The U cut - Pro Active Truck / RIT Ops On Board Ups
Much has been discussed on our job as it relates to pro active operations or softening the building. While this usually focuses on tasks such as throwing ladders, removing window bars, forcing open doors or opening boarded up windows on vacant / abandoned buildings (Yes, we believe they're occupied until our search proves otherwise), often overlooked is the discipline of coordinated ventilation or the prevention of over-ventilating the building unless fire attack crews and search crews are ready for it all while still softening the building!
Much has been discussed on our job as it relates to pro active operations or softening the building. While this usually focuses on tasks such as throwing ladders, removing window bars, forcing open doors or opening boarded up windows on vacant / abandoned buildings (Yes, we believe they're occupied until our search proves otherwise), often overlooked is the discipline of coordinated ventilation or the prevention of over-ventilating the building unless fire attack crews and search crews are ready for it all while still softening the building!
Examples: Ensuring not to take glass while performing window bar removal unless it's desired, forcing a rear door and leaving it wide open if it's not desired.
But what do we do if the building is boarded up? Do we fully remove and open up any and all boarded up windows or do we still apply the same fireground discipline that's expected if it were not boarded up?
While mindset on this varies as greatly as the types of board up configurations we may face here's an option for pro actively softening the building while maintaining coordinated and communicated tactical ventilation that can be applied on board ups that feature plywood coverings!
We simply call it the U cut as you simply cut a U shape (3 sided cut in any orientation) on the covering. If possible the traditional U shape orientation is preferred as you do not have to reach up and make a horizontal cut at the top of the window. In addition to the U cut a small knock out cut placed in one of the bottom corners will allow for quick tool placement to pull out and open when and if desired!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azL9zpynbpg
This cut keeps us from over ventilating the building if ventilation is not desired while allowing members in distress to move to a window and rapidly egress if needed.
Obviously prior training, understanding and communication of this tactic by all members is critical, so get out and have these conversations and train on these scenarios.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWFVUNHAbC8
Just Open The Floor For Discussion...
New construction in single family dwellings. Open floor plans: a floor plan without fully enclosed spaces for distinct rooms. (i.e. living room, dining room, kitchen)
Open Kitchens: kitchens that are not walled off from the living space.
Both of these are a staple in new construction and it's tough these days to find many
New construction in single family dwellings. Open floor plans: a floor plan without fully enclosed spaces for distinct rooms. (i.e. living room, dining room, kitchen)
Open Kitchens: kitchens that are not walled off from the living space.
Both of these are a staple in new construction and it's tough these days to find many houses being built that don't have at least an open kitchen. Below is a couple pics of "Google Trends" which are a record of how often people searched for open floor plans or open kitchens on Google in the United States over the last 10 years. The interest is only climbing and shows no signs of slowing down. (The Blue Line represents searches for "Open Floor Plan", the Red Line represents searches for an "Open Kitchen".)
What does this mean for firefighting? A lot of things we already know, smoke and fire spread being the most poignant. Age of structure should be a consideration in our size ups for search and fire attack. Couple open floor plans or kitchens with open staircases to the 2nd or 3rd floors and it just compounds the issue.
(pic below: bedroom above an open floor plan with an open staircase, smoke to the floor)
With Open Kitchens (Red Line) remember: The Kitchen is not only the most common area of origin for all structure fires (43%) but also for fires that cause a civilian injury (39%) and 3rd leading area for civilian fatalities (16%). Expect victims to be trapped in bedrooms (area of location of 50% of civilian fatalities and 33% of civilian injuries) by smoke/fire and expect victims either near the seat (may have tried to extinguish the fire 34.9% of civilian injuries) or in the path of egress (trying to escape 25.2% of civilian injuries, 36% of civilian fatalities).
With Open Floor Plans (Blue Line)remember: Living Rooms are tied (with bedrooms) as the leading area of origin for civilian fatality fires (24%) and 3rd leading area for civilian injuries (10%) and 3rd leading area of origin for structure fires overall (4%). Living rooms can often be the areas with the greatest fuel load, causing (enhanced by the open floor plan and open stairs) rapid smoke/fire progression. Again, expect victims to be trapped in bedrooms (location of 50% of civilian fatalities) or trying to escape (25% of civilian injuries and 36% of civilian fatalities) through the smoke and fire.
(pic above: fire in an open floor plan where the living room, dining room and kitchen flashed over.)
There may be times Open floor plans can aid fire attack (if conditions are less than ideal we can use the reach of our stream on the interior to reach more areas than in a divided floor plan) and vertical ventilation (open floors plans can often be coupled with vaulted ceilings being able to vent smoke/heat/fire from a larger area).
