Chapter 6

6
Learning Objectives (1 of 6)
• Explain the relationship between life
safety and extinguishment.
• Discuss the positive and negative
aspects of ventilation in regard to life
safety.

6
• Evaluate ventilation options as they
relate to fire location and select the best
option given a scenario with several
vent options.
• List and evaluate rescue options.
• List rescue priorities in terms of
occupant proximity to fire.

6
• Define a mass-casualty incident.
• Explain the medical (EMS) function at a
large structure fire with multiple
casualties.
• Describe conditions that affect life
safety staffing requirements.

6
• Evaluate tactics at a fire scenario where
a large number of occupants need to be
rescued.
• Compare and contrast the positive and
negative effects of entering an enclosed
fire area.

6
• Use a scenario to select and describe
proper ventilation techniques.
• Use a scenario to describe and apply
rescue options.

6
• Use a scenario to evaluate priorities as
they relate to occupant proximity to the
fire.
• Use a scenario to estimate staffing
requirements at a structure fire
occupied by a large number of people.

6
Overview (1 of 2)
• Life safety: ultimate challenge to the IC
• Assigning initial resources is difficult.
– Control the fire
– Remove the victims
– Both
– Quick decision

6
Overview (2 of 2)
• Life safety priority: best tactic is to
suppress the fire
– Ventilation also used
• Fire extinguishment: second priority
– Essential part of most rescue operations
• Fire fighter safety is critical.

6
Probability of Extinguishment
• Major factor in life safety decisions
– Required rate of flow
• Controlling or extinguishing the fire
often best tactic

6
Prioritizing Victims
• Common tactical error
– Prioritizing victims according to visibility
– Occupants inside building may be in grave
danger.
– May be best to rescue visible victims via
the interior stairs
• After the fire is under control or extinguished

6
Defend-In-Place Strategy
• Useful if the fire can be quickly
controlled
• Calculated risk based on:
– Fire conditions
– Available resources
– Extent of danger to victims

6
Large-Volume Flows
• Large interior flow requirements
– Greater staffing needs, more time to assemble
resources
• Fire doors and fire walls
– Extend available evacuation time
– Provide a barrier between the victims and the fire
• Sufficient personnel and resources must be
available.

6
Hose Line Placement
• Hose line must get into position to
extinguish the fire.
– Can also protect egress routes
– First-in engine
• Focus on advancing attack line
• Control the fire, save lives
• Only hope for occupants in the immediate fire
area

6
First-In Crew
• Advancing crew will assist victims they
come upon.
– Can’t be expected to perform a complete
primary search
• Responsibility is extinguishment

6
Search and Rescue
• Floors above the fire are critical areas.
• Number of crews depends on:
– Number of floors to be searched
– Size of the building
– Fire intensity
– Smoke conditions
– Occupant status

6
High-Rise Buildings
• Floor areas are generally large.
• May need to search several floors
• One company into all areas on the fire
floor and above
– Determine fire and smoke conditions and
evacuation needs.

6
Ventilation
• Relieves the products of combustion
– Allows fire fighters to advance on the fire
– Must be coordinated with attack lines
• Very effective life safety procedure
– Pulls the fire, heat, smoke, and toxic gases
away from victims, stairs, and other egress
routes

6
Venting to Support
Suppression
• Important to coordinate with hose line
placement
• Makes the job of finding fire and victims
easier

6
Improper Ventilation
• May produce a backdraft
– Fire fighters or occupants could be
seriously injured or killed.
• Vent opening in path of egress could
prove fatal.

6
Venting to Save Lives
• May be necessary to vent before having
a hose line ready
• Use building features
– Retard fire growth
– Prevent extension
• Position charged hose lines before
opening doors and windows

6
Venting While Searching
• Often necessary
– Better to open windows rather than
breaking
• Reversible venting is preferred.
– Negative consequences can be reversed
by closing the window or door.

6
Positive Pressure Ventilation
(PPV)
• Key is controlling outlet openings
– Ineffective if there are too many
• Negative side
– Fire can be directed toward victims, toward
their escape routes, or into unburned areas

6
Rescue Options
• Interior stairways
– Safest and easiest way to move occupants
• Above or below grade level
– Preferred means from upper floors
– Alternative methods

6
Defend-In-Place
• Occupants are moved away from the
fire area.
– Remain in the structure
– High-rise buildings and healthcare facilities
• Large buildings are built to allow this
strategy.

6
Fire Escapes
• Poor substitutes for interior stairs
• Structural integrity questionable
• If structurally sound, preferred over
other alternative methods

6
Aerial Devices
• Individual benefits:
– Aerial ladders
– Elevated platforms
– Articulating platforms

6
Ground Ladders (1 of 2)
• Less stable and reach
• Require more personnel
• Preferred over aerial devices
– When buildings are set back from the
street
– When fire fighters need to quickly access
second or third floor

6
Ground Ladders (2 of 2)
• People at windows may not need
rescue.
– Reassure them.
– Determine whether they must be moved
and if stairways are available.
• Use stairways and corridors if they are
relatively clear of smoke.

