership, devoted to the use of the public in general, or
where people usually gather or congregated for a definite purpose such as but not limited to
official governmental function or business, private transaction, commerce, trade, worship,
meetings and conferences, or merely incidental to a definite purpose such as but not limited to
hotels, motels, transient dwellings, public conveyance or stops or terminals, regardless of
whether the offender had knowledge that there are persons in said building or edifice at the time
it is set on fire, and regardless also of whether the building is actually inhabited or not.

3. Any train or locomotive, ship or vessel, airship or airplane, devoted to transportation or

convenience, or public use, entertainment or leisure.

4. Any building, factory, warehouse installation and any appurtenances thereto, which are
devoted to the service of public utilities.

5. Any building, the burning of which is for the purpose of concealing or destroying evidence of
another violation of law, or for the purpose of concealing bankruptcy or defrauding creditors or
to collect from insurance.

Irrespective of the application of the above enumerated qualifying circumstances, the penalty of
death shall likewise be imposed when the arson is perpetrated or committed by two (2) or more
persons or by a group of persons, regardless of whether their purpose is merely to burn or
destroy the building or the edifice, or the burning merely constitutes an overt act in the
commission or another violation of law.

The penalty of reclusion temporal in its maximum period to death shall also be imposed upon
any person who shall burn:

(a) Any arsenal, shipyard, storehouse or military powder or fireworks factory, ordinance
storehouse, archives or general museum of the government.

(b) In an inhabited place, any storehouse or factory of inflammable or explosive materials.

If as a consequence of the commission of any of the acts penalized under this Article, death or
injury results, or any valuable documents, equipment, machineries, apparatus, or other valuable
properties were burned or destroyed, the mandatory penalty of death shall be imposed."

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 1185

“FIRE CODE OF THE PHILIPPINES” or “Fire Code”
- fire prevention and suppression require the adoption of uniform fire safety standards,
the incorporation of fire safety construction and provision of protective and safety
devices in buildings and structures;
 - in order to effectively implement all efforts to minimize the occurrence of fires and
their destructive effects, full financial, equipment and personnel support by the
government and the private sector is necessary;

- Fire Service of the Integrated National Police is in charge

Section 5. Owner, administrator or occupant of buildings or structures existing at the time of the
effectivity of the Fire Code is given two (2) years to comply with the provisions thereof on fire
safety constructions and on protective and warning systems

REPUBLIC ACT 9514

“The Revised Fire Code of the Philippines” or “The Fire Code of the
Philippines of 2008”

- In this Law, BUREAU OF FIRE PROTECTION is now in charge

- Amended PD 1185, the “Fire Code of the Philippines”

DEFINITION OF TERMS:

Abatement - Any act that would remove or neutralize a fire hazard.

Administrator - Any person who acts as agent of the owner and manages the use of a building
for him.

Blasting Agent - Any material or mixture consisting of a fuel and oxidizer used to set off
explosives.

Cellulose Nitrate Or Nitro Cellulose - A highly combustible and explosive compound

produced by the reaction of nitric acid with a cellulose material.

Cellulose Nitrate Plastic (Pyroxylin) - Any plastic substance, materials or compound having
cellulose nitrate (nitro cellulose) as base.

Combustible, Flammable or Inflammable - Descriptive of materials that are easily set on fire.

Combustible Fiber - Any readily ignitable and free burning fiber such as cotton, oakum, rags,
waste cloth, waste paper, kapok, hay, straw, Spanish moss, excelsior and other similar
materials commonly used in commerce.

Combustible Liquid - Any liquid having a flash point at or above 37.8_C (100_F).

Corrosive Liquid - Any liquid which causes fire when in contact with organic matter or with
certain chemicals.

Curtain Board - A vertical panel of non-combustible or fire resistive materials attached to and
extending below the bottom chord of the roof trusses, to divide the underside of the roof into
separate compartments so that heat and smoke will be directed upwards to a roof vent.

Cryogenic - Descriptive of any material which by its nature or as a result of its reaction with
other elements produces a rapid drop in temperature of the immediate surroundings.

Damper - A normally open device installed inside an air duct system which automatically
closes to restrict the passage of smoke or fire.
Distillation - The process of first raising the temperature to separate the more volatile from the
less volatile parts and then cooling and condensing the resulting vapor so as to produce a
nearly purified substance.

Duct System - A continuous passageway for the transmission of air.

Dust - A finely powdered substance which, when mixed with air in the proper proportion and
ignited will cause an explosion.

Electrical Arc - An extremely hot luminous bridge formed by passage of an electric current
across a space between two conductors or terminals due to the incandescence of the
conducting vapor.

Ember - A hot piece or lump that remains after a material has partially burned, and is still
oxidizing without the manifestation of flames.

Finishes - Materials used as final coating of a surface for ornamental or protective purposes.

Fire - The active principle of burning, characterized by the heat and light of combustion.