(pic below: 4x8 vert vent hole cut above an open floor plan, not a vaulted ceiling but the hole aided tremendously in removal of smoke and steam in the largest area of the house. Tall attic space, a 160 gpm smooth bore can often "pull" a lot of ceiling...)
Just a few thoughts and numbers...nothing ground breaking...just open the floor for discussion.
(All statistics taken from NFPA and U.S. Fire Administration civilian fatality and home fire reports.)
Vent, Enter, Search: Turning A Blind "I"...
You don't have to look very far to see the positive aspect of the ongoing discussion of VES and VEIS. The positive is at least people are talking about one of the most dynamic and under-utilized tactics in the fire service.
(Photo by Dick Harris)
You don't have to look very far to see the positive aspect of the ongoing discussion of VES and VEIS. The positive is at least people are talking about one of the most dynamic and under-utilized tactics in the fire service. There's no question whether you've embraced the "I" from the sky or not, most of us can agree that when you vent, enter and search you put yourself in a very advantageous position to locate and remove a potential victim.
Most of us know that the (I) isolate portion of the new VEIS, (where you go into the room and immediately sweep the hallway then close the door), has always been present in VES, it just hadn't been isolated into the acronym. The change for some has been made to highlight further the need to teach, practice and perform the isolation of the room in question to be searched. I ask only one question regarding this new trend...
Is it possible to OVERemphasize the isolation?
Now, before you stop reading hear me out.
If the new core of firefighters have only ever been taught VEIS with so much emphasis on the "I" (that we felt the need to change the acronym), I have to wonder are they also being taught what to do when you CAN'T isolate the room?
Yes, as many of us know the fire ground likes to defy and dismantle our acronyms.
There are times when your diligent size up of windows, building layouts and on scene information failed you and the room you entered turned out NOT to be a bedroom, but rather a day room, bonus room, ect. that doesn't have a door to control...what then?
Do we discuss if and when we can keep searching, or when to back off and wait for a hoseline to knock the fire?
Or when the room is packed to the gills with so much shit you CAN'T close the door or when the door is off its hinges or missing...do we discuss propping a door that's fallen off its hinges into a doorway or quickly removing a closet or bathroom door to do the same? Are we teaching our firefighters to handle these situations or have we only talked and preached the best case scenario of VE(I)S?
What we have to ensure is that we don't set firefighters up to be mentally paralyzed on the fire ground in their decision making because the fire ground said, "&%#@ your acronym". VES has and always will make closing the door an extremely high priority. What it also does is leave the door open to discuss not only the best case scenarios but also the worst.
Olson
43 Degrees of Separation: Taking An Angle To Rescue The Working Ladder
Look at situations from all angles, and you will become more open. ~ Dalai Lama Want to try an interesting experiment? If you're ever bored just post something to do with ground ladders on a social media site for firefighters and get yourself some popcorn, (insert Michael Jackson "just here for the comments"meme...) I
Look at situations from all angles, and you will become more open. ~ Dalai Lama Want to try an interesting experiment? If you're ever bored just post something to do with ground ladders on a social media site for firefighters and get yourself some popcorn, (insert Michael Jackson "just here for the comments"meme...) It seems that this is an area where there is a great deal of separation between what many of us learned as new firefighters on the drill ground and what actually happens at fires. Everyone seems to have an opinion on what ladders we carry, how we carry them, how we throw them, where we place them, how many people we use to do it and what angle they're set at when we do. This last one is what I'd like to focus on for a little bit. It seems that you can't talk about ladders without someone eventually throwing in the comment, "That ladder's not 75 degrees" or "who put that ladder up it's the wrong angle." I have a hunch many if not all of us were probably taught some version of the IFSTA formula for checking "the proper" ladder angle. We stood on the bottom rung after completing our throw and reached out to grab the rungs to "check" our angle.
This was to ensure that we got the proper angle so our world didn't come crashing down on top of us or worse yet us and a victim. The question I asked myself was, 'How often do we really achieve a 70-75 degree climbing angle? Now to set this up, extension ladders are going to allow us to be more precise with our placement, thus allowing (if you so desire) a chance to grasp the 'Holy Grail' of climbing angles because of their obvious ability to adjust their height, but what about straight ladders? How often are we anywhere near the IFSTA/manufacturer recommended angle with our straight ladders that can't adjust their height? Now, before we move forward lets set some parameters for this discussion. 1.) We will spend our time discussing straight ladders placed at windows because we know we have to work with what the window height gives us. 2.) Ladders should indefinitely be placed at the window sill. Not next to the window, not above the window...at the sill. We need ladders to make access into windows, egress from windows (perhaps with victims or for FF survival) and we need to take windows for ventilation, all can and should be accomplished with the tip placed at the sill. This is all about efficiency, I want to move the ladder the least amount of times as possible. I don't want to set the ladder to the windward side of the window, vent the window then come down and have to move the ladder to the sill to leave it there for FF egress. When we perform Vent Enter Search, where is the ladder? At the sill. It shouldn't be any different when we are venting for fire attack and then leaving the ladder for FF egress. Mask up before you take the window to prevent getting glass in your face. But I want to set that ladder once, not twice or three times. Speed and efficiency wins. There should be no wasted moves on the fire ground, get your ladders to the sill.
