Being a street-level firefighter is where we all begin in the fire service. Sometimes as we progress through our career, we tend to forget some of the most basic functions of firefighting. The phrase “going back to the basics” has always turned my stomach as we should never leave the basics in the first place.
With that in mind, the “Views From the Jumpseat” series for the next few months will reflect on the basics of being that jumpseat-ready firefighter for your entire career. Never leaving the basics has never been as important as it is now as many officers find themselves on the end of hoselines or throwing ladders due to staffing reductions, or during daytime hours in some volunteer fire departments. Let’s take some time and go back to where we all started: riding backward down the road waiting to hear that familiar sound of the airbrake engaging, signaling that “it’s time for work.”
This month’s edition will look at the most basic firefighter position, the engine firefighter. While many fire departments do not have ladders or rescues, they all have an engine. Outside of saving lives, putting the fire out is the primary goal. Establishing water supply, making the stretch and advancing on the fire is a job for all firefighters. We all need to make sure that, no matter what color helmet you wear, we can ensure that the hoseline gets stretched out so it can effetely put the fire out. Bunker up, buckle in and let the article begin.
Engine Company Basics
Before we can talk about the basis for the work that happens with the engine company, we need to spend a few moments on personal protective equipment (PPE). Those skills are often overlooked in the greater scheme of responding. This oversight can prove to be fatal if you haven’t developed the needed skills of donning, checking, and re-checking your assigned PPE. From making sure your SCBA cylinder is full to having your appropriate structural gloves and taking the time to make sure you have everything ready starts with a check performed by everyone.
Having a routine for these checks will allow you to make sure that things are where they should be. The best place to develop this routine is by starting with the way you take it off after your last response. You should have a system for removing all of your PPE and returning it to the proper place. Gloves go here, hood goes here and radio goes here are great ways of making sure that if a fire happens right after this one you are prepared.
As an engine firefighter, you should frequently check the wear and tear on the knee area of your PPE since you could spend a lot of time crawling while dragging hose. Don’t forget to check your boots for any holes.
Establishing Water Supply
Making sure that we have an adequate water supply is job number one on any fire scene. While being tasked as the hydrant firefighter is not usually the most desirable position on the fireground, it can prove to be one of the most important. As the jumpseat riding firefighter, our job is to wait for the signal to dismount the engine, locate the hydrant and begin the layout in a timely fashion.
Catching a hydrant may sound like rookie training to you, but being rusty in its application can slow the fire attack and put the nozzle team in jeopardy if they lose water pressure. Being able to select the proper adapter, wrap the hose safely around the hydrant and making the hook up within a short amount of time should be routinely added into everyone’s training. It’s not just the rookie’s job to be able to make this connection. Who knows, it may be a chief officer arriving at a short-staffed scene that will need to hook it up.
Making The Stretch
The simplest of tasks on the engine can lead to the most problems. Taking an attack line off the engine and flaking it out to the point of attack seems easy enough. How often have you seen a firefighter wrapped in the hose like when I use a bait caster fishing reel? Repetition is key in making the initial stretch, but you should add different variables to challenge your training. Most all firefighters can advance an uncharged hoseline straight down a level parking lot, but many can be challenged with even the slightest variation, such as parked cars or fences.
Many engine companies only have one firefighter making the first stretch, usually while the officer is making their way around the structure for their 380-degree size-up. We should take it upon ourselves to be able to pull it perfectly every time, no matter what our rank.
The Backup Firefighter
Being the nozzle firefighter may be the most desired position on the engine crew, but the role of the backup firefighter is just as important. While it may not be desirable, the job that requires the most knowledge and work ethic is the backup firefighter. Being the second firefighter on the line requires you to put forth more effort, work in unison with the nozzle firefighter and deal with the bends and turns of making the hit.
Whether it is rounding a corner or going the opposite direction as the firefighter on the nozzle, the backup firefighter should take the pressure off the nozzle by supporting their attack with good skills and work ethic so the knock down isn’t delayed. All of these tasks should be accomplished while carrying a tool of some sorts, meaning often one-handed. While the backup firefighter may not be the most sought after position it certainly can come with the most responsibility. On your next drill, you might be the backup and then you’ll see how hard of a job it truly is.
Being a street-level firefighter means that you must develop the needed skills to perform under pressure. These skills need to be continued until the day you hang up your helmet. Basic engine work is the base built from your days riding backwards and continued to your days behind the desk. Remember, that the most looked-up-to chiefs are the ones who can still do the job. Thanks for the visit to the jumpseat, stay tuned for more jumpseat-ready tips as next month we look at the baseline for the truck company.
Ryan Pennington, a Firehouse.com contributing editor, is a firefighter/paramedic for the Charleston, WV, Fire Department. He is currently assigned to Station 8 and a member of the West Virginia Task Force 1 USAR team. He has more than 18 years of combined fire, rescue and EMS experience. Pennington is currently a West Virginia State Instructor 2, Hazmat Technician, and Certified Fire Officer 2. He is the author of the “Views From the Jumpseat” blog on Firehouse.com. You can reach him by e-mail at: [email protected] or Twitter: @JumpseatViews.