6
Elevator Rescue
• Can be used under fire department’s
control
• Elevators should be located:
– In buildings that are subdivided with good,
fire-resistive construction
– Remote and separate from the fire area
• Use in the immediate fire area is
hazardous.

6
Rope Rescue
• Last resort
– Justifiable only in extreme cases
• Interior rescue should be attempted
first.
• Extremely slow and dangerous
– Require specialized equipment and
expertise

6
Helicopter Rescue
• IC should ask if occupants are safe
where they’re at.
• Most roofs provide a difficult operating
platform.
– Obstructions
– Hot air currents caused by an intense fire

6
Occupant Status
• Occupants who escape on their own
• Victims who may not be aware of the
fire or of egress routes
• Immobile or unconscious victims

6
Occupant Information
• Occupants not reliable
• Staff may not account for visitors in the
building.
• The only reliable way to verify is to
systematically check every room.

6
Rescue Size-Up
• The IC should see all sides of the fire
building.
• Fire crews should view the exterior.
• Reports from occupants may be
unreliable, but they should not be
ignored.
– May be able to direct rescuers

6
Flashover
• The critical landmark:
– Before flashover, rescue is possible.
– After flashover, rescue is highly improbable
within the flashover compartment.
• Recognizing the signs of flashover is
important.

6
Fire Conditions
• Related to many factors:
– Elapsed time before fire was detected
– Time it takes to notify the fire department
– Response time

6
Threat to Occupants
• Directly related to:
– Their awareness of the fire
– Their ability to escape
– Construction of the building
– Provisions made for egress
• IC has little control over these factors.

6
Critical Time
• Time until structure becomes untenable
– Varies depending on numerous building
factors and fuel load
• Fires spread rapidly upward in any
construction that allows unimpeded
vertical fire spread.
– Lessens the critical time

6
Fire Control
• Fire control tactics = critical strategy
– Implemented whenever possible
• Fire fighters and victims have a better
chance to evacuate if the fire is
extinguished or knocked down.

6
Forcible Entry
• Search-and-rescue crews should have
forcible entry tools.
– Heavy metal doors will extend the time and
effort required for the primary search.
– It is important to consider the value of the
opening being forced.
• Fire doors

6
Fire Doors
• Designed to:
– Resist and contain the fire
– Keep fire from extending
• Fire doors should be closed after search
is complete.
• Charged hose lines should be in place
before forcing doors to fire areas.

6
Personnel Requirements
• Sized-up by considering the:
– Physical condition of the occupants
– Number of occupants on the fire floor
– Travel distance to safety
– Estimated fire growth

6
Floor Layout and Size
• Organized search effort considers:
– Size of the area to be searched and
evacuated
– Location of stairways, halls, and fire
escapes

6
Large Building Search
• Assign floors to each search team
• May be further subdivided by wing or
building side

6
Multi-Story Buildings
• Survey uninvolved floor
– Layout may be different from floor to floor
– Some building features remain constant:
stairs, elevators, and standpipes

6
Floor Numbering
• Buildings constructed on a grade may
have unusual floor numbers.
– First floor on one side can actually be a
higher or lower floor.
• Should be listed in pre-plans

6
Small Buildings
• Exterior size-up reveals interior layout
– Large windows = common areas
– Small windows = bedrooms
• Buildings of similar construction typically
will have similar floor layouts.
– Stairway location
– Can be difficult to search

6
Larger Buildings
• Reduced visibility
• Using small building tactics and
procedures could be fatal.

6
Search
• Small room search in a right- or left-
hand pattern
• Larger area requires rope or other guide
line and different search techniques
• Thermal imaging camera

6
Search and Rescue Priority
(1 of 4)
• Established after:
– Determining the total number of occupants
– Developing a strategy for full or partial
evacuation
• Determined by deciding who is in the
greatest danger

6
(2 of 4)
• On the fire floor nearest to the
immediate fire area
• In proximity to the fire area on the same
level
• On the floor above the fire, especially
immediately over the fire area
• On the top floor, unless fire conditions
result in smoke stratification

6
(3 of 4)
• On the floors between the floor above
the fire and the top floor
• On the floors below the fire
• In nearby buildings
• Outside
– In the collapse or falling glass zones

6
(4 of 4)

6
Rescue Priorities
• When it is not possible to save
everyone
– IC must save the largest number of people
possible
• The key to successful search operations
is to be systematic.