So, what we are going to discuss is straight ladders to the sill. I went out armed with an inclinometer, a 14ft, 16ft, and 20ft straight ladder, a curious mind and a willing crew.
The picture below is of a 16ft and 20ft ladder set up to a 2nd story window. Part of what intrigued me about the idea of looking into what angles our ladders were really at is that I believed that we were not very good at guessing the actual angle of these ladders, meaning many people who post the comments "that's not the right angle???" can't really tell what angle the ladder is at. So ask yourself what do you think the angle is of each of these ladders in the picture below?
The 20ft is 44 degrees and the 16ft is 61 degrees. How many of you were right? Or even close? Would you feel comfortable climbing that 20 ft ladder at 44 degrees? Lets look at some more examples. In the picture below we have a 20ft at 57 degrees and a 16ft at 60 degrees. Not bad, and there are many people that have said 60 degrees is a rescue angle.
(Remember: when bringing a victim down a ladder it is often less tiring if you have a shallower angle due to the fact that the steeper the angle the more of the victims weight you are holding with your arms. If the ladder has a shallower angle, the ladder itself supports more of the victims weight, easing some of the strain on your body especially when coming down a longer ladder, i.e. a fully extended 35ft.) (and yes we throw all our ladders fly-in)
But what happens when that 60 degree rescue angle or 70 degree climbing angle is a far cry from what you actually have and you have to perform a rescue? What is the cost of truly having the mentality of banging a ladder to every window, on every fire until you either run out of windows or you run out of ladders? Often the cost of performing rescues and having an aggressive ground ladder mindset if that you end up with angles that are nothing like what is represented in the books, you get what is represented on the street. Here's a few examples...
A 16ft to the second floor at 43 degrees, on asphalt and ice...
A 16ft to a elevated commercial window on asphalt, ladder at the sill at 29 degrees...
A 14ft to the second story sill at 56 degrees...
A 20ft at 41 degrees and a 16ft at 52 degrees to the second floor of an apartment building...
And a 20ft to yet another second floor of a residential structure at 49 degrees...
And finally a 14ft to a residential attic access.
Some of you might be thinking that I only included pics of ladders that support my argument regarding ladder angles. But the reality is that with our 3 different lengths of straight ladders, 14ft, 16ft, and 20ft we did not hit 70 degrees to the sill one time, not ONE TIME. Obviously this is just a small sampling of the different building set ups we will encounter but the point remains the same, just because a book says or even the manufacturer says 75 degrees is the angle these ladders should be climbed at, doesn't mean that is at all what your going to encounter on the streets using these ladders in real applications. People are rescued on a daily basis using ground ladders, and how many of the firefighters making those rescues were at all concerned with the angle of that ladder when it got to the sill? If the angle is sketchy we should be disciplined enough to know when we do and don't need someone footing the ladder for us. These pictures show that a firefighter can climb a ladder at 30 and 40 degrees with a single firefighter footing the ladder with one foot. We're often just one foot away from an effective angle.
In addition most straight ladders come with hooks on at least one end that we can hook into a window sill and climb the ladder without someone footing it...at any angle.
This is not a technique that I use often, but does have its time and place. When faced with severe shallow angles on ladders that are going to be left unattended this is often a viable option. Normally I would use this on ladders that are in place for FF egress in windows that have already been taken. This allows for a ladder to be anchored for egress, especially when the ladder is not on dirt or grass but on concrete or asphalt without a FF attending to it. The disadvantages for using the hooks for rescue is that you've now created a step with the tip of the ladder in the window that you will have to get a victim up and over. Not all sills will be narrow enough for the hooks to bite over but that is something that won't be found out until the moment of truth. If you are manpower deficient and don't have the extra body to foot the ladder, this can be a great option especially when the ladder is on hard surfaces.
