By Greg LindsayNear-Miss OKC Fire Department Greg Lindsay: Firefighter Report Continual Assessment Operations on the fire ground are a process that needs our attention. Due to the dynamic Oklahoma City FD nature, these operations change rapidly and evolve from small to large with every passing minute. Rapid, aggressive actions can bring a positive outcome, but each assignment requires careful examination of the conditions and the experience to know how far and how fast to go. It is almost impossible to overstate the need for continually assessing size-up and fire progress. The featured report begins with an initial account of fire on division two. As more crews arrived, the assignments continued to focus on a fire in division two. As companies made progress, reports from the interior updated the Incident Commander’s situational awareness, and a change of tactics became necessary. The complete report can be found at http:// firefighternearmiss.com/Reports?id=15903. As you read, consider how operations would progress in your department from your windshield “SCAN” through the conclusion of the incident. CONTINUAL SIZE-UP AND GOOD COMMUNICATION DURING FIRE ATTACK What was the initial size-up? Two-story single-family with a basement. Smoke showing from the second-floor window. Event Description The near-miss occurred during the early stages of a fire attack at a single-family dwelling fire. Units were dispatched for a house fire with smoke coming from the second floor. The regular first-due and second-due companies for this address were not available. Delayed arrival times may not have contributed to this near-miss but are worth mentioning as factors that could have led to a chain of events causing a tragic outcome given slightly different circumstances. The first unit arrived at a two-story single-family dwelling with smoke showing from Side Bravo. The crew completed a 360 size-up and reported smoke showing from “every opening” and no exterior basement access. The second engine arrived and stretched a line to the Alpha side first-floor entrance preparing for an attack on what was assumed to be a second-floor fire. The command unit arrived on the scene shortly after and directly behind Truck 1 and Truck 2, assumed command, and gave an additional size-up. Moments later, the first engine relayed a priority message about a hole in the floor directly inside the front door, and all units should back out. Command asked for a long alert tone and backed firefighters out of the front door, ensuring no other
companies made entry via that entrance. Command also checked the accountability of the units in the immediate hazard area. All units were accounted for, and the fire attack was redirected with the second engine and the third truck through a Side Delta entrance which gave direct access into the basement where the fire was located. The first due engine and Truck 1 held their position on the first floor. From the description of these events, consider the following: • What would your initial concerns be if you had arrived to find this structure with smoke showing from the second floor? • The initial 360 revealed no basement access and smoke showing from every side. What assignments should receive priority in your assessment? • This fire occurred in April at 2:30 in the afternoon. From the photo above, how likely is the house to be occupied at the time of the fire? • Discuss the potential adverse outcomes from this event. Describe the lessons learned at this event. What specific recommendations do you have regarding the lessons learned? Overall, units did an excellent job of communicating and adjusting to the situation presented to avoid a potentially negative outcome. Size-up is critical to identifying a basement fire. When one is indicated, every effort should be given to make an attack directly into the basement, avoiding a situation similar to what occurred at this incident. That being said, there was little to no indication of a working basement fire during the early stages of this incident. Given the time of day and the fact that no occupants were home, it is believed the fire had significant burn time before the fire department was dispatched. This true ordinary construction home was built in 1948, with interior framing of dimensional lumber. While houses of this construction type and era are typically very stable under fire conditions, with the extended burn time, significant portions of structural floor members were either partially or wholly burned away, leading to the hole on the first floor. Describe the leading practices you noticed at this incident: Excellent communication among crews with proper actions by command. We have all been told not to judge a book by its cover. Generally, this means that our first impressions are not always the most accurate. The first impression of an event will only cover so much.
42 August/September/October 2021Oklahoma Firefighter
Looking deeper into the incident is always necessary if you want to improve situational awareness. If only part of the information available is used, we are guessing about the rest of the incident scene. Constant assessment requires us to complete 360 surveys, maintain vigilance in receiving status updates from fireground companies, and re-evaluating tactics when conditions warrant. Understanding the incident usually leads to safer fireground operations. The author of this report indicated there was no visible evidence of a basement fire in the early stages of this incident. However, we always suspect a fire to originate on the lowest level of the residence. By doing so, when we enter on a level other than the lowest, precautions like sounding the floor and noting excessive heat are the best indicators for structural compromise. This can be extremely difficult to assess when smoke conditions obscure visibility. Coordinating ventilation with fire attack crews has proven essential, but hidden fires frequently hamper our ability to synchronize these assignments. When one task outpaces the other, additional caution is necessary. In this case, I find it helpful to assign an experienced officer to manage the coordination and observe/control the ventilation flow path. One final thought about this fire; with the current emphasis to close the door while you are sleeping (Close while you doze), we may have an additional indicator that an occupied room is protected from fire in another part of the structure. In this case, the 360-report indicated smoke showing from every opening. If the initial report revealed one or two windows that did not have a significant smoke indication, I could assume these may be survivable spaces with the possibility of a protected occupant. Initiating a directed search through these windows from the exterior could be valuable. Reports like this one that include descriptions with photographs tell a different story. Narratives that describe conditions are a vital part of this system, but incorporating photos can amplify understanding. Consider including pictures with your report, and consider including www.Firefighternearmiss.com when sharing an event that could prevent an injury or save a life.
Hole in Floor From Above
Hole in Floor From Below