6
Primary Search
• Quick, thorough
• Mark and record areas that have been
searched
– Assures that areas are checked before the
secondary search begins

6
Secondary Search
• Ensures that no one was missed the
first time through
• If conditions allow, should be conducted
as soon as the primary search is
complete
• Use a different crew.

6
Medical Status of Victims
• IC must have wide discretion in calling
medical assistance.
• Need for EMS at an incident scene is
dictated by:
– Relative hazard
– Number of potential victims
– Type of incident
• If you think you need help, you do.

6
Medical Unit Set-up
• Set up within the cold zone or beyond
– Personnel should remain with their
ambulance.
– Near the rehab area

6
Mass-Casualty Incidents
(MCI) (1 of 2)
• Occurs when:
– Number of victims and nature of injuries
make normal stabilization and care
unattainable.
– Available trained personnel and
transportation vehicles are insufficient.
– Hospital capabilities are insufficient.

6
Mass-Casualty Incidents
(MCI) (2 of 2)
• Specific incidents:
– Transportation accidents, hazardous
materials releases, or natural disasters
• Fires in buildings with large numbers of
occupants have the potential to become
MCIs.

6
Triage, Prioritizing, Transport
• Triage: first medical priority in managing
an MCI
• First-arriving EMS personnel should not
leave the scene until relieved of triage
responsibilities.

6
Medical Teams
• Accustomed to treating one or more
individuals, followed by immediate
transport
• Triaging without treatment and
transportation runs contrary to normal
role
• Once triage teams have prioritized the
victims, treatment teams will follow.

6
Treatment Teams
• First treat those needing immediate
care and arrange for their
transportation.
• If sufficient personnel are on the scene,
multiple teams can be formed.
– Treat as many patients as possible.

6
Medical Transportation Officer
• Manages transportation needs
• Directs incoming EMS vehicles to
staging area
• Determines mode of transportation
– May be possible to transport in vehicles
other than ambulances

6
Communications with
Hospitals
• Need to know how many patients and
what types of injuries can be treated at
each facility.
• Patients directed to hospitals and
trauma centers according to their
capabilities.

6
Hospital Response
• Hospitals determine their limits based
on:
– Personnel
– Staff expertise
– Space
• Must be prepared to exceed their
normal patient capacity

6
Medical Planning Officer
• Functions similar to planning section
• Can be assigned to medical branch or
group
• Documents where and when each
patient is transported

6
Evaluating the Need for
Shelter
• Weather extremes
– Need to rehab fire fighters
– Provide shelter for occupants
• Nearby building could be used as
shelter.
– Outside the fire zone

6
Outside Assistance
• Red Cross
– Response times may be fairly long.
– Makes it necessary to assign crews to this
task until they arrive

6
Estimating Staffing
Requirements
• Staffing must be sufficient to:
– Extinguish or contain the fire
– Conduct search-and-rescue operations
– Treat and transport the injured
– Remove victims to a place of safety
– Prevent re-entry

6
Staffing Needs (1 of 2)
• Depends on several factors:
– Number of victims
– Rescue methods used
– Condition of victims
– Fire conditions

6
Staffing Needs (2 of 2)
• Depends on several factors (continued)
– Smoke conditions
– Victim mobility
– Weather conditions
– Accessibility

6
Additional Staffing
• Needed in the following situations:
– Victims close to the fire area
– Victims have physical impairments
– Fire occurs during weather extremes
– Evacuation routes other than the interior
stairs must be used
– Forcible entry required

6
Evacuation Status
• Determined by:
– Pre-incident planning information
– Occupant information
– Visual observation
– Reconnaissance
– Alarm information

6
Fire-Ground Tasks
• Division-of-labor approach
• Actions can be delayed and/or
duplicated without pre-assignment of
duties.

6
Fire-Ground Duties (1 of 2)
• Water supply and application (engine
company duties)
• Ventilation, entry, search and rescue,
and property conservation (ladder
company duties)
• Search, rescue, and rapid intervention
(rescue company duties)

6
Fire-Ground Duties (2 of 2)
• Triage, treatment, transportation, and
rehabilitation (emergency medical
duties)
• Planning, organizing, coordinating, and
establishing command (IC duties)

6
Summary (1 of 2)
• The most important fire-ground activity
is saving lives.
• Sound risk-management principles must
be applied.

6
Summary (2 of 2)
• IC considerations:
– Department SOPs
– Pre-incident plans
– Size-up factors
– Number and location of victims

Chapter 6

Empfohlen

Empfohlen

Weitere ähnliche Inhalte

Andere mochten auch

Andere mochten auch (6)

Ähnlich wie Chapter 6

Ähnlich wie Chapter 6 (20)

Mehr von Becca Waldo

Mehr von Becca Waldo (8)

Kürzlich hochgeladen

Kürzlich hochgeladen (20)

Chapter 6