In closing, we should all be striving to work in a place with a strong ladder culture. Don't make excuses for not getting work done because of something written in a book, that someone told you was the way it HAD to be done. Ask yourself what ladders do I have and how to do they stand up against the buildings on my Job? Then go bang a ladder against anything that has a window and see for yourself what the reality of your climbing angles are. You might be like most, who quickly realize the book answer of 75 degrees doesn't apply to them in 95% of their scenarios and suddenly become aware that they weren't quite as prepared for the working fire ground as they thought. Which is a humbling but powerful gift when received by the right person. Get those ladders up, because a victim can't be brought down a ladder that isn't there and a firefighter can't bail out a ladder that's still on the rig. Don't use the excuse angle, make a rescue angle.
Ogre
What is Impossible?: The 35' Engine Company Ladder
It seems that just about everything is up for debate in the fire service. Firefighters are jacks-of-all-trades and that includes the ancient art of debate. We argue about the big things, like safety of roof operations and tactical priorities. We argue the small things, like whether to carry six- or eight-pound axes, and the proper color of fire engines. Wanna sit back and be entertained? Place a combination nozzle and a smooth bore on the kitchen table at shift change. Better than the movies, and the refreshments are cheaper. One thing that seems nearly universally agreed upon is the complement of ground (or portable) ladders for an engine company.
It seems that just about everything is up for debate in the fire service. Firefighters are jacks-of-all-trades and that includes the ancient art of debate. We argue about the big things, like safety of roof operations and tactical priorities. We argue the small things, like whether to carry six- or eight-pound axes, and the proper color of fire engines. Wanna sit back and be entertained? Place a combination nozzle and a smooth bore on the kitchen table at shift change. Better than the movies, and the refreshments are cheaper. One thing that seems nearly universally agreed upon is the complement of ground (or portable) ladders for an engine company. These are understood to be a 14' roof ladder and a 24' extension ladder. While Firefighter 1 training teaches us two-person carries for 24's and two or three-person carries for 35's, it is widely accepted - and in many places, expected - that a single firefighter should be able to perform a 24' ladder carry and raise. There are myriad training resources for a firefighter who wants to learn a single person 24' ladder.
One problem.
We don't all carry 24' extension ladders.
Some engines carry 28's. And, like me, you might even have the incredible fortune of a three-section 35' ladder on your engine. I don't believe in karma, but if I did, I'm pretty sure whatever karmic debts I've incurred would be wholly redeemed by the punishment of carrying that monstrosity on our pump. Simply put, it sucks. Generally, I've griped about it and complained that it never comes off the rack because I'd much rather steal a ladder than I can throw by myself from another rig. I mean, I want to take personal responsibility for my own excellence, and own the fact that while it might be a piece of shit, it's my piece of shit. But how can I do that, when everybody knows that throwing a 35' three-section ladder by oneself, in full gear and SCBA, is impossible? Right?
Turns out, not so much.
My buddy and co-worker sent me these photos the other day. We'll just call him, "Ogre". Ogre is the man. He's one of "those guys" on my job; one that is always pushing the envelope, training his ass off, and spreading knowledge and passion wherever he goes. So it was no surprise to me to see him sticking the ladder throw, and it was no surprise to see it land on Facebook and cause an uproar. Ogre's just like that, always trying to break the internet and whatnot.
Having seen him and others do this on the interwebs, I was confident that I could do it, too. But I consider myself a critical thinker, so I evaluated some of the common objections to determine their validity.
OBJECTION #1: Throwing ladders by yourself is unnecessary, because there's always somebody around who can help you.
Okay, so this one was pretty easy. Because it's stupid. I've heard this from guys on my job and elsewhere, and I'm totally perplexed by it. We have minimum manning of 3 on our engines, as do all of our automatic aid partners, and our district is quite varied: trailer parks, big box stores, multi-million dollar estates, rural farms. Help is not always close by. Even if I've got one other engine on scene, there’s more than six guys worth of work to be done. Thus, I dismiss that objection with extreme prejudice.
OBJECTION #2: That ladder is too heavy and awkward, and you might hurt yourself.
The 35' Duo Safety ladder we carry weighs 130 lbs. It is heavy. But I had to be real with my expectations of myself. Firefighting is hard and a lot of our tools are heavy. Fall patients and fire/smoke/rescue victims will usually weigh more than that ladder. The average FF weighs around 250 lbs in gear and I've hauled my share of simulated RIT victims around. It's damn hard. But I can do it, as can any firefighter worth their paycheck, and I don't hear anyone saying we shouldn't run a Denver Drill because someone might get hurt. Look, I'm not Superman. I'm reasonably strong and fit, but I'm not qualifying for Crossfit Regionals or washing laundry on my abs. I'm not in some big hurry to do foolish things and extend injury risk to myself, but there's risk in any physical activity. This physical activity happens to be in direct relation with my fireground responsibilities. So, while there is a valid argument to be made that I could hurt myself, I'd argue in response that the best way to ensure I won't hurt myself is with preparation.