Fire Trap - A building unsafe in case of fire because it will burn easily or because it lacks
adequate exits or fire escapes.

Fire Alarm - Any visual or audible signal produced by a device or system to warn the occupants
of the building or fire fighting elements of the presence or danger of fire to enable them to
undertake immediate action to save life and property and to suppress the fire.

Fire Door - A fire resistive door prescribed for openings in fire separation walls or partitions.

Fire Hazard - Any condition or act which increases or may cause an increase in the
probability of the occurrence of fire, or which may obstruct, delay, hinder or interfere with
fire fighting operations and the safeguarding of life and property.

Fire Lane - The portion of a roadway or publicway that should be kept opened and
unobstructed at all times for the expedient operation of fire fighting units.

Fire Protective And Fire Safety Device - Any device intended for the protection of buildings or
persons to include but not limited to built-in protection system such as sprinklers and other
automatic extinguishing system, detectors for heat, smoke and combustion products and other
warning system components, personal protective equipment such as fire blankets, helmets, fire
suits, gloves and other garments that may be put on or worn by persons to protect themselves
during fire.

Fire Safety Constructions - Refers to design and installation of walls, barriers, doors,
windows, vents, means of egress, etc. integral to and incorporated into a building or structure in
order to minimize danger to life from fire, smoke, fumes or panic before the building is
evacuated. These features are also designed to achieve, among others, safe and rapid
evacuation of people through means of egress sealed from smoke or fire, the confinement of
fire or smoke in the room or floor of origin and delay their spread to other parts of the building by
means of smoke sealed and fire resistant doors, walls and floors. It shall also mean to include
the treatment of buildings components or contents with flame retardant chemicals.
Flash Point - The minimum temperature at which any material gives off vapor in sufficient
concentration to form an ignitable mixture with air.

Forcing -A process where a piece of metal is heated prior to changing its shape or
dimensions.

Fulminate - A kind of stable explosive compound which explodes by percussion.

Hazardous Operation/Process - Any act of manufacturing, fabrication, conversion, etc., that

uses or produces materials which are likely to cause fires or explosions.

Horizontal Exit - Passageway from one building to another or through or around a wall in
approximately the same floor level.

Hose Box - A box or cabinet where fire hoses, valves and other equipment are stored and
arranged for fire fighting.

Hose Reel - A cylindrical device turning on an axis around which a fire hose is wound and
connected.

Hypergolic Fuel - A rocket or liquid propellant which consists of combinations of fuels and
oxidizers which ignite spontaneously on contact with each other.

Industrial Baking and Drying - The industrial process of subjecting materials to heat for the
purpose of removing solvents or moisture from the same, and/or to fuse certain chemical salts
to form a uniform glazing on the surface of materials being treated.

Jumper - A piece of metal or an electrical conductor used to bypass a safety device in an

electrical system.

Occupancy - The purpose for which a building or portion thereof is used or intended to be used.

Occupant - Any person actually occupying and using a building or portions thereof by virtue of
a lease contract with the owner or administrator or by permission or sufferance of the latter.

Organic Peroxide - A strong oxidizing organic compound which releases oxygen readily. It
causes fire when in contact with combustible materials especially under conditions of high
temperature.

Overloading - The use of one or more electrical appliances or devices which draw or consume
electrical current beyond the designed capacity of the existing electrical system.

Owner - The person who holds the legal right of possession or title to a building or real property.

Oxidizing Material - A material that readily yields oxygen in quantities sufficient to stimulate or
support combustion.

Pressurized or Forced Draft Burning Equipment - Type of burner where the fuel is
subjected to pressure prior to discharge into the combustion chamber and/or which includes
fans or other provisions for the introduction of air at above normal atmospheric pressure into the
same combustion chamber.

Public Assembly Building - Any building or structure where fifty (50) or more people
congregate, gather, or assemble for any purpose.
Public Way - Any street, alley or other strip of land unobstructed from the ground to the sky,
deeded, dedicated or otherwise permanently appropriated for public use.

Pyrophoric - Descriptive of any substance that ignites spontaneously when exposed to air.

Refining - A process where impurities and/or deleterious materials are removed from a mixture
in order to produce a pure element or compound. It shall also refer to partial distillation and
electrolysis.

Self-closing Doors - Automatic closing doors that are designed to confine smoke and heat and
delay the spread of fire.

Smelting - Melting or fusing of metallic ores or compounds so as to separate impurities from

pure metals.

Sprinkler System - An integrated network of hydraulically designed piping installed in a

building, structure or area with outlets arranged in a systematic pattern which automatically
discharges water when activated by heat or combustion products from a fire.

Standpipe System - A system of vertical pipes in a building to which fire hoses can be attached
on each floor, including a system by which water is made available to the outlets as needed.

Vestibule - A passage hall or antechamber between the outer doors and the interior parts of a
house or building.

Vertical Shaft - An enclosed vertical space of passage that extends from floor to floor, as well
as from the base to the top of the building.