C Side Engine Company

11/03/2023

Sharing some knowledge this weekend with All Hands Fire at the Lt. Joe DiBernardo training weekend.

09/26/2023

Thank you to everyone who wished me a happy birthday yesterday!

If you’re attending FireHouse Expo this week, you can give me a birthday present by attending my class on Friday afternoon. Looking forward to a week of training and sharing some knowledge in Columbus.

03/15/2023

We responded on a house fire 2nd due last night and positioned in the rear alley. Stretched a 200ft 1.75" off the bumper and had great access after removing a section fence.

12/13/2022

We were drilling at a large commercial building last night in our first due. One of the things we worked on was stretching a line to the C side and stretching in to the middle of the building. We went over positioning the engine so the rear bed is facing your stretch target. We used a 300ft 1.75" line and stretched about 200ft before reaching the entry door in the rear.

One thing that I struggle with as a command level officer is how to efficiently track where companies are in a large building. This building was 1 floor but it was probably 500ft x 200ft. The engine was operating near the C side at about the mid point. I'm curious how others manage the companies when operating at large buildings.

10/10/2022

"It’s OK to stretch, flake, and charge at a food-on-the-stove fire to keep guys on their toes—this can be training for the day! As the boss, don’t be afraid to ever call for the line to be laid; your personnel want to go through the paces." Kirby and Lakamp

07/25/2022

Below the k**b
Open the k**b

Neutral plane height in relation to the door k**b. If the plane is below the k**b of the door, there is a lot of heat and we must cool as we advance.

Water creates survivable space!

06/28/2022

Captain Eckert with some solid advice on deploying hand lines.

Lines On The Ground - Revisit.
The Fire Ground is an extremely unpredictable place. You can train for one thing and have it all go out the window when you turn the corner. When we arrive conditions dictate actions, BUT it’s our movement that dictates how we carry out those actions. Our coexistence can be detrimental if we don’t respect each other’s priorities and movement. It’s the main reason we need to add realism in our training and get out of the parking lots. When’s the last time you trained on deploying multiple hand lines?
Typically the more Engine’s at a fire the more attack lines there are deployed. Whether you like it or not, getting that first line in place is everyone’s priority. That hose line needs to get to the seat of the fire to not only protect anyone trapped but to protect searches as well. If you’re not first due, get over it and help it get the first due line in place. As glamorous as it sounds, if that line is committed to the interior, you’re hardly going to stretch around or past it. After you ensure that line is moving in the right direction it’s courtesy to deploy your line. Remember the more hose lines you have operating the more hose lines you have laying on the ground. They can all very easily get tangled together. Any line stretched needs to be mindful of the lines already on the ground and operating. Even in the tightest of areas do what you can to have your hose coexist with the others. Flake out as much as possible and try and go in a different direction as the others to flake. As soon as a line is charged it weighs more. Adding weight on top of hose makes it harder to move! We’ve all been inside and called for more line and we’re still waiting for it. You need to do as much as you can on the outside, because once inside moving that line can be one of the hardest fire ground tasks.
Slow down and take in the entire scene, be aware of what’s happening and where lines are going before you deploy yours. One false move can inhibit everyone and delay the initial tasks.
PS this goes for supply line too! Never lay it on top of attack line, always under. Even if you have to lift attack line up, make it happen!

06/19/2022

Water mapping! Getting good effect on target, around the corner.

05/25/2022

Learning about fire dynamics will help us perform better on the fire ground. Properly staffed companies will ensure we can perform those tactics effectively.

The Meadowood Court fire is one to learn from. There are great videos on YouTube and investigative reports to read about the fire. Conducting a 360 could have changed the outcome for some of the firefighters.

On May 25, 2008, fire and rescue personnel from Loudoun County responded to a structure fire at 43238 Meadowood Court in Leesburg. Crews from Company 6 arrived on the scene to find heavy fire coming from a two-story single-family home. Four firefighters quickly searched the home for occupants and initiated a fire attack while the two apparatus operators conducted exterior tasks.

A rapid and catastrophic change of fire and smoke conditions occurred in the interior of the house. Four personnel from Engine 6 and Tower 6 became trapped on the second floor due to the intense fire, heat and smoke conditions. A Mayday transmission was made and the 4 firefighters were forced to self-rescue from the structure.

During the course of the incident, seven responders were injured. Of those injured, four firefighters received significant burn injuries, two firefighters sustained orthopedic injuries, and one EMS provider was treated for minor respiratory distress. One firefighter, Lt. John Early, was medically retired due to his burn injuries.

There were several investigations, including one conducted by OSHA which included a citation.

There was a long list of changes identified that needed to be done with how we operate as a department. Through the years, we have been chipping away at the list, however, there are a few significant items which **STILL** remain unaddressed *****14 years later*****.

Number 1 on the list of recommendations (Meadowood Report Appendix 1-Recommendations) is:

1. Increase the System-wide minimum staffing level to at least four qualified Firefighters on all fire suppression units, including engine, truck, and rescue companies.

A more detailed background on that recommendation can be found on page 44 in the Meadowood Report under the “Effective Firefighting Force” section.

The 4th firefighter is critical for the safety of our crews as they provide more manpower on EMS and fire scenes. The NFPA Technical Committee reviewed numerous studies, evaluations and stakeholder reports containing empirical data on departmental response and mitigation of fire. These studies clearly demonstrate that for safe, effective, and efficient fire suppression each responding company needs a minimum of four firefighters. Numerous studies support the four-person minimum. Studies have also shown that more resources on scene of EMS calls means quicker transport time to the hospital and reduces injuries.

In the west end of the county, resources are spread out and crews have to wait a significant amount of time for the next arriving apparatus and manpower to arrive on scene. Having a 4th firefighter would improve fire ground and EMS operations tremendously.

NFPA 1710 (Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations, and Special Operations to the Public by Career Fire Departments) addresses proper staffing levels of apparatus, which includes a 4th firefighter on the engine, as well as response times. The OSHA citation from 2008 also addresses the need to adhere to NFPA 1710.

iaff3756.org/meadowood/

Investigative Report into the Meadowood Court Fire:
http://iaff3756.org/meadowoodct/Meadowood%20Court%20Significant%20Injury%20Investigative%20Report.PDF

Investigative Report into the Meadowood Court Fire video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihc_Lz7Yh_4

05/17/2022

Erase the heat! Water is how we create survivable space inside a structure fire.

This FLIR video is from an acquired structure burn in a commercial building. The fire originated in a smaller office, off a larger space through the door in the video. The engine crew made their push with a 2.25" handline flowing 265 gpm.

Watching the heat coming from the room, we can see when the line is open and the immediate heat return overhead once the line in shut down. We can also see the amount of heat left in the hallway after the engine crew pushed into the room.

Pointing the nozzle directly overhead will put water behind the nozzle team, this turns the stream into a sprinkler and gets everything in the area wet. We should train ourselves to perform a quick sweep with the nozzle directly overhead before we push into a room, and once we are through the door to hit the dry wall behind us.