OBJECTION #3: You could just use a ladder drag/package.
This is easily the most valid objection. I'm a fan of ladder drags and packages. I think they're smart and efficient in certain situations. Still, there are many properties where dragging a ladder over (fences, landscaping) and/or around obstacles (cars in parking lots or driveways) would make it a total pain in the ass and potentially impossible, or at least not feasible. In this scenario, I'd want to carry and throw the ladder from high shoulder.
I looked at the objections, and this is what I came up with: Most of the time I'm on the fireground, I won't be throwing a ladder. Most of the times that I do, I can rob a 24' or 28' from another rig. Most of the time, those ladders are long enough. Most of the time that a 35' is truly required, help is available or I can wait until it is. Most of the time that I can't get help, I'd be able to drag the ladder to my destination. The reality is that an event where throwing a 35' solo is necessary is a rare one. And because it is so rare, that is precisely why I decided I needed to try it. I needed the confidence that in a rare, once-in-a-career moment, that I could execute the move effectively.
Here goes.
[video width="480" height="272" m4v="http://www.brothersinbattlellc.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/35v1.m4v"][/video]
This is my first attempt. You can see that I failed to find the balance point before lifting, and that the ladder kicked my butt there for a minute. I was able to eventually get it without putting my back in a terribly compromised position, but it wasn't pretty. Not pleased with that evolution.
[video width="480" height="272" m4v="http://www.brothersinbattlellc.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/35v2.m4v"][/video]
Here's the second try. I decided to drop the butt to the ground, leave the tip on the rack, and position myself under the ladder. I wouldn't say it was easier, but I do think it's safer. That's an effective throw, but not great.
I could have left it there. I did it, and so did they other dudes on my crew. Still, looking at that first video, I couldn't let it go. Again, in response to the safety argument, one of the ways we mitigate risk is to train and drill. So, I picked it up again. And again. It took a few sessions of hard work to work out the balance points, hand placement, and tempo. I dropped it more than once, but I got better.
[video width="640" height="360" m4v="http://www.brothersinbattlellc.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Final-35-throw.m4v"][/video]
It's better. It isn't elegant, but this is firefighting. A fine instructor I once had told our class, "This ain't figure skating, it's ice hockey." When throwing a 35' on my own, ice hockey will do just fine.
Spending time improving my ability to throw this ladder, I've found that the throw comes naturally with time and repetition. The more difficult part is raising the fly on my own. This is an area where I am still weak. On a concrete building or a real-life scenario, I lower the fly onto the building and raise the fly against the building.
I still don't like the three section 35' on my engine. It is cumbersome and unnecessarily long and heavy for an engine company, particularly with just three on the rig. I'd prefer a 24' or 28', but that is not my reality.
We all have our own realities. My apparatus, tool complement, hose loads, and first-due area are all different than yours. I have to prepare for my reality. You must prepare for yours, and I hope you do so relentlessly. And when you're out on the pavement, preparing for your reality, I hope you'll examine to what others say is impossible. Say it with me: "Is it?"
Hit 'em High, Hit 'em Low
The rung of a ladder was never meant to rest upon, but only to hold a man's foot long enough to enable him to put the other somewhat higher. ~ Thomas Henry Huxley It is often stated about ground ladders that they are one of the most underutilized tools in the fire service today. Which is tough to argue because with the aid of modern technologies, anyone, anywhere can watch videos or look at pictures of incidents and the evidence presents itself.
The rung of a ladder was never meant to rest upon, but only to hold a man's foot long enough to enable him to put the other somewhat higher. ~ Thomas Henry Huxley It is often stated about ground ladders that they are one of the most underutilized tools in the fire service today. Which is tough to argue because with the aid of modern technologies, anyone, anywhere can watch videos or look at pictures of incidents and the evidence presents itself. Many times we don't empty our ladder beds on incidents, but this is not another post about the importance of ground ladders. Far more experienced and talented firefighters than myself have already grasped the reigns of that topic. What I want to dive into concerns how some of us were taught to throw ladders and how have we continued our education into the art of throwing ladders, (and I do mean art, the same as stretching and advancing hose or forcing a tough door). Ladders seem to be at least for many firefighters one of those skills that we were taught the basics as a brand new firefighter and we never progressed past that. There was usually two schools of thought first the, "You throw ladders once you can throw them the rest of your career" where ladders were shrugged off as a skill a gorilla could accomplish. Or the IFSTA mentality where the goal seemed to be to simply pass a set of skill sheets and then go out onto the real fire-ground and learn the "(Insert Department Name Here) Way" and forget what you were taught in rookie school. Neither one of these options lends itself to be a minimum standards challenging, self improving THUS company improving model. So assuming that I'm not the only one who learned ladders in one of these fashions we're going to take it back all the way to how you carry and WHY you carry a ladder the way you do. For single firefighter carries there really is two options; the low shoulder carry or the high shoulder carry. Ask yourself WHY you carry the ladder the way you do? It's hard for us to confront our personal abilities and actions especially when it comes down to us getting the job done but we have to ask ourselves if what we do is a thought out, reality based action or is it simply the way we learned to do it. For myself I learned to carry a ladder using the low shoulder method, after all it was the hallmark of the IFSTA single person ladder throw. But then as time passed I started to experiment within my own abilities the high shoulder carry. It seemed that I could throw every ladder with less effort because of the mechanics of creating a better starting angle by having a shorter distance of ladder in front of me allowing the ladder to be nearly raised by the time I planted the butt, and taking nothing more than a few steps forward with the ladder sliding up my shoulder to have it vertical. I fell so in love with this method that I refused to throw a ladder any other way. I threw ladders everyday until I could throw every ladder in our department efficiently with a high shoulder carry everything from the 16ft roof, to the 2 and 3 section 35fter's. Often times the biggest knock on the high shoulder carry is that firefighters say you can't or it's hard to carry tools. So, I set out on the task of figuring out the best way for me to do a high shoulder and carry tools, because as we all know you're only as good as the tool you're carrying. (A picture of a quick tip of holding the halyard with your hand to speed up the process of raising the ladder.)
The first stop of this journey for me was adding the tools to the ladder itself. My usual tool compliment of choice was a NY hook and a halligan. I could drop the pike of the halligan into a rung crossing the forks over the bed section of the ladder locking it in and I could put the NY hook onto the fly section locking the hook end behind a rung block. This method allowed me to simply carry the entire ladder high shoulder with tools mounted freeing up both hands to either stabilize the ladder or carry a saw.
This method works great for me and allows me to continue to throw the ladder high shoulder and have tools ready.
Next I messed around with staging the tools in various places so that I could shoulder the ladder then pick up the tools with my free hand on the way by. This also worked well with the only added difficulty being you now had to stabilize the ladder with one arm instead of two.
Then something happened, I started talking to firefighters who disagreed with using the high shoulder carry. I thought, well "WHY? What's not to like about it?" It's easier to throw the ladder and I can do it while carrying tools. One of the main points of the discussion was, it was hard to high shoulder a ladder while going through, around, under or over obstacles. Ok, so how much had I really done that? I had thrown ladders this way a thousand times but did I really know WHY I did it this way? Or what obstacles I could mitigate while balancing the ladder with one arm? So it was time to go back to my roots of learning to throw ladders and do some tests.
First was the overhead obstacle test. We have a lot of trees where I work and sometimes it can be like going through a jungle getting to the house. So what was the best option for going under some smaller sized trees? Well, the pictures speak for themselves. The low shoulder cleared the trees just fine while the high shoulder had the potential to get hung up. Is this a low percentage hazard, sure for most, but none the less it made me question my decision to hang my hat on the high shoulder. Now, some of you may be thinking, 'yeah, no shit' but many people throw ladders most of the time on clear concrete, not on fires so the possibility is that many firefighters haven't asked themselves this question or simply haven't made themselves mitigate obstacles while carrying a ladder. It's just the reality that we train more than we fight fires.
The next test we decided to go for the lower obstacles, add some bushes, weeds, a lightpole, and a car. The low shoulder as predicted hung up more on the bushes than the high shoulder, however that did not make the high shoulder the clear favorite. The issue of balance came into play when holding tools in one hand, the 28ft ladder in the other and plowing throw the bushes. Even though the low shoulder hung up more on the ladder, the balance was far better than the combo of balancing the ladder with one arm and having the bushes pulling at your legs while doing the high shoulder. Could you put the tools on the ladder, allowing yourself to use to arms to balance the ladder on a high shoulder? Sure, but it still elevates your center of gravity, making it harder to balance.
Next was climbing over obstacles. Going over fences, drop offs, up hills, and down hills. The clear favorite in these tests was the low shoulder. Again, it came down to a center of gravity issue. Now, can you do a high shoulder carry in all of these scenarios? Absolutely, you can, but in the quest to be the most efficient we can be is it the appropriate carry? That is something I challenge you to test for yourself. Am I going to stop doing high shoulder carries? No, but what I am going to do is challenge myself to size up my ladder assignment. What is the landscaping like? What is the terrain like? Is it a tight space or open area? Is it uphill? Downhill? How far do I have to travel? What tools do I have to take? What is going to be the best method for me on this incident? These are all questions that we should answer multiple times before the incident in training, so that when it comes to immediate action, we don't hesitate because we know WHY.
Evolution of A Rescue: How Social Media Had A Hand In Rescuing A Three Year Old In Panama
I wanted to share this story with all of you because it gave me a lift today when I needed it. For the sake of being candid there are definitely days when I tell myself that my time in the fire service is done and I can no longer resist the pull of spending the rest of my days in the Idaho wilderness hunting, fishing and writing.
I wanted to share this story with all of you because it gave me a lift today when I needed it. For the sake of being candid there are definitely days when I tell myself that my time in the fire service is done and I can no longer resist the pull of spending the rest of my days in the Idaho wilderness hunting, fishing and writing. If you asked my wife she would certainly say she's tired of hearing me talk about it. Part of that struggle is social media, anyone who is an admin on a fire service page knows that it can sometimes be a bear. Most of us know that social media can either be one of the greatest tools for sharing knowledge and connecting with like minded people or it can be completely destructive by unproductive smart-ass comments and the inevitable Monday Morning Quarterbacking. You eventually have to resolve to fight the good fight at all costs or bow out of the scene. But every so often something happens that gives you the upper hand in that fight, something that shows the real power and pure awesomeness that social media can dish out. This story to me is one of those purely awesome moments that all those fighting the good fight deserve credit for. What I'm going to do is map out the evolution of a Facebook post that spanned three countries, two continents and eventually resulted in a rescue. It started when I saw a picture Andrew Brassard shared from the CF Tactics page of a prop being set up at the Orlando Fire Conference Heavy Rescue Class. The prop was that of a child with their head caught in a rail fence.
I thought this looked like a great drill to do the next day when I was back on tour and I knew that I had some rail fencing at the shop that would be perfect. So the next day on tour I set the drill up without letting the two firefighters I was working with know and told them to grab their hand tools and they were getting dispatched to a entrapment and they could only use the tools they had (set of irons and a NY Hook) and what they carried in their bunkers. They got to the scene, saw the child trapped and immediately set up a windlass (a simple mechanical advantage, essentially the same as making a tourniquet), with webbing from their bunkers and a Halligan bar. The result was they had the child out in no time in a low impact, non-disruptive fashion that wouldn't alarm the child like a pair of spreaders or any other mechanized tool might. So, I snapped a photo posted it to the Brothers In Battle Facebook page. Overall, people seemed to like it and some started asking for a video. So with our basic knowledge of smartphones we made a quick video...and that's when the post blew up. Over the next couple of days between the Brothers In Battle page and the Heavy Rescue page it was shared over 3,000 times and had a reach of over 500,000 people. That's a lot for some Idaho rednecks who don't know what their doing and aren't making a video of blowing something up.
This is where Lt. Daniel Archambault from St. 47 Heavy Rescue, Team A2 of the Montreal FD in Quebec steps in. He sees the video and then goes on vacation to Panama. In Panama there is the Penonome FD who the Lt. has become close with from previous trips and on this trip he spent some time training with one of the crews. And what's one of the things they train on? Yep, child with their head stuck. Now the Penonome firefighters didn't have any webbing and hadn't previously used it so the Lt. graciously gave them some and they had a great night of training that wrapped up around 22:00. It was at 10:00 am the next morning that the Lt. received the pictures that you see below of a three year old girl who got her head caught in a security door. The crew had received the exact call they had trained on and brilliantly applied that which had been taught to them literally hours before by the Lt. who was willing to train with firefighters from another country on his vacation. It was a successful rescue on all accounts.
A simple technique that started with seeing a pic from Florida, a video made in Idaho, viewed by a Lt. in Montreal, Quebec taught to some firefighters in Penonome, Panama resulted in the rescue of a three year old girl. The moral of the story is one we all know...Social media, paired with motivated Brothers and Sisters fighting to build each other up rather than criticize and simply point out faults can be a powerful thing. The knowledge shared doesn't belong to any of us, but it is our responsibility to pass it on.
Thank You Lt. Archambault for sharing this story with me! And thanks to all the Brothers and Sisters pushing the envelope of the positive impact social media can have on the fire service. - B. Olson
Vent ~ Enter ~ Search
Vent ~ Enter ~ Search
Vent
The air pack slacks off shoulders like broken wings, coat opened. Crowd noise from the game filters into the bay. The drill plays back, no one to offer a critique except the rescue dummy who holds his familiar blank stare, unconcerned with life or death.
Up the ladder almost before it crashes against the house, hope is to hear the sounds of the helpless, opportunity to work, but only the sound of feet on aluminum rungs scrapes the air. The hook separates glass from pane.
Enter
Walking through the living quarters, recliners pose like cobras in full strike.
Sweep, sound, floor's solid. Dark, combustible wave. Duck in on hands and knees, quick to the door a look down the hall, orange glow pulses like distant lightning. Time sealed in a controlled door.
Search
On the tailboard, hand on a rail eyes scan the ladder bed. Halligans dressed, halyards tied, anticipation the only noise. Is it worth it? Work stomps back in its timeless voice, in a hook that needs washed.
Dresser, chair, bed. Hands are sight here you listen for cries, thrown toys, frightened child. The room fills with mechanical breathing.
Kneeling in the yard, armor off, steam rises. A child's voice echoes, panic a look back at the window, then across the yard to a young boy in the arms of his father.
Joy spoken in a hacking cough.
A hand squeezes your shoulder,
"well done Brother, let's take up."
B. Olson
Quick Drill- Flat Roof Priorities
The duties of the Roof position covers 3 broad area's of importance (Life, Communication and Ventilation).
You've got your tools, you've made the climb, now what ?
The following is a list of priorities and the sequence they should be made in. As always these are recommended best practices intended to give you direction when your adrenaline has kicked in and you're working in anger.
1- Roof size-up (2nd means of egress, hazards, conditions, etc.)
2- Vent over interior stairs / skylights- Look for the biggest first, this is usually the sky light over the stairs. Notify crews you're taking glass or take 1 pain first, wait a few seconds then take the rest to allow crews underneath to take cover / hug a wall if necessary. Make sure to check for a draft stop and open a return to check for fire in the cock loft.
3- Perimeter search / Urban 360- Check the rear, sides, light wells and shafts for Life, Fire and layout. Report findings to command and crews operating.
4- Bulkhead- Force / open bulkhead door and skylight, check for victims and provide ventilation.
5- Scuttles / Hatches- Open any and all scuttles and hatches
6- Top floor windows- Provide horizontal ventilation opposite the hose line if possible. This should be co-ordinated with the interior crews. (A hook may reach or tie off a halligan & throw it over to vent windows).
7- Cut vent hole- Utilize saws or hand tools to cut a hole if it's a top floor fire or fire is found in the cock loft.
This is just a general overview of flat roof priorities, each of these priorities should be broken down individually and trained on. Training, tricks of the trade and an understanding of these priorities will allow you to make the roof and perform all of these tasks in a relatively short amount of time.
Truck Company Operations at "TAXPAYER" Occupancies
A few Brothers In Battle, LLC members will be helping teach this open registry class hosted by South Kitsap Fire & Rescue on July 26th. Check out the flyer below, you won't want to miss it. Truck Ops Taxpayer
Basic Irons Class Photos
The March Basic Irons class at Clark County Fire & Rescue is done, and thanks to everyone who helped make this class a success. Three days of training for 90 firefighters from Oregon and Washington produced only a few minor injuries, lots of great video and a couple truck beds full of kindling. Here's a link to our Flickr page where you can see all of the photos from our past class.
FDNY Forcible Entry Manual
FDNY Forcible Entry Reference Guide
Click to Download
The FDNY Forcible Entry reference guide is one of the most comprehensive and useful sources for Fire Service forcible entry techniques. It was compiled a few years ago by Captain John Vigiano (FDNY Ladder 176-Retired) with input from several other veteran FDNY firefighters, including Captain Robert Morris (FDNY Rescue 1).
This guide was developed to hand down techniques and skills developed through the generations, and to highlight techniques that have proven successful for members of one of the busiest fire departments in the world.
We don't all face the same challenges as the men and women who serve in New York. We may not have access to all the same tools, training, or manpower. For these reasons, some of us conclude that lessons learned from the FDNY can't apply to us- and that couldn't be further from the truth.
Here's why: The FDNY and other busy departments have tried dozens of techniques and new tools during thousands of hours of training and hundreds of thousands of fires. Their trial-and-error experience has condensed into a few proven methods to defeat the most common types of forcible entry challenges. Our benefit is that we don't have to "reinvent the wheel" with forcible entry. Padlocks behave the same way on the West Coast, so do Adams-Rite locks and steel roll-up doors.
This reference guide is a great tool for the majority of American firefighters who show up to work facing limited manpower, basic tools and limited training opportunities. When faced with challenges like this, we don't have time for ideas that don't work.